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Grading the 2015 NBA draft
The 2015 NBA draft took place on Thursday, after a flurry of rumors and trades preceded the festivities. We thought we’d go in depth and look at each team’s haul for the week, grading each team in terms of context, potential, scouting, and the idea that half of these damn kids are 20 – so let’s give ‘em a little room to figure things out, OK?
On to the grades
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Atlanta Hawks
Acquired: Tim Hardaway Jr. (via trade with New York), Dimitrios Agravanis at No. 59, two future second-round picks.
Because the Hawks’ outright theft of a midrange first-round draft pick from the Nets (a swap of selection from the three-year old Joe Johnson deal) was so cunning, it feels like a bit of a disappointment that the team was only able to parlay the 15th overall pick into Hardaway Jr. and a pair of second-rounders from Washington. Atlanta chose Kelly Oubre for the Wizards in the deal, moving them down to 19th in what seemed like a head-scratcher at the time – the price of moving up four slots in the middle of the first-round is only two second-rounders?
Then the Hawks added to the confusion by adding Hardaway Jr. in exchange for the 19th pick, which New York used on Jerian Grant. If DeMarre Carroll returns as a free agent and Thabo Sefolosha comes back to full health (no sure thing, ATL doesn’t have Carroll’s Bird Rights and Thabo’s injury is a rare and unfortunate non-basketball one), the Hawks would have no immediate use for Oubre or any of the other several swingmen available at 15 (or 19), and they don’t need another point man.
Hardaway has his merits. He took a step back in his second season but he could be the isolation scorer the Hawks sorely need in the backcourt. This still seems like a disappointment.
Grade: C
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Boston Celtics
Acquired: Terry Rozier at No. 16, R.J. Hunter at No. 28, Jordan Mickey at No. 33, Marcus Thornton at No. 45.
Boston entered the night attempting to do damage with its cadre of young, solid-enough tradeable player assets, its two first-rounders this year, two extra first-round picks besides its own in 2016, and potentially 11 future extra second-round picks spread out between 2016 and 2018. It takes two or sometimes three teams to tango in the NBA, however, and when trades fell through the Celtics settled on taking hybrid guard depth with Louisville’s Rozier, a shooter/playmaker in Georgia St.’s Hunter late in the first, and a possible rotation-ready rim protector in LSU’s Mickey in the second round.
The similarities between Rozier and last year’s lottery pick, Marcus Smart, are a little concerning, but the C’s seem convinced he was the best player available. They’ll rely on the brilliant Brad Stevens to turn Hunter into a consistent contributor, and Mickey does serve a need in the paint even with his whippet-thin frame. Marcus Thornton will have an uphill battle to make the team, which is a shame because the Celtics could have been one trade and one roster invite away from having two Marcus Thorntons on their team.
We’re still upset at the fact that the Celtics waived Allan Ray just weeks after trading for Ray Allen, so this clearly drags their grade down a bit.
Grade: C+
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Brooklyn Nets
Acquired: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (No. 23 pick, via trade), Juan Vaulet (No. 39 pick, via trade), Steve Blake (via trade), Chris McCullough at No. 29.
The Nets shipped center Mason Plumlee, who was oddly in and out of the rotation last season, to Portland for Hollis-Jefferson and Blake. The Arizona product is a killer athlete, teammate, and he’ll be a consummate pro, but he remains a terrible shooter with mechanics that need a complete overhaul. As we saw in Charlotte with Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, even exacting attention to fixing these sorts of things oftentimes isn’t enough.
McCullough was considered a lottery talent until he tore his ACL while at Syracuse, and it’s possible that he’ll miss all of 2015-16. Prior to the injury he still looked like a project, full of long arms but a wispy frame, but Brooklyn doesn’t mind developing him at the low-low price of the penultimate pick of the first-round. Vaulet is an Argentinean athletic swingman who has quite a bit to do in order to develop an all-around NBA game.
Grade: B
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Charlotte Hornets
Acquired: Frank Kaminsky at No. 9, two second-round picks, Nicolas Batum via trade (from Portland), Jeremy Lamb via trade (from Oklahoma City).
Hornets owner Michael Jordan apparently fell in love with the Wisconsin big man, and despite having Cody Zeller to bang and Spencer Hawes to shoot already on his Hornet roster, Charlotte decided to pull the trigger on a guy that could combine both their attributes. Perhaps with better success, too, and at a cheaper price.
Kaminsky is a late bloomer, and while he’ll struggle defensively in a frontcourt with Al Jefferson, it wasn’t as if there was a glaring All-Star to be had at No. 9, though several of the picks taken behind Kaminsky certainly have that potential. Still, you don’t pass on a guy you really like just because you once had Spencer Hawes on your team, so we can be talked into this.
The Hornets did well before the draft in acquiring both Nicolas Batum and Jeremy Lamb at their absolute lowest point as trade assets, though the team might miss last year’s lottery pick (Noah Vonleh) in Al Jefferson’s declining years. Assuming he spends them in Charlotte.
Grade: B
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Chicago Bulls
Acquired: Bobby Portis at No. 22.
With shooter James Anderson off the board and possible reserve point men Jerian Green and Delon Wright having already been clawed up by other teams, the Bulls did well to recover with Portis on the fly. He may never be a starter, but his array of skills and (everyone’s saying it, and we get to, too) motor will fit right in even in that crowded Chicago frontcourt.
Not even new Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg knows how his rotation or even starting lineup will look at this point in the summer, but with Taj Gibson likely gimpy to start the season after major ankle surgery, Porter will get his chances even with Nikola Mirotic, Pau Gasol, and Joakim Noah roaming around.
Grade: A
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Cleveland Cavaliers
Acquired: Two future second-round picks, Cedi Osman at No. 31, Rakeem Christmas at No. 36, Sir'Dominic Pointer at No. 53.
The Cavs seemed to have found the perfect Tough Guy Reserve to stand up to LeBron James in former Duke point man Tyus Jones, but they immediately shipped him to Minnesota for two future second-rounders.
This might look like a bum move for a team that was stripped to a seven-man rotation (just barely) in the playoffs after injury, with third guard Matthew Dellavedova having to play major point guard minutes, but this is how things work when you’re facing down perhaps the biggest payroll and luxury tax bill in NBA history once LeBron James, Tristan Thompson, and possibly Kevin Love are all taken care of. The team’s grade might sink somewhat as a result, but it was a completely understandable trade for Cleveland as they attempt to slash costs.
Osman is an odd sort of pass-first swingman from Macedonia, and when he does come over he could be able to take some playmaking pressure off of LeBron James. Christmas is a developed athlete who should be able to contribute spot minutes right away even as a second-round pick.
Sir'Dominic Pointer is a tweener forward and definitely not the name of a Van Morrison album who will act as training camp help.
Grade: B-
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Dallas Mavericks
Acquired: Justin Anderson at No. 21, Satnam Singh Bhamara at No. 55.
Anderson developed rapidly in his junior year at Virginia, nailing a ridiculous amount of threes while playing his way into the first round. If he can keep up his knockout outside shooting, he’ll have a lasting role in this league. Even if the pro game limits Anderson’s ability to carry over bits of the all-around 3-and-D game he featured as a Cavalier in his third season, if the jumpers are falling he’ll be worth the selection. If his ceiling is the new Hubert Davis, so what? That’s where the NBA is at right now.
The 7-2, nearly 300-pound Satnam Singh Bhamara is a massive center, the first NBA draftee born in India to be selected, he’s a great story and he can even hit the long jumper. It would be a massive long shot for him to create a lasting NBA career at that size, however.
Grade: B+
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Denver Nuggets
Acquired: Emmanuel Mudiay at No. 7, Nikola Radicevic at No. 57.
Mudiay may have benefitted from playing against older men during his one year spent playing overseas in China, but the inconsistent makeup of the NBL’s roster and his up and down season made him a hard prospect to peg down. He still appears to have the total athletic package at point guard, and it’s going to be fascinating to see him blend in with the NBA’s typical brand of orthodoxy and all-out chaos (which Denver seems to lead the NBA in every year, even when they stink). In the team’s lone year in the high lottery, it was nice to see Denver take a chance on a high-ceiling player, despite the obvious risks.
Radicevic was Kristaps Porzingis’s point guard in Spain, but the Serbian might have a rough road to make it toward an NBA roster spot in a few years.
Grade: B
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Detroit Pistons
Acquired: Stanley Johnson at No. 8, Darrun Hilliard II at No. 38.
This is a worrying one.
The Pistons, due to the team’s midseason surge, were locked out of the high end of the lottery. The team does need a swingman, but Johnson looks like a bit of a tweener that could be outpaced by Justise Winslow – who was taken by Miami two picks later.
One supposes the former Arizona freshman could bang his way toward turning into a Draymond Green-type, but for now his offensive game is made up of post-ups over smaller defenders. There won’t be smaller small forwards in the NBA, and outside of LeBron James and the occasional Kawhi Leonard foray, when was the last time you saw an NBA team doing damage in the playoffs with a small forward posting up all the time?
Hillard II wasn’t highly regarded on most draft boards, but the Pistons do need some roster fodder at point guard with Brandon Jennings recovering from an Achilles tear and Reggie Jackson possibly not long for Michigan.
Grade: C-
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Golden State Warriors
Acquired: Kevon Looney at No. 30.
In previous seasons, we’d be lauding the Warriors for an absolute steal. If this were the Spurs in, say, 2007 we’d be beside ourselves – “typical Warriors, damn they’re good.”
They are good. Great, actually, leading the NBA in defense and nearly offense on their way toward a 67-win season and NBA title. Looney is a lottery talent that fell because of a hip condition that might require surgery, but what do the Warriors care? Let him take the surgery, adapt the Warrior Way, and reap in the benefits sometime in 2016-17 – when the Warriors have a damned good chance at going for a three-peat.
The issue here is money. Looney won’t make a ton of it next year – probably around $1.4 million – but every penny counts for a team that could be facing a massive salary and luxury tax bill as it attempts to keep the gang together. GSW doesn’t mind paying the actual cash, they understand the price to pay for a championship, but it’s the luxury tax penalties and restrictions that come with it (in pure basketball personnel terms) that hurt.
Looney won’t destroy the team’s tax setup, even if the squad is unable to clear David Lee’s salary from its books this summer. He’s a talented player and fine prospect and he could very well be a big contributor down the line.
The W’s didn’t trade out of the first round, though, and that’s why we’re not giving them the fawning, over the top Spurs-treatment. That’s about as complimentary as a diss can get.
Grade: B+
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Houston Rockets
Acquired: Sam Dekker at No. 18, Montrezl Harrell at No. 32.
The Rox were without their own first round selection this year after sending Jeremy Lin to the Lakers in a salary dump, needing to include a pick along the way, but they were able to grab New Orleans’ first-rounder in the Omer Asik deal from last summer – as the expensive chances general manager Daryl Morey took on Lin and Asik keep paying off. Dekker will eventually be a killer in Houston’s system, even if his jump shot could use some fine tuning, he’ll thrive in a pell-mell style after being freed from the Big Ten shackles of Wisconsin.
Louisville’s Harrell needs to become more consistent as well, but if motivated he’ll be a bugger to mind right away. Houston badly needed depth heading into this draft and with two middling picks they picked up two tweener forwards who will contribute in their first year and act as relied-upon rotation forwards in their second. Not bad.
The only problem? Houston has, like, 157 other tweener forwards.
Grade: A
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Indiana Pacers
Acquired: Myles Turner at No. 11, Joseph Young at No. 43.
The Pacers were rumored to be after Kaminsky and thinking about adding Murray State’s Cameron Payne, but in the end the team went with a far less polished prospect in the Texas center. The 19-year old Turner can swat shots, he has good form on his shot (even if they aren’t falling much yet) and he’s a remarkable athlete, but he’s also quite raw and he’s being added to a team that is attempting to regain its championship contender status sooner rather than later. It’s an odd fit, but you can’t deny the talent Indiana just added.
Oregon’s Young is a little wispy at this point, but he has first-round talent and has a good chance to make the roster as the Pacers seek out more scorers that can push the ball.
These are two pieces that fit the team’s new up-tempo plan. It may take a few years for this thing to fall into place, however, with the 2015 draft acting as a cornerstone of sorts.
Grade: B+
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Los Angeles Clippers
Acquisition: Brendan Dawson at No. 56
Boston took in the Clippers’ first-rounder as a result of the Doc Rivers trade. The Celtics took Georgia State scorer R.J. Hunter, and however well that sits with you is based entirely on whether or not you think the Clippers traded for Doc Rivers the coach, or Doc Rivers the GM.
The Clippers took a small chance in trading for Dawson, seeing clear parallels between him and fellow Michigan State Spartan Draymond Green, though Dawson reportedly has 1/8th as many gears for his particular motor.
Grade: Incomplete
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Los Angeles Lakers
Acquired: D’Angelo Russell at No. 2, Larry Nance Jr. at No. 27, Anthony Brown at No. 34.
Emmanuel Mudiay and Kristaps Porzingis may have higher upside while Jahlil Okafor might be a better contributor right away, but for a lot of reasons the steady Russell was Los Angeles’ best choice. The Ohio State guard is a fine playmaker who will act as a win-now asset as the Lakers attempt to go after veteran free agents.
Nance is still developing as a player, but already he’s showcased great basketball IQ, great length and terrific hops even after suffering a torn ACL. Some think the Wyoming product is a reach at No. 27, but the Lakers should be happy with the value they got from this pick – one grabbed from Houston for taking on Jeremy Lin’s salary for the year.
Stanford’s Anthony Brown, meanwhile, might carve out a gig as the NBA’s next James Jones. That’s an incredible pickup some four picks into the second round.
Grade: A+
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Memphis Grizzlies
Acquisitions: Jarrell Martin at No. 25, Andrew Harrison at No. 44, Matt Barnes via trade (Charlotte).
LSU product Martin had an inconsistent run with the Tigers. He moves well for his size and could possibly play both forward positions should the Grizzlies look to go huge at times, but he also disappeared for stretches and doesn’t quite have a jumper that will make defenses think twice at this point.
Harrison was highly recruited before heading to Kentucky, as scouts tend to love giant (Harrison is 6-6) point guards, but he disappointed in his turn with the Wildcats. It’s very much possible that Harrison is just one of those players that just badly needs to have as little to do with the NCAAs as possible, and he can still get to the rim despite his size.
At No. 44, this is a fantastic pick with killer upside. If he continues to struggle? Who cares, 44th pick, moving on.
Picking up Barnes for next to nothing, in Memphis’ unending search for a small forward, was a sound move. The two draft picks are both talented risks, but at 25 and 44 it’s hard to fault the Grizz.
Grade: B
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Miami Heat
Acquisitions: Justise Winslow at No. 10, Josh Richardson at No. 40.
The Heat are likely excited to have selected the former Duke small forward this late in the lottery, and not just because he serves as insurance should small forward Luol Deng leave as a free agent. Winslow is a dogged player on both ends, which helps make up for his somewhat undersized (at just 6-7) frame. His long range jumper isn’t there just yet, but he will win his veteran teammates over and contribute right away.
Richardson might be a stretch even at No. 40, but with the Heat badly needing depth at all positions this hybrid guard from Tennessee might have a chance to make a training camp impact.
Grade: B+
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Milwaukee Bucks
Acquisitions: Rashad Vaughn at No. 17
The UNLV scoring guard is just 19 and coming off of a season-ending injury, and he wasn’t this high on most draft boards. The Bucks badly need scoring, though, and the 6-5 Vaughn could plug that whole partway through his rookie year. He’s a poor defender, though this will matter little on one of the NBA’s longest and best defensive teams. Sometimes, especially at No. 17, you just have to reach for a need.
Grade: C+
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Minnesota Timberwolves
Acquisitions: Karl-Anthony Towns at No. 1, Tyus Jones at No. 24.
Karl-Anthony Towns is the best player in this draft, and though there is a chance that players like Emmanuel Mudiay and Kristaps Porzingis could eventually vault past him with their raw talent, let’s not discount the tantalizing amount of raw talent Towns has yet to cash in on. Until then, even, he’ll be a huge contributor for Minnesota, a modern big man that you can just pen in for a fantastic career.
The Wolves turned two second-round pick into Jones, the Duke product that appears to be a natural leader. Jones still has to work on his defense and shooting form, but he’s the classic steadying-influence-that-can-also-act-as-a-sparkplug off an NBA bench. A killer draft.
Grade: A+
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New Orleans Pelicans
No acquisitions
The Pelicans traded a first-rounder away last season for starting center Omer Asik, getting good value despite Asik’s up and down year.
Grade: Incomplete
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New York Knicks
Acquisitions: Kristaps Porzingis at No. 4, Jerian Grant at 19, Guillermo Hernangomez at No. 35.
Even with 31-year old Carmelo Anthony still on the range, the Knicks went for the best talent available in the 19-year old Porzingis and they should be credited for taking a chance. It’s been oft-reported that the difference between the Latvian big forward and other international lottery busts is his apparent love and feel for the game, and it’s hard not to pick that up either watching him play or listening to him speak. This guy could be the one, sometime down the line.
In more immediate news, turning Tim Hardaway Jr. into a steady hybrid guard in Grant was a fantastic trade for Phil Jackson’s Knicks. The Notre Dame product should fit right in within New York’s triple-post offense, even if he prefers to do his shooting off the dribble at this point.
Hernangomez was Porzingis’ teammate in Spain, and because of Jackson’s love of big men he might have a chance to make the roster despite lacking quickness or much athleticism. He has touch and could help Kristaps develop, so that might be the plan here.
Grade: A+
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Oklahoma City Thunder
Acquisitions: Cameron Payne at No. 14, Dakari Johnson at No. 48.
Payne, a 6-2 point man from Murray State, was lusted after by several teams in the late lottery, so it was to OKC’s great fortune that he dropped all the way to the lowest lottery slot. A shifty guard who will be able to run an offense right away despite his mid-major status, Payne won’t get to dominate the ball as much as he did in college, but he will provide fine reserve play and enough mettle to push Russell Westbrook off to shooting guard in smaller lineups.
Kentucky center Dakari Johnson fell to No. 48, but he does have NBA size and sturdiness and he could make the Thunder. As a classic rebound-and-foul guy, he’s good value for this late in the draft.
Grade: A
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Orlando Magic
Acquisitions: Mario Hezonja at No. 5, Tyler Harvey at No. 51.
The Magic have been miserable to watch on the offensive end for two years now, and the defense-first club won’t figure to change that under defense-defense-defense-first new coach Scott Skiles. Even when he’s missing shots, however, Hezonja will make the team worth clicking over to. He’s a floor spacer and slasher who the team hopes will develop sooner rather than later. Hezonja has all sorts of fundamental ticks (on both ends of the ball) that will try the coaching staff’s patience, but he’s a hell of a talent.
Eastern Washington off guard Tyler Harvey was a rather late addition, but the 6-4 shooter could carve out a role on this squad despite his second-round placement due to his superior shooting. The Magic drafted for need at both spots, but it’s hard to argue with the results.
Grade: B+
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Philadelphia 76ers
Acquisitions: Jahlil Okafor at No. 3, Richaun Holmes at No. 37, Arturas Gudaitis at No. 47, J.P. Tokoto at No. 58, Luka Mitrovic at No. 60.
The Okafor controversy is understandable. In an ideal situation, Okafor and defensive-minded second-year big man Nerlens Noel would fill out the holes in one’s head with the bumps in another, as the Duke product can score with the best of them. Where this leaves Joel Embiid – a lottery center that the 76ers drafted last season, one that might sit his first two NBA seasons on the bench as he recovers from stress fractures – is anyone’s guess, and the Sixers would hardly do well to deal him at his lowest value right now.
It is worth noting, however, that the Sixers managed to grab the three consecutive players that spent most of their final college seasons at the top of most everyone’s mock draft. Unlike Noel and Embiid, Okafor didn’t fall in placement due to any injury, teams were scared off by his defensive issues, but it is still an odd and very Sixer-like coup in its own weird way.
Holmes, a banger from Bowling Green, has been slowly rising up the draft board ranks for weeks and should make the team. The same can’t be said for either Gudaitis, another center, or Mitrovic, a big forward from Serbia that can shoot, as both will be stashed overseas for years. Tokoto, a defensive-minded swingman from North Carolina, can’t make a shot but should make a roster this fall.
Grade: I dig audacity. B+
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Phoenix Suns
Acquisitions: Devin Booker at No. 13.
The Phoenix offense disappointed in relative terms during 2014-15 mostly due to infighting, but also due to the loss of Channing Frye. Frye moved to Orlando as a free agent in the offseason, making Jeff Hornacek’s spaced out sets a little less problematic for defenses.
Booker, despite his slim frame and young age (he won’t turn 19 until after the season starts in October) will get a chance to change this right away. He can shoot from anywhere, and even if he remains a shooter-only instead of rounding into the mini-Klay Thompson that (too) many are already pegging him as, that’s just fine. The latter comparison seems somewhat workable, though, due to the fact that Booker has another decade to go before he hits his prime.
Grade: A
***
Portland Trail Blazers
Acquisitions: Mason Plumlee (trade with Brooklyn), Noah Vonleh and Gerald Henderson (trade with Charlotte), Pat Connaughton at No. 41, Daniel Diez at No. 57.
With LaMarcus Aldridge seemingly not long for PDX, the Blazers took to trades in order to stiffen up its core and free up some cap space.
The Trail Blazers selected Rondae Hollis-Jefferson before moving him on to Brooklyn, as apparently none of the players present midway through the 20s seemed all that appealing even to what could be a rebuilding Portland squad. Vonleh and Henderson are good pickups that could be asked to leave the premises next summer if they don’t sparkle in 2015-16, and Notre Dame’s Connaughton is a killer shooter with hops and size that might have to make a tough decision between playing pro basketball or baseball based upon Portland’s second-round offer. Diez, a slasher from Spain, is a stash pick.
Grade: B
***
Sacramento Kings
Acquisitions: Willie Cauley-Stein at No. 6.
It truly is hard to argue with taking a big man with significant – Defensive Player of the Year – skills, but Cauley-Stein was rumored to be threatening to drop out of the lottery on Thursday due to concerns about his foot and ankle (which could require surgery). The Kings can't afford to lose yet another year with a blown lottery pick, even if WCS eventually turns into something fantastic following surgery in 2016-17.
If the Kings were drafting in the low lottery, with Cauley-Stein dropping precipitously, they’d thank their good fortune, select the guy, and figure the rest out later. At No. 6, though, this is much bigger risk.
Big upside, though, if Cauley-Stein keeps himself together, literally from head to toe.
Grade: B
***
San Antonio Spurs
Acquisitions: Nikola Milutinov at No. 26, Cady LaLanne at No. 55.
The Spurs don’t need a rookie to develop right now, and they need every available penny they can get on the free agent market, which is why Milutinov will be stashed overseas. The Serbian center can play, but the Spurs and his representatives have to come to a signed agreement that states that he won’t work for San Antonio next year, otherwise his (albeit small) cap hold will still count against San Antonio’s payroll. Milutinov wasn’t the best player on the table at No. 26, but he was the best stash-able prospect, and the Spurs still made a killer move.
Lalanne is a wiry shot-blocker from Massachusetts, and though he has NBA talent he’ll have his work cut out for him in order to make the Spurs’ roster this fall.
Grade: A
***
Toronto Raptors
Acquisitions: Future first-round pick (from Milwaukee, protections unknown), Delon Wright at No. 20, Norman Powell at No. 46
The Raptors traded defensive liability Greivis Vasquez to the Bucks for the chance at Powell, alongside the future pick and some payroll relief. In White the Raptors have acquired a rangy 6-6 point guard from Utah that can settle an offense off the bench while staying in front of point guards. His ability to switch on pick and rolls will also be a boon. As he develops he’ll also provide insurance during Kyle Lowry’s more, um, excitable moments.
Powell, a pugnacious off guard from UCLA, could have a chance to make the roster due to his defensive skills.
Grade: B
***
Utah Jazz
Acquisitions: Trey Lyles at No. 12, Olivier Hanlan at No. 42
The Jazz are already set in the frontcourt, but that didn’t stop them from taking a tweener forward in Lyles, fresh out of Kentucky.
It shouldn’t have stopped them either, as Lyles’ array of skills and length seem better suited for the NBA than the NCAA game, and though his minutes will be limited initially his jack of all trades game should eventually win out. He had to play small forward while at Kentucky, but for him to fully adapt to the position in the pros his shooting will have to improve.
Following Trey Burke’s disappointing sophomore season, the Jazz selected hybrid Boston College guard Hanlan in the hopes that he’ll push or even replace Burke, should the Jazz decide that it is Dante Exum’s time to run things.
Grade: B+
***
Washington Wizards
Acquisitions: Kelly Oubre at No. 15, Aaron White at No. 49
Oubre is incredibly raw, though wickedly tantalizing due to his gifts. The stroke is already there for the former Kansas forward, even if he didn’t hit for a spectacular three-point percentage behind the shorter line in his one year with the Jayhawks.
Just 19, he’ll have a plum chance to win over the coaching staff if he stays focused and shines as a 3-and-D guy; he certainly has the wingspan, just not the consistent resume at this point. Otto Porter will be playing ahead of him as Paul Pierce likely moves on, and that means Oubre can’t let himself get lost in the shuffle.
White had a spectacular four-year career at Iowa, but even with Washington’s sometimes iffy depth up front (depending on attitude, injury, or possible defection) it’s going to be a real challenge for him to make the team.
Grade: B
Thank you for reading.
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is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KDonhoops
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