I didn't see it is mentioned here? Does that mean there is less chance for tracy-steve trade? If so, I am glad. -Littlefish
It's nostalgia for the days when the Rockets viewed draft picks as something useful, rather than bothersome albatrosses to be unburdened along with large contracts like Glen Rice.
Honestly, with the way drafts have become, I can't blame teams for tossing away their picks. We had what, barely enough decent ones in 2003-04 to fill out the all-rookie team? Seriously! Name more than 6 rookies from this past year that are worth a 3 year contract. With the cap-starved state of 2/3rds of the teams in the league, I can't blame them for being shy about rolling the dice in a draft like this. I wouldn't want to keep adding non-contributers at $2 million a pop when I'm already sitting over the luxury tax. Out of the 30 NBA teams, 7 do not have a first round pick in this draft, and I doubt they're crying about it. This draft is as weak as they come. Evan
Honestly, I can't tell if this is a good draft or not. I have only seen about 5 of the projected first rounders even play. I don't think people will know if this is a good draft until these kids mature into adulthood in about four or five years.
Well, they've been saying it a lot more because it's true. The influx of HS'ers and foreign players not ready to contribute is changing the impact of the draft. Last year, people didn't say it was a weak draft, they said it was a big dropoff after the number 3 selection, which was true with the exception of Dwayne Wade. Bosh and Hinrich were good but not spectacular. It was the best draft in the new millenium, though. 2002 Draft netted Yao, Amare, Butler, Ginobilli, Hilario, Jay "Can't Miss" Williams, and question marks Okur, Gooden, Giricek, Bremer, Dunleavey, and Jaric. 2001 Draft gave us Pau Gasol, Richard Jefferson, AK47, Tony Parker, and a legion of unfulfilled potential and 2nd class players: Eddie Griffin, Kwame, Curry & Chandler, Tinsley, Jason Richardson, Shane Battier, Radmanovic, etc. 2000 was perhaps the most woeful draft of all time. Kenyon Martin, Mike Miller, and arguably Q Richardson, Desmond Mason, and Turkoglu were the only worthwhile players to be found in this draft. Here's the first and second all-rookie squads from that forgettable crop: First Team Mike Miller, Orlando Kenyon Martin, New Jersey Marc Jackson, Golden State Morris Peterson, Toronto Darius Miles, L.A. Clippers Second Team Hidayet Turkoglu, Sacramento Desmond Mason, Seattle Courtney Alexander, Washington Marcus Fizer, Chicago Chris Mihm, Cleveland This year's draft will probably be better than the 2000 one, but don't expect to see many first year impact players. Evan
Man that 2000 draft was horrible. D Miles was awful and he was first team? Other than the players that have played a few years of college, Okafur, Nelson, L Jackson(pushing it) I don't expect much in the way of pruduction from the first year guys. Eventually I think you'll see more HS and forgien(sp) players making an impact b/c the league as a whole will become weaker. Eventually I think we'll have more teams that are comparable to some of the dominant college programs of the past, rather than dominant NBA teams.
Well, think of it this way. All current NBA players come from somewhere. The vastly majority of them were drafted. So if you look at a series of drafts through the years, you will inevitably find good and great players relative to their peer in those drafts. What is not clear is that are these players better than other good/great players in other times? For example, how do the current top players (KG, Duncan, Kobe, etc.) compare to Hakeem, Jordan, Barkley, etc.? There's another issue in recent drafts. How ready are the draftees? Unlike in the past when most draftees have pretty much the same college experience, nowadays, we have the HS kids, and the foreign players. These players might turn out to be great, but take more time. So what looks like to be a weak draft now might become quite good after a few years.
If we're comparing every draft class to 1984, then I understand why people say they are weak. I don't find that to be very useful, however. Where the class stands to the most recent drafts is a much better indicator of value. As for the HS kids, you look to the draft and especially the lottery, with a long view. Even if Nowitzki didn't produce in his first couple of seasons, he was still a great pick. I don't think a draft is weak just because some guys can't contribute right away.
I saw that last night...DianaT looked, um...well, I'd hit in anyway... Remember Steve Patterson, from the old Rockets, Areos days...
What I meant was, Nowitzki looks a lot better than when he was drafted. If the potential draft class had a lot of Nowitzki type players, that draft would be judged weak at that time, but turned out to be quite strong after a few years. I believe most drafts are like that now due to the influx of HS and foreign prospects.
I am surprised that you think it is odd that they are doing it in the GARM Forum. <hr color=red> Especially when there are some roster spots to upgrade and the Rockets are likely to be only spectators in the first round.
It is said that Magic wants to shop No. 1 Pick. So what is the value of No. 1 Pick (probably Okafor) this year? Seems like Magic wants to pact the pick with a bad contract (Hill?), so who is willing to sacrafice a very good player and a huge contract to get a No. 1 Pick?
