The fascinating thing about the days leading up to a NBA Draft is the “experts”, the movers and shakers in many franchises’ war rooms, start to believe the hype around the young adults that they are about to make very rich. No matter if you are Blake Griffin, Eric Maynor, Wayne Ellington, or Brandon Jennings, the team that selects those players are drafting as much on potential as anything else. In essence, the word potential is the optimism that all 30 teams have at the start of training camp. Title contenders feel they have the potential of winning it all, while some very bad teams feel new players and a new attitude can equal the potential of having a special season. Our latest, and next to last Mock Draft(last one on Thursday, just hours before the actual one), shows little movement at the top, however some players are starting to see their names bounce in and out of the lottery.
1. Clippers – Blake Griffin – The only drama surrounding this pick is whether being named to be the coverboy for NCAA 2010 video game will cause a Madden-like curse. [click to continue…]
photo - AP
The World Famous LayupDrill Rumor Mill
5/25/09
If there is a player left in the NBA post season that has seen his pricetag rise more than anyone else over the past few weeks, it is the Orlando Magic’s Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu will be opting out his current contract, and will become a free agent once the Magic’s season ends, however teams may already have begun to lineup for him. In key spots during this postseason, the Magic have turned to Turkoglu, and more times than not, he has responded. Unfortunately for the Magic, the salary cap will be their worst enemy this summer, as with the huge contracts of Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis, they will not be able to match the money that will be shown to Turkoglu by teams like the Pistons, Kings, Grizzlies, Blazers, or Bobcats. Stay tuned…
In other news, The Chicago Daily Herald reports today that the Bulls have denied all rumors about potentially shopping Tyrus Thomas. Thomas had been rumored to be apart of deals that would bring in Chris Bosh or Carlos Boozer in the past few months.
In NBA Draft news, The Detroit Pistons are looking to add a post player with an offensive arsenal with the 15th pick in the first round. Two post players that are reportedly on their radar are Austin Daye, a sophomore forward from Gonzaga, and James Johnson, the 6-8 big man from Wake Forest. Don’t rule out the possibility of Detroit looking at a wingman like Gerald Henderson or Earl Clark as well, as the Pistons excelled at times this year when Rodney Stuckey was running the point and Richard Hamilton shifted down to the small forward position. Regardless of who Detroit winds up taking, Tayshaun Prince may be on his way out as well.
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