It wouldn't be draft week without some juicy trade rumors. As always, that is possibly all they are. Adrian Wojnarowski has been reporting that New Orleans has been fielding offers for Chris Paul. I like the idea of Paul in New Jersey with Favors and Lopez though. That would be nice.
As mentioned earlier, the Bobcats don't have any picks in this draft According to a recent Yahoo report, they are aggresively trying to change that.
Most reports I have read have Minnesota taking Wes Johnson with the fourth overall pick. Provided he doesn't get traded, it would be funny to see Wes and Johnny Flynn become teammates finally. Along with them, the Timberwolves would be featuring Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, and Kevin Love. They would also be able to pick up at least one or two project players with their multiple draft picks. They would then have just under 20 million to work with in the salary cap. It would be nice to see some top tier free agent go there, but I just don't see it happening. I am sure they will do their best though. And they do have Ricky Rubio and Al Jefferson or Kevin Love to offer in potential trades. Again, it would be nice to see a Lebron or a Bosh go there. I just don't see why they would leave cold climate cities for even colder climate cities. I hope they sign someone noteworthy though.
Sacramento will look to be a very different and (hopefully) improved team in 2011. On the last day of the finals, they unloaded Andres Nocioni and Spencer Hawes for Samuel Dalembert. I think if used properly, Dalembert will be more valuable to Sacamento than Hawes and Nocioni were COMBINED. Most draft experts have the Kings taking either Greg Monroe or Demarcus Cousins with the fifth overall pick. I hope they take Cousins with that pick With either player and Dalembert, they could potentially be all set inside. Add an improved Tyreke Evans and Omri Casspi to a mix that also features decent backups in Beno Udrih, Carl Landry, and Jason Thompson, The Kings would be a wing player or two away from competing heavily in the Western conference again in the next two or three years. They will have at least 20 million to work with, just like most of these early lottery pick teams seem to have. It will be interesting to see if they can lure a Joe Johnson or even a Ray Allen out to Norcal. That would potentially put them right back into the playoff mix in the Western Conference.
After shocking Dallas in the first round of the playoffs a few years ago, the Warriors have quickly become cellar dwellers once again. Obviously, they are set in their backcourt if Curry and Ellis can continue to coexist. While they could use a better wing player than Corey Maggette, they really need more depth in the paint. Since they are limited on cap space, I imagine they will mostly focus on big men with the 6th and possibly even the 34th pick. Most mock drafts I have seen have them taking a few different big men. I think this will also depend on who the Kings take with their pick. I think if Cousins goes there, the Warriors will almost definitely take the gamble on Greg Monroe. Other players that have been mentioned as possibly heading to the Warriors include Ekpe UDoh (baylor) and Al-Farouq Aminu (Wake Forest). While I am sure the Warriors front office would be more than excited to see Wes Johnson slip into their hands, I think a more likely scenario would involve them drafting Greg Monroe. This team will be another 30-35 win team next season.
Tomorrow morning I will be posting more draft updates (picks 7-10), as well as a MMW photo gallery, and possibly a few record reviews.
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