Greetings my peeps and welcome to the all things basketball podcast with your boy GD.
In this episode I'll be giving you my NBA Draft recap.
We'll go through the draft and we'll talk about the Knicks.
They're not having the picks so what they end up doing and some of the things going
on behind the scenes there.
So just sit back, relax and enjoy the show.
Okay guys this is your boy GD back with the all things basketball with GD podcast and
right about now we're going to talk NBA draft.
We'll do a recap of that and we'll kind of assess also what the Knicks did who did not
have a draft pick in this draft as well so we'll talk about it.
So let's get into it.
First I just want to do a little commentary on the draft itself.
I grew up in a time where once the NBA Finals were over I was like glued into the NBA draft
and what was going on and so forth.
Especially after watching college basketball what happens in those tournaments and seeing
guys and things like that so it was like a real treat because you still had a taste
of basketball after the season was done.
So nowadays the draft has changed so drastically from those days.
Of course you have the international players now who are coming into the league and that's
fine that makes sense if you're going to grow the game globally.
But now you have all this G league at night you have overtime elite and you just got to
be watching all these different leagues and so forth.
So it's kind of hard for the natural fan like myself who basically your pool of talent is
pretty much from the college game and coming later it was the international game as well
where you heard about guys and you were able to do a little research and so forth on these
international guys.
But now you have this league over here this league over here and then NCAA it's been kind
of hard to follow if I want to be completely honest here.
And again of course talk with my boy D we were talking about how it's been difficult to follow
the draft in recent memory because of all these different leagues you got to pay attention
to so and then you hear this analyst say oh this guy is G league at night he's going
to be this he's going to be that but where are these games are they even televised with
is just confusing the whole thing so but nonetheless this is what it is right now guys.
I think there's no working around it so we'll see what happens from here but I'm just
saying all this to say the NBA draft has been hard to kind of get a passion for because
of all these different leagues and all these ways you have to kind of follow and figure
out who's who and so forth and then you know you got the draft next that go to the draft
you know they're just cheering for you know whatever the scouts and analysts say oh this
guy is going to be good so we cheer for this guy so it's no real feels sort of speak so
that's my little rant and commentary on that so nonetheless let's get into the draft let's
talk about it right at the top the San Antonio Spurs no surprises Victor Wimboy Yama the
center out of France who everybody is seen to be pointing to the fact that he's going
to be this generational talent he's seven four two hundred and thirty seven pounds doesn't
seem like a lot of weight for seven over seven foot guy let alone seven four but he's going
to be this generational talent along the likes of a LeBron James I heard woe to I love Adrian
Wajnowski say that he's best draft pick in terms of any sport generational talent wise
I wouldn't go that far but again I remember when LeBron James was coming into the league
and they said he was this generational talent and he looked like a man among boys we were
able to see at least a couple of his high school games on ESPN so at least you got a
taste of that he came in with a lot of hype and I tell you what he lived up to it so can
he do similar can he live up to the hype and the promise we'll see he's in a perfect situation
with San Antonio and I heard my guy on NBA give and go on that show Antonio Daniels say
this about the San Antonio franchise it's like leaving your kids with a responsible
adult that's what San Antonio Spurs organization is like and there's a lot of cretins in that
we see how well things went with former overall first round draft picks and David Robinson
and then later Tim Duncan so he's definitely in the right situation the right franchise
for that I think he's going to the right place I just worry about the bulk he needs to add
bulk but he's lean he's quick and he has immense talent so we'll see what happens there but
San Antonio doing the prudent and smart thing and getting win by Yana so and then you had
the second pick in the draft which could have went either way between a Brandon Miller of
Alabama or Scoot Henderson of the G League Ignite so of course one guy is the small for
it the other guy is the point guard so so you know Charlie had to make a choice do you
take a Scoot Henderson when you got a Lamello ball there and then I guess maybe you move
the Mellow off the ball and playing with a Scoot Henderson or do you bring in a Brandon
Miller who you know you still have the situation with Miles Bridges you got to try and bring
him back into the fold after all he's gone through off the court so the Hornets go and
select Brandon Miller so he's a slasher he's a shot maker he lost a lot of weight though
due to mono that he suffered during the college season and then of course there's the off
the court issues with him Charlotte rolling the dice and taking Brandon Miller with their
second choice which leaves Portland to go and select Scoot Henderson the 6295 pounder
he's an NBA ready playmaker now remember Damian Lilith went on the record saying that
they should deal this pick for veteran talent now that you've done this does this mean Dame
Lilith is on the move I think at this point Dame Lilith he's special he's going to be
seen in high regard by the Portland fan base so yeah I think it's high time that you resign
him to that lucrative deal but I think now is a time where you cash in your chips now
and bring backs a haul for Damian Lilith which you will get nonetheless will it be equal
value maybe not but you know you know you're going to get several first round draft choices
you're going to get some talent maybe it's talent that you can develop Miami's been a
place you know he and here we go with social media again I still say it's the bane of society
right now but I digress he went to IG posted Will Smith's Miami song so you know everybody's
reading between the lines so it's just ridiculous anyway but a Miami you know they have the assets
to do it I don't think Tyler heroes going to be it although you can include him in you
still have salaries like a Duncan Robison you have Kyle Lowry's last year of his deal
so that can make the money work I would definitely try and get a guy like Nikolaj Jovic the young
international forward who you don't even know what you have in him because he was buried
on that Miami bench so maybe this is a guy who has something and Chelsea billups can
pull it out of him so who knows we'll see but it definitely have some pieces you can
bring back of course Philly is another team that's name it probably have to take a Tobias
Harris Tyrese Maxi which that would make things a bit redundant because you still have Anthony
Simons there so it would involve a lot of teams and so Philly's another place but outside
of that those are the only two teams I can think of who got a shot at Dame so I hear
the name Brooklyn I don't know why to me that be lateral move so we'll see so that's your
first three picks then you have Houston and Detroit going back to back with the twins
are men Thompson and then Osar Thompson are men the more talented of the two he's athletic
three his jump is not there yet but he solidifies a position for Houston that they've been in
flux for several years now trying to lock down that small forward position you would
do so with Thompson and then Detroit they're getting a guy who's also athletic but he's
more impactful on the defensive end his jumper two isn't quite there yet but you know that
could be a work in progress so that's your four and five then as you go on you get Orlando
get another point guard and Anthony Black he's a big point guard guy six six two way player
so definitely your days of a Mark health faults your days of a Cole Anthony could very well
be over now that you bring in Anthony Black who I think can have an impact maybe not right
away but definitely over time and then you go further down actually at seven and oh by
the way guys there was six trades in this draft so it was kind of dizzying all the trade
movement and so forth of course you had trades prior to that but within the draft itself
about six major trades so Washington and Indiana does a trade swap where Washington gets Bilal
Kula Bali and he's out of France so he was a high riser in the draft he has tremendous
upside might have to wait a while on him though so you have to have some patience so Washington
figures you know we got a young team here so we can be a little bit patient especially
now that you have a new backcourt now so they're looking for the long term payoff so we'll see
what happens with him and then Indiana gig get Jarray Walker the power forward out of
Houston with the Houston Cougars who's a defensive four who could add he can add offense to his
game as well and then you'll add him to the glut of power forwards that you have in Jalen
Smith and also with Isaiah Jackson so Walker walks into that situation no pun intended
then you move down the draft to number nine Taylor Hendricks power forward himself out
of central Florida and he's a 3 and D guy so and perhaps you can have him in your front
court along with a Laurie marketing you could play either guy you can interchange them between
the forward positions so in fact he plays similar to Laurie marketing so that's made
for a curious pick there but nonetheless he was chosen at nine then you have Dallas trading
out of their 10 spot to make a trade with OKC who picked Derek lively the second and
Dallas they chose case and Wallace so initially you thought case and Wallace this is insurance
just in case we can't resign Kyrie so you thought that but then comes the deal that
they make with OKC where they get lively and they were also able to get off of the contract
of Davis Bertant's so Davis Bertant's goes to OKC along with Wallace but even that is
odd for OKC because now you have case and Wallace he's a 6 3,195 pound point guard you
already have Josh Giddy there the Australian point guard 6 8 and you also have shy Gilchis
Alexander so I guess you can never have enough guard help I guess but case and Wallace he's
more like a combo guard so I guess you can play him with either guy and you don't lose
much so I guess I see the fit there but Dallas gets their man in Derek lively the second
who by the way they could have chose at 10 but I guess they saw the value in getting
a Wallace and it helped him and shedding some salary with Bertant so you know on his face
it looks like a smart move by Mark Cuban so you give him some credit there so Dallas would
be getting their man while shedding salary like I said he has shot blocking ability
and he's very skilled as a big so good pickup for them Derek lively the second out of Duke
and then sandwiched in between that is a I pick from the Orlando Magic at 11 shooting
guard jet Howard out of Michigan he's the son of John Howard at this point in the draft
he's a reach they thought he'd be more like a mid first rounder so for him to go up in
the lottery was a bit of a reach that's what they're saying he's a shot maker though and
that's definitely something that's needed in the league of course and of course this
would push a guy like Jalen sucks who's already in your program who's you know he's had a
uneven pro career thus far so maybe a guy like jet Howard pushes him a bit but you know
a lot of analysts saying this was a reach at this point in the draft especially when
you got a guy like Grady Dick who is still out there so speaking of Grady Dick he gets
chosen at pick 13 for the Toronto Raptors him with his red bedazzled suit he's a three
and he's one of the best shooters in this draft guys and I thought the pick was perfect
for Toronto because this is something that outside of red van fleet who's going to be
a free agent and also Gary Trent Jr. you don't really have outside shooting like this so Grady
Dick I think is a perfect fit for these Toronto Raptors so he's a kid with a lot of confidence
so we'll see what he does in Toronto's but and then of course we have the Stephen A
talking to Fat Joe and the clip that went viral yeah you go look it up it's pretty funny
but anyway I digress at 14 the New Orleans Pelicans they select Jordan Hawkins of Yukon
the shooting guard who's part of that championship team 6486 pounds he's a tough shot maker he
reminds me a lot of Richard Hamilton who a former Husky himself Yukon Husky he has that
type of ability guys and remember he's the cousin of Angel Reese and Angel Reese who
was watching the draft saw that at 14 her cousin wasn't picked yet so she kind of tweeted
it out there all this be a perfect spot for him to get picked at and lo and behold he
becomes a pelican so now you have both cousins in Louisiana so that's a bit of a nice story
there he needs to add a bit of muscle kind of lightened the pants as we like to say so
he's a guy who can definitely help that pelican squad that's for sure much needed shooting
help you'll get in Hawkins and then as we go down the draft is some interesting choices
I thought the Lakers with at 17 they got the point guard Jalen hood Shafino out of Indiana
I thought they should have went Jaime Yachuez Jr. out of UCLA will been perfect local kid
and definitely insurance and case don't resign Austin Reeves he's a kid who he can make shots
he's a scorer he projects as a swing man as opposed to small boy four which he was in
college so he'll have to make a bit of a transition I don't think it'll be that hard for him
6 6 226 pounds so I thought that was the better pick for the Lakers but the Lakers pick point
guard Jalen hood Shafino he's a streaky shooter though guys he might not be ready right away
to make it into the rotation so that's why I said a jock quest he's somebody who I thought
could get into that rotation and be a help to that team jock quest goes to the Miami
Heat and we know Miami's record of developing young talent so he goes to a perfect situation
so and then you have guys like Cam Whitmore who was supposed to be a lottery pick he fell
to 20 it was the clippers pick but it goes to Houston so Houston gets Cam Whitmore now
you add Cam Whitmore with our men Thompson so you it was getting got a glut at the small
forward position so a talent like Whitmore you can't let pass by tremendous pick at
this point athletic three who's a shopmaker as well so Houston definitely loading up
in that regard then you have a guy like Chris Murray who goes to Portland he's out of Iowa
his brother is Keegan Murray who's in Sacramento this was originally to be the next pick so
if you think about it as a Nick fan or one who follows the Knicks you would definitely
more better off with a Josh Hart who helps your program right away whereas Chris Murray
he's a floor spacing for he's fundamentally sound he's a young piece for that Portland
team so again I hark back to Dame Lillard now is the time get a bunch of assets for
him rebuild you got Chauncey billips there who can kind of develop these guys so that
would be the move there then as you go along the draft you got 3 and D guys you got combo
guards then you get Anthony Blacks teammate Nick Smith Jr. going towards the end of the
first round actually going to Charlotte in a pick that was originally Denver's 6,500
and 85 pounds there he reunites with his UAA teammate Brandon Miller so there's familiarity
there injuries affected his value in this draft he's a guy with big upside and insurance
just in case you may have to move Terry Rose here so he's a guy who would fit in there
so I'd be interested to see what happens with him in Summer League whether he plays or
not he's a guy who could benefit in Charlotte other than that I think the draft pretty much
went as drafts go no real surprises but all in all not too bad and then for the second
round some possible standouts to me I think Minnesota getting a Leonard Miller at 33
he was a lottery projected guy guys that you get in the second round he's a big three who
can be a nice piece definitely if you want to build for the future have him alongside
Anthony Edwards seems like they're sticking with Carl Anthony Towns they have recently
said oh we're not interested in moving him they want to continue to see if the towns
go bare twin towers so to speak see if that can work out I guess they're willing to throw
out last season because of Towns injuries so a guy like Leonard Miller he's from the
G League ignite so he's a guy who could contribute right away I thought that was a nice pick
there then you have a pick at 36 for Milwaukee shooting guard Andrew Jackson Jr. out of
Yukon he's an athletic defender who definitely feels a need after we saw Jimmy Butler go
off of 56 points against them in the playoffs so you probably have to be patient with him
he's a guy who could pan out down the road then we look at the 45th pick going to Memphis
Memphis getting a power forward Gregory Jackson out of South Carolina he's the youngest player
in this draft has huge upside and definitely somebody who you want to see develop especially
over there with the Grizzlies so nice pick there and then we move to the 50th pick for
OKC Keontae Johnson out of Kansas State he was a Florida transfer who revived his value
he has the size and versatility needed for the next level then we move on to the 53rd
pick that was a Nick pick that ended up going to Minnesota and they got Jaylen Clark out
of UCLA he had ACL injuries and that hurt his value but defense that's his calling card
guys so he's the guy who could pan out for the Timberwolves and then at 57 for the Washington
Wizards power forward Trace Jackson Davis out of Indiana he's a four-year player and
he was lottery projected he's a guy I think can contribute right away for Washington he'll
be a guy that you want to look at and see how he looks in summer camps so those are
some of the possible second round standouts I think that could pan out for their given
teams so and then we talk about the Knicks did not have a pick in this draft there were
a lot of rumors saying that Obi-Toppin first of all let's talk about Obi-Toppin right quick
there was a video that mostly got out there of him going back and forth with Tom Tibberdough
and how the players had to kind of calm him down and so forth so according to guy listen
to CP the franchise and Nick fan TV they're saying how they were thinking of moving on
from top and that the trade deadline last season but nothing materialized so I said it
in the season recap for the Knicks he's a man who I think as long as Tibbs and Julius
Randall's around he won't get the opportunity guys ten minutes a game won't cut it the only
time he gets chances when Randall is out or he's down with the injury so he'll never
get a chance to shine and show what he really can do on a full-time consistent basis so
he's a guy you know he's a local kid out of Brooklyn you'd love to hear that but he's
not gonna get the fair shake here so there was rumors saying that the Knicks in this
draft they could get into the first round maybe deal toppin but no one bit so he's still
a Nick as of now the Knicks did add two undrafted free agents one of which is from the overtime
elite 6'6 Jaylen Martin and the book on him he has athletic ability and he could shoot
it from three so definitely a guy who you know we're in a league where you need shot
makers and if this guy can stroke it from three you definitely like that it'd be second
undrafted free agent you might be familiar with the last name guys Kentucky's power forward
Jacob Toppin yes he is the brother of Obi Toppin it's like are they trolling Tom Tibbadoe
at this point what exactly are you doing here he's the exact prototype of his brother supreme
athleticism not a great feel for the game he has a thin frame can be pushed around a
bit he's a work in progress guys so it just seems crazy to me after that report that came
out everybody knows about it I'm sure the front office knows about it and you go and
sign up man's brothers so both of them to two way contracts you'll see them in summer
league that's for sure so we'll see what happens in that regard so if any of them can stand
out in that regard and of course for summer league it'll be dice Hashimoto of course
coaching that team he usually does that for the summer league team and then last bit of
Nick news as predicted they did decline Derrick Rose's team option which was at 15.5 million
so they're all for that so we'll see what happens with Derrick Rose of course a few
landing places for him could be back to his first team Chicago Bulls who needs point guard
help desperately or maybe to where he played college at Memphis Grizzlies now that you'll
have job Iran out those 25 games of course you'll have Marcus smart there but you'll
need a backup point guard so why not a Derrick Rose so we'll see what happens with him and
then they extend the deadline on Josh Hart's player option and they move it to June 29th
so we'll get our answer as far as him opting in to that 12.6 million dollar deal or him
opting out but I think they're working behind the scenes trying to get something done before
that option deadline hits so we'll see what happens there alright guys so that's it for
the draft once again you know where to find me all things basketball with GD.com that's
the website of course YouTube all the platform social media look me up I'm there so alright
guys so thank you once again for listening it's always appreciated when you listen to
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