Winner: Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets were, in my opinion, the biggest winners of draft night, in terms of need and value. James Bouknight, who was projected to go in the top 7 leading up to the draft, fell to Charlotte at 11, and they jumped on the opportunity. He is an athletic scorer with slippery handles who can get buckets in a hurry. Without a reliable spark-plug off the bench, this fits the Hornets needs perfectly, and adds even more excitement to their flashy offense. Center Kai Jones at pick 19 was another steal for the Hornets, and is a perfect fit alongside Lamelo Ball. Jones is a lethal rim-runner, a dominant rim-protector, and has a decent outside jumpshot. On this fast paced offense, Jones will be a perfect replacement for the less athletic Cody Zeller at the center position.
Loser: Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies made a large trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, which included them swapping first rounders. Memphis went up to pick 10, while New Orleans moved down to pick 17. With the 10th pick, the Grizzlies selected Ziaire Williams, a lanky shot creator with a high ceiling. However, Memphis almost certainly would have been able to take Williams at 17, as he is a very raw prospect who needs a lot of development to reach his high scoring upside. Although he fits the Grizzlies’ need of an iso-scoring wing player, he likely isn’t ready to contribute right away, and was a massive reach at 10, where they could have taken a much more NBA-ready prospect, like guard James Bouknight. Instead, they passed on him, leaving the Hornets with one of the best values in the draft at pick 11.
Winner: Houston Rockets
With four first round picks, the Rockets have to be on this list. With the second overall pick, they did what everyone expected, taking Jalen Green. He has the highest scoring upside in this draft, and could turn into a guy atop the scoring leaderboards for years to come. They then traded for pick 16, where they selected Turkish center Alperen Sengun, a dominant inside scorer with high basketball IQ on both sides of the floor. He was a steal at 16, as he has massive upside and complements big man Christian Wood very well. At picks 23 and 24, they selected power forward Usman Garuba and guard Josh Christopher. Garuba is a high-energy, versatile defender who hustles and never gives up on a play, which is a great piece to add to a team struggling to win games. Christopher needs some refining to his game, but he has a very high ceiling due to his intriguing combination of shooting, ball handling, and athleticism on the offensive end. On a team that is rebuilding, Christopher is in a great place to develop.
Loser: Oklahoma City Thunder
My first loser is the Oklahoma City Thunder, solely because of their massive reach on guard Josh Giddey at pick 6. Giddey was projected to be a late lottery to mid first round pick, and the Thunder took their shot at him in the top 6. Although he has a high ceiling due to his unique combination of size and skill, he has yet to show consistency in the modern-day NBA necessity, shooting. He hasn’t proven to be a reliable scorer anywhere outside the paint, and lacks athleticism to stay in front of some of the greatest athletes in the world in the NBA. The Thunder are going to have to do a lot of work to prove that Giddey was worth taking so high in this draft, over safer and arguably higher-upside guys like Johnathan Kuminga and James Bouknight.
Winner: Golden State Warriors
In terms of purely value, the Warriors were the biggest draft day winners. They were able to select a projected top 5 pick in Johnathan Kuminga at the 7th overall spot in the draft, and stole a projected top 10 pick in Moses Moody at the 14th spot. Although the Warriors are trying to win now, Kuminga had too much potential to pass up on, even if he can’t make a large impact in his rookie year. He has all the tools to be great, and if he develops right, he could be one of the best players in the draft down the line. The Warriors considered Moody at 7, but ultimately took Kuminga, and still ended up with Moody at 14. He is the definition of a “3 and D” wing who can make an immediate impact on both ends of the floor, especially to help the offense when the starters are resting. The Warriors were able to address both the future and the present, making them definite winners.
Loser: San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs reached the farthest in the draft, where they selected guard Joshua Primo at 12th overall. Primo was projected to go in the second round by many, and is a relatively unathletic, pure shooter who doesn’t have a lot of upside. The Spurs look like they are at the beginning of a rebuild, and a player like Primo, who seems like a complementary role player, doesn’t fit San Antonio’s needs. The Spurs needed to take a player with a high ceiling, even if it was a raw prospect, as they will have a lot of time for development in the upcoming years. The Spurs were the biggest losers of the draft, as they selected a low ceiling role player, thereby losing their opportunity to take a potential franchise-changing player.
Winner: Atlanta Hawks
Although the Hawks didn’t have a lottery pick, they came out with steals in Jalen Johnson and Sharife Cooper. Atlanta selected Johnson with the 20th pick, adding a versatile forward who is a great playmaker and aggressor in the open court. He can fit nicely alongside star point guard Trae Young, as he can alleviate stress with his playmaking abilities. Although he is a raw prospect, his ceiling makes him an exciting duo with Young for the future. Sharife Cooper was one of the biggest steals in the draft, as he was projected by many to go in the first round. For a team that lacked a true backup point guard, Cooper was an amazing fit. His shifty handle and elite passing skills fills a massive role on the bench for the Hawks, and his flashes of high scoring potential made him such a great value at pick 48.
Loser: Sacramento Kings
The Kings were in need of players in the front court, as their point guard position was already set, with blossoming young guards in De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton. Franz Wagner, who was taken a pick ahead of the Kings at 8, would have been a perfect fit, but Sacramento ended up taking Baylor point guard Davion Mitchell. Although Mitchell was a solid pick at 9 in terms of just value, he definitely didn’t fit the Kings’ needs. Players like Alperen Sengun and Moses Moody could have filled their frontcourt needs, and are worthy of a top-10 pick. With Mitchell, Fox, Haliburton, and Buddy Hield, the Kings have a crowded backcourt of which they must find a way to maximize the talent.
Winner: Orlando Magic
With major holes at the wing position, many expected the Magic to take two wing players with both of their lottery picks. However, when one of the top talents in the draft, Jalen Suggs, unexpectedly fell to them at pick 5, they had to take him. Although he didn’t fill their most immediate need, it was a fantastic value pick for the Magic, as Suggs seems like one of the safest players in the draft, who is primed to have an all-star level career. He will be their floor general of the future, and has the upside to be a perennial all-star, due to his large skill set. Forward Franz Wagner at pick 8 directly fit the Magic’s needs, as he is a do-it-all, high IQ player who can help turn around the losing culture. He is a good bet to be a good role player for years to come, which could keep the Magic away from the bottom of the league.
Loser: Toronto Raptors
Toronto is another team that reached on a player early. They selected forward Scottie Barnes, who was not only a questionable fit, but also definitely wasn’t the best player available on the board. Point guard Jalen Suggs, a floor general who has a great mix of safety and upside, would have been a perfect replacement for Kyle Lowry and would have solidified the young Raptors backcourt, which would have included Suggs and Fred VanVleet. However, they opted for Scottie Barnes, a defensive-minded forward with solid playmaking, and little skill anywhere else. He is a very raw prospect, and hasn’t shown any scoring potential, but rather looks to have a play style similar to Ben Simmons. Simmons is one of the most controversial players in the league due to his play style that doesn’t fit the modern era, so Toronto has their work cut out for them to make sure that Barnes develops a respectable jumpshot, or at least some scoring ability. He also is a very bad fit alongside Pascal Siakam, who is a ball-dominant slasher without a good three-point shot. The Raptors, similar to the Thunder, have a ton of work to do to make sure that their draft selection was worth it.
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