Warkentein promises Nuggets to be a player on Draft Night

[SnakefromHell]

"The next chance to improve the roster is the draft, and just like last year, we'll be looking to improve our roster that day," said Denver vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien, whose team traded for Lawson on draft night 2009. "We don't have a pick this year, but we'll be looking for opportunities to get in. We'll be looking for a hand to play.

"You prepare for it exactly the same way as if you have a pick, because you don't know what's going to happen when the phone breaks."

http://www.denverpost.com/nuggets/ci_15000284


I can't wait for Draft day... he basically "promises" trades. For picks? For superstar? For veterans? Let's see...

[Nutty Nats Fan]

I can't wait for Draft day... he basically "promises" trades. For picks? For superstar? For veterans? Let's see...

Did you believed the Nuggets FO when they talked about Chess moves, then big bertha, and then about fishing for a big fish? All never happened.

I ain't holding my breath till they actually do something, instead of talking like the players.

[pickaxe]

I want literally what the 2004 pistons had. like 4 really decent backup bigs. well....something similar

[almost famous]

I got no promise out of that. Just the same BS he always says.

This thread got my hopes up.
"

[KAVK]

They better do something real this year! Our window is getting thinner as Billups ages.

I wonder how Nash keeps conditioning but he surely does not look like a 36 year old!

[KAVK]

Nene will fit in at 4 spot with good post defender C with good rebounding much better.

I am guessing this year: We will try add one more solid big man to the roster and go after draft player on the 3- 4 spot that can shoot range. I wonder how LK is doing overseas.

I do not see major changes in this team will make this off season except adding one more solid big and TRY to find a shooter at 3 that can slide in at 4 at times. LET'S SEE.

[carrottop12]

Why does it seem like you guys never have draft picks of your own?

[GuyJones]

Why does it seem like you guys never have draft picks of your own?

We do always seem to trade our future first rounders to move up and grab players we want right away. Wont hate too much cause we did get lawson this year. Hopefully we can grab a young big that can play right away (if the coaching staff lets him too)

[el loco]

Why does it seem like you guys never have draft picks of your own?

Because we don't and it gets frustrating for some of us. Those draft picks are "Big Bertha's".

[el loco]

Why does it seem like you guys never have draft picks of your own?

We do always seem to trade our future first rounders to move up and grab players we want right away. Wont hate too much cause we did get lawson this year. Hopefully we can grab a young big that can play right away (if the coaching staff lets him too)

The pick that was used to snag Lawson was originally the Nuggets pick to begin with, so they traded to get their own pick back.

[vitamin-water]

does anybody have any ideas of who we might be able to get?

last year was a wonder pick with lawson, but does anybody have a gut feeling?

[el loco]

does anybody have any ideas of who we might be able to get?

last year was a wonder pick with lawson, but does anybody have a gut feeling?

No clue. If they trade into the draft, I look for them to trade into the 2nd round. But, they might try and work out a deal with Memphis to get their pick back and send Memphis another future 1st in return. Memphis has 3 number one picks, and I doubt that they will want to pay 3 rookies guaranteed money.

[MELO OR BUST]

i am fine with anything from late 1st (around #25) to early 2nd (around #36) and netting any from this list: Kevin Sherapin, Elliot Williams, Jordan Crawford, Avery Bradley
Not only Memphis, but Minnesota has three 1st round picks and two 2nd round picks.

[Nuggets18]

Target Elliot Williams and Solomon Alabi, both will be great roleplayers in the near future

[J Smitty]

Why does it seem like you guys never have draft picks of your own?

Because we don't and it gets frustrating for some of us. Those draft picks are "Big Bertha's".

It's only frustrating because the draft is one of the funnest parts of the basketball year for fans...and not having a pick and being able to play the guessing game on who your team is going to pick takes the excitement out of it.

Fans don't care what pick they have, or who their team ends up taking...they just like the idea of it, especially the mystery and possibilites about the draft pick. I think teams sometimes get caught up in that as well. Everyone wants to go out and trade for a bunch of draft picks. Draft picks are kind of like cars though...they generally lose a ton of value as soon as you drive it off the lot.

The 9th pick in the draft as so much value before the draft and everyone talks about trading this established player and whatever else to get it. But as soon as you wake up the next morning and the '9th pick' is now Rafael Araujo or Ike Diogu, it just doesn't have the same luster.

And that right there is why using draft picks as trade chips is sometimes the best thing you can do with them. The chances of a second round pick even making the roster are incredibly slim most of the time. Hell, the chances of even getting a rotation player outside the lottery can be pretty 50/50. But everyone gets caught up in the 'what ifs'...the slim chance you end up with a guy like Tony Parker or Josh Howard.

I'll admit, I love the draft. And having that young rookie to root for and the possibility of him turning into a star some day is a lot of fun. But in the grand scheme of things, I'm not going to be getting my panties in a bunch because we don't have our 25th pick in the draft anymore.

[The Rebel]

While this is an old story, I believe it is something everyone might want to read.
http://www.82games.com/nbadraft2.htm

When looking at the data from twenty years worth of drafts, one can quickly summarize that it is far more likely to draft a player who will have no long term impact on your team than one who is going to turn your franchise around. While optimism reigns supreme up until the draft, it quickly dissipates when most of these prospects find their way to training camp.

While I wish we were not using most of our draft picks to salary dump, I would not mind if they did more deals for players like JR and Afflalo and such where we were getting young guys who were at least showing they could play in the league.

[eathy]

The thing to like about this years draft is that there seem to be players we could probably get in the late-first to second round draft areas.

Jarvis Varnado is a Camby/Birdman type player who can block shots and is a solid rebounder.

Dexter Pitman reminds me a bit of Perkins and is already a big guy but needs to lose weight.

Parakouski and Jerome Jordan are solid post defenders I think.

Guys like Willie Warren (could be a decent scorer in the NBA), Whiteside, and Alabi are also players worth upgrading to the first round for.

[J Smitty]

Exactly. Which is why I never understood why people would get their panties in a bunch when we trade our 1st round pick away when it's value is at it's highest. Especially a couple years ago when we traded our 1st round pick for OKC's second round pick, which only moved us down about 10 spots. You're just as likely to find a quality contributer in the early second round, as you are at the end of the first round....only you don't half to give them the guaranteed rookie scale money. And trading into the second round in the NBA draft is one of the easiest things to do.

If there is a player available later on that the FO likes and thinks might actually have a shot to at least make the roster...they'll probably try to go get him(as they did with Weems). Either way, I think people make too big of fuss over draft picks that will only turn into marginal role players at best, 95% of the time.

[MELO OR BUST]

Any of the three with second round pick

Gani Lawai (maybe late 1st round)
Lazar Hayward
Charles Garcia

[melo mvp 15]

Brand, #2 to the Nuggets for KMart or Nene and future first or JR

then follow possibly up with #2 to the Nets for #3 and Lee or T-Will or Dallas's pick

the reason i would trade down is b/c i think we could use Cousins or Favors more than Turner... so I would draft Cousins and use Lee or Williams as a bench sparkplug that could eventually start... or use the first to draft Jordan Crawford or some other scorer

**i posted this somewhere else too