AboveLegit

Tough one to decide, but I'm going with Thomas Robinson, who I think is the clear cut #2 best player in the draft. Rebounding almost always translates to the NBA, and having Cousins next to him alleviates any pressure or frustration he has to score in the paint. I think he averages around 10rpg this coming year. Beal probably has the best chance, he has 2 great passers in the lineup (Wall, Nene), and two solid options on offense coming off the bench in Seraphin and Crawford. If he manages to score over 14ppg with an improved shooting efficiency, I think voters will look at him a little more because of the market he's in, and the fact that the team could make the playoffs. The potential drop off in Orlando and the dearth of quality shooting guards should highlight his performance and rank him behind Wade, Ellis and Joe Johnson as a top SG in the conference. He by far has the greatest opportunity to shine early on.

His 3rd contract year in the league, have fun with him Philly.

Sent Nice job running everything BFT, really appreciate the effort you put in.

Really fortunate that Beal fell to us, because other than that, the Wizards didn't do shit.

Won't see him for a few years though. -_-

Perfect situation for PJ3. Couldn't have been drafted to a better franchise.

Sorry Cleveland.... http://i.imgur.com/WAZVD.gif

He's their best pick and roll player, if OKC wants any chance of making it to the finals next year (or winning it), they will keep him.

Harden is also their best play maker, and Beal is far from that right now. And let's not overlook Harden's season because of his lackluster playoff performance.

1. New Orleans- Anthony Davis 2. Charlotte- Thomas Robinson 3. Washington- Bradley Beal 4. Cleveland- MKG 5. Sacramento- Harrison Barnes 6. Portland- Dion Waiters 7. Golden State- Andre Drummond 8. Toronto- Damian Lillard 9. Detroit- John Henson 10. New Orleans- Austin Rivers 11. Portland- Meyers Leonard 12. Houston- Terrance Ross 13. Phoenix- Kendall Marshall 14. Milwaukee- Perry Jones 15. Philadelphia - Terrance Jones 16. Houston- Tyler Zeller 17. Dallas- Terrance Jones 18. Houston- Royce White 19. Orlando- Jeremy Lamb 20. Denver- Moe Harkless 21. Boston- Jared Sullinger 22. Boston- Jeffrey Taylor 23. Atlanta- Fab Melo 24. Cleveland- Doron Lamb 25. Memphis- Arnett Moultrie 26. Indiana- Marquis Teague 27. Miami- Draymond Green 28. Oklahoma City- Festus Ezeli 29. Chicago- Tyshawn Taylor 30. Golden State-Khris Middleton

Will send over the mock to either you or RD tomorrow morning.

Breaking news: Every team in the league is interested in moving up in the draft.

And his average defense, sub par efficiency numbers, and ball stopping ability. He's not worth trading for, not in the least bit.

I'd rather keep all of those picks than trade them for Rudy Gay.

Completely agree with you there. Luckily for you, Dwight has his eyes set on Brooklyn, and it seems more likely by the day that Deron re-signs.

Brilliant strategy.

So now Detroit decides to start saving money... Interesting

0% chance of happening.

Still a terrible trade.

http://bossip.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/michael-beasley-with-weed-on-counter.jpg

All valid points, and again, I'm not here to refute them. Every point you have made is 100% true. I don't think the front office can sit on their hands, sit back, and watch young talent grow on virtually the same team. It's why I advocate the basketball aspect of this trade. The trade isn't about making John Wall happy, it's about making him better. Management has given up on their Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, and X-insert superstar talent pipe dreams, and realized the only way to develop their one prized franchise player is by developing him on a good team. I can't stress this enough. Off the top of my head, Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo, Chris Paul on the Hornets (David West and Peja were vital in his development), any player on the Spurs, and Mike Conley have all taken the "leap" while playing for competitive teams. This trade is about facilitating the jump John Wall inevitably HAS to make, and once that happens, when he reaches his potential (which I still believe is higher than Derrick Rose's), Washington becomes a destination for free agents. And if you think about that, 2 years is the time frame. Randy Wittman is hired for the next 2 years, as is Ernie Grunfeld. 2 years is the amount left in Wall's rookie contract (unless he makes that huge jump this year), and 2 years is the length of both Ariza's and Okafor's contracts. Hypothetically speaking, say Wall does make the jump next year. Ariza and Okafor become expiring contracts, with a draft pick around the teens, and a roster with 9 solid young players, that superstar pipe dream could become reality. Again, you're not wrong in your stance, I'm just playing devil's advocate here. I still don't know whether or not I like the trade, there's so much to weigh in here, if I had to give this deal a grade, it would be incomplete. I think it's best to just sit back and see how the team performs this year. This is what irks me the most about this deal. If Beal is gone, I'd be devastated. I don't like the idea of settling for Harrison Barnes (which is essentially what would happen, it's a two man race now for us). He's clearly a step below the second tier of prospects (MKG, Beal, Robinson), and I hate the fact that Washington could turn him into a SG.

Find it hard to imagine New York using the full MLE. I think they end up using 3mill on a player to avoid the luxury tax.

Apparently they view Harrison Barnes as a SG, so if Beal doesn't fall to them, Barnes will likely be the selection.

That's awesome, congrats Flash and the rest of the Heat fans on this board.

They still have 9 players on their rookie contracts, that's far from blowing up a youthful core. I've already responded to BFT's article regarding the state of the team, but just to clarify, it's not about winning now, it's more geared towards developing the young players under a winning environment.