Reactions to the 2017 NBA Draft

The 2017 NBA Draft, which will be remembered as one of the most legendary and literal game changing drafts in the history of the league, has come to a close and now it’s time to over analyze and reflect on some of the best, and most shocking, moves of the night.  

For starters, let’s begin with the biggest name in the 2017 NBA Draft, and no I’m not talking about Lonzo Ball.  Markelle Fultz, the future superstar himself, was predicted to go to the current #1 seed in the East, Boston Celtics, until Danny Ainge traded the first overall pick to Philadelphia, securing Fultz’s fate as part of “The Process” in the city of brotherly love.  Now Fultz joins a promising team of Embiid, Saric, and Simmons, with promising Center, Anzejs Pasecniks, also coming to Philadelphia, to form what could possibly be the core of the next great era of the 76ers franchise history.  If everyone mentioned above stays healthy, which truly is a longshot as Philadelphia’s young talent has kept their medical staff busy these last few seasons to say the least, then we could see the beginnings of a truly remarkable team.  Personally, I think Ben Simmons could be pretty overrated, but if Embiid and Fultz play to their full potential (which they both will easily do) this Sixers team could be rising the ranks of the Eastern Conference at an alarming pace.  As of right now, I have the 76ers finishing as the 8 seed in the East, but only if their core can make it through the ENTIRE season avoiding injuries.  But with a ton of big moves rumored to be made in the Eastern Conference, the 2017-18 season still might not be the year the Sixers finally earn a playoff birth, but they will definitely make a close run at least.

Next I want to discuss the franchise who made the best of Draft night.  The Sacramento Kings hands down had the most impressive night by far.  While the Minnesota Timberwolves had a very successful night by trading for Jimmy Butler and the 16th overall pick,  Sacramento secured the most impressive group of future stars.  With the 5th, 15h, 20th (their original 10th overall pick was traded for the 2 later first round picks), and the 34th pick overall the Sacramento Kings drafted De’Aaron Fox, Justin Jackson, Harry Giles, and Frank Mason III.  Originally, with the 2 top 10 picks in the 2017 Draft, the Kings were projected to draft both Kentucky star Guards, De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk.  Personally, I was really hoping this would play out.  Not only am I a huge Kentucky basketball fan, and an even bigger Malik Monk fan, but I think taking two teammates who successfully worked together in college and having them continue this play style on the same NBA team could be absolutely lethal for the rest of the league.  However, after seeing what the Kings got in return for essentially trading Monk proves that they somehow got an even better deal.  Justin Jackson just finished a fantastic season with UNC that concluded with Jackson leaving the court as a NCAA Tournament Champion.  Frank Mason III was the unsung hero of Kansas basketball who’s playing ability was significantly overshadowed by the great Josh Jackson.  Lastly, Harry Giles, who greatly helped Duke make a very impressive turnaround in the last half of the Blue Devils’ season, is one of the stellar Centers who was drafted in the 1st round.  To put it simply, each of these prospects are more than capable of making a prominent positive impact on the Kings in their respective rookie seasons.  Put them alongside Buddy Hield and Willie Cauley-Stein and Sacramento could be joining the Suns, Timberwolves, Bucks, and 76ers as the next great teams of the league.  However, Sacramento is notorious for trading away amazing talent that they have drafted in the past, so only time will tell how the Kings’ future plays out, but for now, it’s looking phenomenal.

I’m still not done talking about Kentucky basketball, however.  Malik Monk, who dropped out of the top 10 only minutes before the draft was about to begin, soon found a home in Charlotte with the Hornets, as they drafted him 11th overall.  Personally, I’m shocked he wasn’t a top 10 pick, and I guarantee those who passed up on him will regret it in years to come, but for now, the Hornets’ backcourt is looking deadly.  All-Star Kemba Walker and Malik Monk will be exploiting their athleticism and impactful shooting to make a significant playoff run this season.  Adding Dwight Howard, regardless of your opinion on him, is a good move as well, as Howard can still perform as a solid Center who especially thrives when surrounded by great shooters (i.e. Monk and Kemba).  However, even though they’ll make it close, the Hornets will once again miss the playoffs and finish as the 10th seed in the Eastern Conference.  But like Sacramento and Philadelphia, the future of the Charlotte franchise is looking promising.

To quote the great Bill Walton, the Pac-12 is “The Conference of Champions”, and The Conference of Champions produces some of the NBA’s best talent.  Ivan Rabb will be a great example of this Pac-12 success.  Playing Center for Cal, Rabb’s play style is different, yet very effective.  At a lean 220 lbs and standing at 6’11”, Rabb is agile and can maneuver his way into getting key rebounds.  He won’t be the typical big man who muscles his way into making plays, but instead, Rabb will capitalize on points in the paint by being the better athlete and playing a style of ball that his opponents simply cannot match.  Not to say Rabb will be as good at all, but Ivan Rabb’s effectiveness in the paint and play style through athleticism will be similar to how Dennis Rodman outplayed the average Center during his career.  It’s also important to note that Ivan Rabb joining the Memphis Grizzlies is a perfect fit, as Rabb will get to learn from one of the greatest Centers in the league, Marc Gasol.  Gasol also plays an unconventional style of play for a Center by being effective from both beyond the arc and in the paint, and his veteran leadership will greatly help develop Rabb’s game.

University of Nevada’s own, Cameron Oliver, unfortunately was not drafted in this year’s draft, but he was signed as a free agent with the Houston Rockets for a multi-year deal.  It’s unlikely that Oliver will have an outstanding career in the NBA, but after the Nevada Wolfpack completed a simply historic season in the Mountain West Conference, it’s fantastic to see one of the stars of Nevada make it to the NBA.  Hopefully, Oliver proves me wrong and continues to add to his inspiring story as an up and coming player.

Derrick White also became the first player from University of Colorado to be drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft since Andre Robinson in 2013.  I personally had the privilege of covering Colorado basketball games in Boulder, Colorado for Tailgate Sports this past season and I can say that watching Derrick White play every night was phenomenal.  The Senior’s game has grown tremendously, and his lights out offense is arguably the main reason why Colorado finished the season with a handful of impressive wins, including a home win against a ranked Oregon squad.  White’s journey to the NBA is remarkable, and I will be writing about it later this week (the article will be posted in both the College Basketball and NBA tabs, so stay tuned), but his future in San Antonio looks even brighter.  Now more than ever, Kawhi and the Spurs need more impactful assets to finally take down Golden State in the West, and combined with Gregg Popovich’s legendary coaching ability and the Spurs development system, which mirrors the New England Patriots’ system where they can take any player and turn them into a star/key player or at least get each player to perform at their highest possible ability.  As long as White has a roster spot on the Spurs he’s sure to find success for San Antonio.  Hopefully the 2017-18 season features Chris Paul and Derrick White spearheading the San Antonio backcourt.

In more shocking analysis, I still can’t believe that the Washington Wizards and the Cleveland Cavaliers didn’t have a single draft pick or trade in this year’s draft.  For teams that are in serious need of new key additions it’s shocking that they would have literally no input in what is probably the greatest draft class of this decade.  Washington’s future will still look solid, regardless of this inactivity, but Cleveland should be seriously concerned that they didn’t have any involvement in the Draft.  Whether they land Paul George for this season or not, if Cleveland loses Lebron to Los Angeles in 2018, and they’re forced to trade Love and Kyrie as well, they will seriously regret not picking up any of the future stars who were available in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Lastly, current NBA Finals Champs, the Golden State Warriors, didn’t have a single pick in the 2017 Draft, but they did make one significant trade.  In exchange for cash, the Warriors were able to land the 38th overall pick in the Draft and took Oregon’s Jordan Bell.  Not only was Bell a stellar Center for the Ducks, but the only position where Golden State might slightly be struggling at would be the position of Center.  With Curry, Durant, Iguodala, and Thompson all needing new contracts, it would be a huge help for the GSW to release Zaza Pachulia and replace him with Bell.  Also, despite his infamous reputation, JaVale McGee really stepped up to the plate in the 2017 NBA Playoffs and proved that he’s capable of being efficient as a Center for the Warriors.  Only taking up $1.4M last season, and projected to take about the same amount this season, the combo of Jordan Bell and JaVale McGee would help upgrade Golden State’s Center position while maintaining their All-Star packed core.

Written by Erik Clark, @_erikclark