Draft Grades: Winners/Losers

[BostonCouchGM]

I apologize if there are errors

Bucks: B-
2.36: Andre Jackson Jr
2.58: Chris Livingston

Bulls: C+
2.35: Julian Phillips

Cavaliers: C
2.49: Emoni Bates

Celtics: C
2.38: Jordan Walsh

Clippers: B+
1.30: Kobe Brown
2.48: Jordan Miller

Grizzlies: C-
2.45: GG Jackson
2.56: Tarik Biberovic

Hawks: B+
1.15: Kobe Bufkin
2.39: Mo Gueye
2.46: Seth Lundy

Heat: D+
1.18: Jaime Jaquez Jr

Hornets: B
1.2: Brandon Miller
1.27: Nick Smith Jr
2.31: James Nnaji
2.41: Amari Bailey

Jazz: A
1.9: Taylor Hendricks
1.16: Keyonte George
1.28: Brice Sensabaugh

Kings: B-
2.34: Colby Jones
2.54: Jalen Slawson

Lakers: A-
1.17: Jalen Hood-Schifino
2.40: Maxwell Lewis

Magic: C
1.6: Anthony Black
1.11: Jett Howard

Mavericks: A-
1.12: Dereck Lively II
1.24: Olivier-Maxence Prosper

Nets: A
1.21: Noah Clowney
1.22: Dariq Whitehead
2.51: Jalen Wilson

Nuggets: B
1.29: Julian Strawther
2.32: Jalen Pickett
2.37: Hunter Tyson

Pacers: B+
1.8: Jarace Walker
1.26: Ben Sheppard
2.47: Mojave King
2.55: Isaiah Wong

Pelicans: B+
1.14: Jordan Hawkins

Pistons: B-
1.5: Ausar Thompson
1.25: Marcus Sasser

Raptors: D+
1.13: Gradey Dick

Rockets: A
1.4: Amen Thompson
1.20: Cam Whitmore

Spurs: A
1.1: Victor Wenbanyama
2.44: Sidy Cissoko

Suns: A
2.52: Toumani Camara

Timberwolves: A
2.33: Leonard Miller
2.53: Jaylen Clark

Thunder: B
1.10: Cason Wallace
2.50: Keyontae Johnson

Trail Blazers: A-
1.3: Scoot Henderson
1.23: Kris Murray
2.43: Rayan Rupert

Warriors: A
1.19: Brandin Podziemski
2.57: Trayce Jackson-Davis

Wizards: A
1.7: Bilal Coulibaly
2.42: Tristan Vukcevic

Winners:

Spurs
Rockets
Wizards
Warriors
Nets
Mavs
Jazz
Trailblazers

Losers:

Heat
Raptors
Celtics
Bulls
Cavs

[The-Power]

I didn't have the time to update my big board but here are my thoughts on who I thought were most notably over-/underdrafted.

Too high*
4. Amen Thompson
5. Ausar Thompson (to me also just a bad fit in Detroit)
10. Cason Wallace
13. Gradey Dick
18. Jaime Jaquez Jr.

*not including any 2nd round picks as being drafted too high because there's almost no risk and a lot of uncertainty/luck involved; sure, there are opportunity costs but I prefer to focus just on the steals in the 2nd round

Too low
8. Jarace Walker (slightly)
9. Taylor Hendricks (slighty)
16. Keyonte George (by a couple spots)
20. Cam Whitmore (I have my concerns but that's clearly too low as far as I'm concerned)
22. Dariq Whitehead (should have been a late-lottery gamble imo)
23. Kris Murray (mid-first and potentially even late lottery for me)
35. Julian Phillips (steal in the 2nd round, I would have had him firmly in the 1st)
44. Sidy Cissoko (by far the biggest steal in my opinion, I would have taken a shot at him in the top 10)
53. Jaylen Clark (excellent value that late in the 2nd round)

Unclear to me
7. Bilal Coulibaly (on the higher end but I can see the appeal and haven't seen enough of him to fault the pick)
11. Jett Howard (understandable but on the higher end probably)
15. Kobe Bufkin (perhaps a bit too high for my liking but nothing egregious)
17. Jalen Hood-Schifino (I'm not sure what to make of him but I was among the ones who didn't buy into his late-season/pre-draft hype)
19. Brandin Podziemski (I haven't seen enough to make a confident call but I'm skeptical)
51. Jalen Wilson (could have been a bit higher but I understand the concerns, so I can't fault teams too much for passing on him)

So, with that I suppose my winners and losers are:

Winners
1. SAS – very obviously and far ahead of anyone else. Get the consensus #1 pick and a top-10 talent in the 2nd round – what an incredible draft.

2. UTA – two players I thought were drafted a bit too low in Hendricks and George and Sensabaugh is a good gamble in the late first round for a rebuilding team. Excellent draft!

3. BKN – not sure how consequential this draft will be for them but that's good value overall. Especially Whitehead has a solid chance to be one of the steals of the draft.

Rest in alphabetical order:

CHA – made the correct call at #2, in my opinion, and that matters a lot. All the other picks are solid picks value-wise even as I don't really understand what they plan to do in terms of roster-construction with who they now have at SG and C and I wouldn't bet on any of the later picks working out.

CHI – likely not very consequential but it's the second year in a row that I really love their later pick.

DAL – I like the Lively pick, so shout out here. Not enough to be a clear winner (I thought #12 for Likely is justifiable but not a value-deal), but it could really help the team.

MIN – unlikely to be a very consequential draft for them but I think they got very solid value with both picks.

POR – solid draft; Murray is good value, Rupert a fair gamble (even though I don't see an NBA player in him yet), and of course they got a talented player at #3 who most definitely kept his value as a consensus top 3 pick in case they decide to trade him for a win-now piece.

Losers
1. DET – took Ausar too high for my liking and I really don't understand the fit with Ivey and Cade at all. I thought multiple better options were on the board although I do see how picking at #5 in this draft wasn't easy. I'm actually fine with the Sasser pick but it clearly doesn't outweigh the concerns I have.

Rest in alphabetical order:

HOU – bad value at #4, good value at #20. You could argue that it balances each other out but I just don't see how the Rockets are on track to build a good team. A lot of young players with question marks, both in terms of limitations and basketball IQ with an overemphasis on athleticism.

MIA – not a fan of the value but not consequential enough to be too much of a concern (and we all know that landing in MIA under Spo is great for any prospect in terms of development outlook, so his odds of justifying his draft spot are inherently higher than elsewhere)

OKC – not a fan of Wallace at #10. I don't think it's bad enough to put them in the firm loser category because I can see a scenario in which they just added a long-term starter (which would be very solid with the 10th pick) but I don't think they added notable talent in this draft when they could have.

TOR – I had Dick lower. Even though I think it can perhaps be justified in terms of roster-construction, I definitely don't think it was a good pick for a team that I believe should enter a soft rebuild.

[jazzfan1971]

I didn't have the time to update my big board but here are my thoughts on who I thought were most notably over-/underdrafted.

Too high*
4. Amen Thompson
5. Ausar Thompson (to me also just a bad fit in Detroit)
10. Cason Wallace
13. Gradey Dick
18. Jaime Jaquez Jr.

*not including any 2nd round picks as being drafted too high because there's almost no risk and a lot of uncertainty/luck involved; sure, there are opportunity costs but I prefer to focus just on the steals in the 2nd round

Too low
8. Jarace Walker (slightly)
9. Taylor Hendricks (slighty)
16. Keyonte George (by a couple spots)
20. Cam Whitmore (I have my concerns but that's clearly too low as far as I'm concerned)
22. Dariq Whitehead (should have been a late-lottery gamble imo)
23. Kris Murray (mid-first and potentially even late lottery for me)
35. Julian Phillips (steal in the 2nd round, I would have had him firmly in the 1st)
44. Sidy Cissoko (by far the biggest steal in my opinion, I would have taken a shot at him in the top 10)
53. Jaylen Clark (excellent value that late in the 2nd round)

Unclear to me
7. Bilal Coulibaly (on the higher end but I can see the appeal and haven't seen enough of him to fault the pick)
11. Jett Howard (understandable but on the higher end probably)
15. Kobe Bufkin (perhaps a bit too high for my liking but nothing egregious)
17. Jalen Hood-Schifino (I'm not sure what to make of him but I was among the ones who didn't buy into his late-season/pre-draft hype)
19. Brandin Podziemski (I haven't seen enough to make a confident call but I'm skeptical)
51. Jalen Wilson (could have been a bit higher but I understand the concerns, so I can't fault teams too much for passing on him)

So, with that I suppose my winners and losers are:

Winners
1. SAS – very obviously and far ahead of anyone else. Get the consensus #1 pick and a top-10 talent in the 2nd round – what an incredible draft.

2. UTA – two players I thought were drafted a bit too low in Hendricks and George and Sensabaugh is a good gamble in the late first round for a rebuilding team. Excellent draft!

3. BKN – not sure how consequential this draft will be for them but that's good value overall. Especially Whitehead has a solid chance to be one of the steals of the draft.

Rest in alphabetical order:

CHA – made the correct call at #2, in my opinion, and that matters a lot. All the other picks are solid picks value-wise even as I don't really understand what they plan to do in terms of roster-construction with who they now have at SG and C and I wouldn't bet on any of the later picks working out.

CHI – likely not very consequential but it's the second year in a row that I really love their later pick.

DAL – I like the Lively pick, so shout out here. Not enough to be a clear winner (I thought #12 for Likely is justifiable but not a value-deal), but it could really help the team.

MIN – unlikely to be a very consequential draft for them but I think they got very solid value with both picks.

POR – solid draft; Murray is good value, Rupert a fair gamble (even though I don't see an NBA player in him yet), and of course they got a talented player at #3 who most definitely kept his value as a consensus top 3 pick in case they decide to trade him for a win-now piece.

Losers
1. DET – took Ausar too high for my liking and I really don't understand the fit with Ivey and Cade at all. I thought multiple better options were on the board although I do see how picking at #5 in this draft wasn't easy. I'm actually fine with the Sasser pick but it clearly doesn't outweigh the concerns I have.

Rest in alphabetical order:

HOU – bad value at #4, good value at #20. You could argue that it balances each other out but I just don't see how the Rockets are on track to build a good team. A lot of young players with question marks, both in terms of limitations and basketball IQ with an overemphasis on athleticism.

MIA – not a fan of the value but not consequential enough to be too much of a concern (and we all know that landing in MIA under Spo is great for any prospect in terms of development outlook, so his odds of justifying his draft spot are inherently higher than elsewhere)

OKC – not a fan of Wallace at #10. I don't think it's bad enough to put them in the firm loser category because I can see a scenario in which they just added a long-term starter (which would be very solid with the 10th pick) but I don't think they added notable talent in this draft when they could have.

TOR – I had Dick lower. Even though I think it can perhaps be justified in terms of roster-construction, I definitely don't think it was a good pick for a team that I believe should enter a soft rebuild.

I liked how you formatted your thoughts here.

[EvanZ]

Winners and losers is always tough. I mean Spurs won the draft by getting Wemby but really they just won the Lottery. They didn't do any plus talent evaluation to pick Wemby. From a stadpoint of actually "winning" the draft part of the draft:

Orlando gets Anthony Black and Jett Howard. I had AB at 7 so that's neutral. But Jett was 6 on my board going to Orlando, and Orlando was able to get him at 11. To some (if not most) this looks like a reach, but to me it was a great pick for them. Big winners.

The Jazz pick up Taylor Hendricks (4 on my board) and Keyonte George (9 on my board) at 9 and 16. It's also a nice landing spot for Brice Sensabaugh who ultimately I had at 25 on my board. They even picked up my guy Taevion Kinsey on an exhibit-10. Winner.

Toronto got Gradey Dick at 13 (5 on my board). Winner.

Trail Blazers picking up Kris Murray (16 on my board) to go along with Scoot is a nice selection. Winner

Wizards reached for Coulibaly at 12 when Gradey was still on the board. Loser.

Everything else was pretty whatever to me.

Edit: Detroit also loser for taking Ausar that high, especially over Gradey, Hendricks, etc. Not a fan of Amen either at 4 so that's kind of a loss to me. Congrats to Houston on becoming the NBA version of Squid Game.

[EvanZ]

As for UDFAs biggest winners are Philly for adding Terq on a two-way and Lakers adding Colin Castleton.

[babyjax13]

Count me as another person who isn't too critical of what the Magic did. There are three things we don't have access to as fans: (1) medicals, (2) private workouts, (3) in-depth team interviews. Jett also showed more versatility than Grady Dick, but I do have larger concerns about his defense. Perhaps they could have moved down to get them, but it could also be that he just killed all his workout and interviews and was rising, anyway.

[HadAnEffectHere]

Biggest loser was LAL picking JHS so high. Even if he were good, he's a horrible fit with the team, what's going on.

Jazz passing on Whitmore at 16 was a head scratching move to me as they picked a less talented but still ultra cancerous wing right afterward at 28. I think Sensabaugh is good value at 28, but if you disliked Whitmore for being a low BBIQ blackhole who feuded with his coaches, made his teams worse, didn't try hard, had a bunch of really concerning injury history, then I have some bad news for you about Sensabaugh. Obviously the two players are different, but Sensabaugh is a much better shooter whereas Whitmore is a much better driver and defender so I think Whitmore should have a fairly large edge here.

[clyde21]

Jazz quickly stick out to me, getting Hendricks at 9 (6th) and Keyonte at 16 (4th) were both great coups for Ainge, not a Brice Sensabaugh guy tho but it's fine for an end of R1 pick

Orlando getting AB at 6 is great for them, Howard at 11 though was a reach esp if you're looking for a shooter and both Dick/Hawkins were right there to be had

not too many losers, probably most of the teams that passed up on Cam Whitmore unless there is some huge medical redflag or something, Charlotte taking Miller over Scoot I just can't justify so that's an L for them...also I understand the Amen pick for Houston but AB was there to be had for them who would've been just an incredible fit next to Green/Eason/Bari/Alpy so that's a small L for them imo.

[clyde21]

i like DWH/Clowney for Brooklyn, taking two high end projects is exactly what this franchise should be doing. nothing pisses me off more than treadmill teams taking high floor/low ceiling guys in the draft.

[Kalela]

Mavericks: A-
1.12: Dereck Lively II
1.24: Olivier-Maxence Prosper

This was A+ for me. Mavs needed a big with size that can protect the rim and an elite wing defender and they got both in the same draft. Excellent draft for the Mavs.

Bucks: B-
2.36: Andre Jackson Jr
2.58: Chris Livingston

I like this for the Bucks. Andre Jackson in particular will be very useful for them.

[CP3nthusiast]

The Gradey Dick selection for Toronto pretty much confirms they're running it back, right? Great fit but his ceiling is low. Best case scenario is he's Duncan Robinson with better passing and defense.

[clyde21]

The Gradey Dick selection for Toronto pretty much confirms they're running it back, right? Great fit but his ceiling is low. Best case scenario is he's Duncan Robinson with better passing and defense.

ok?

yall keep acting like every pick in the draft should be an all star.

[Duke4life831]

The Gradey Dick selection for Toronto pretty much confirms they're running it back, right? Great fit but his ceiling is low. Best case scenario is he's Duncan Robinson with better passing and defense.

You just described a starter that every team would love to have. Robinson is a career 40% 3pt shooter on 7 attempts per game. You get that and solid passing and defense at the 13th pick? You take that and run.

[HiDef]

Wall of text alert. On the whole most teams did well for themselves.

A lot of teams came away with a good player. There were a lot of players I wasn't a huge fan of, but can't deny they went to a really good situation.

Winners

Jazz- Keyonte George, Sensabaugh and Taylor Hendricks. Made out like bandits.
Hawks- Bufkin, Gueye and Lundy are three of my favorites in this class. Well done.
Mavericks- Filled two big holes with two of the better players in this draft class. Omax is exactly what they need. Lively is a perfect fit.
Hornets- No doubt I'm not a fan of Miller, but Nnaji, Bailey and Miller, for me, means they came away with 3 top ~15 players.
Milwaukee Bucks- Getting the best plug and play defender in the class, along with a 5star long term talent in Chris Livingston, to me they threaded the needle and came out very happy.
Grizzlies- Aside from Morant nonsense, they have a strong young team who can put GG Jackson on the right path, make him feel included, make him want to contribute, and they're too good for GG Jackson to **** around and expect to get any special treatment. Capitalizing on culture to get a talent like him is a major win.
Pelicans- Hawkins is a good fit and a very good argument for BPA at 14.
Rockets- Amen and Whitmore is definitely not what I thought would happen. Amen fits extremely nicely for them, gives them a lead ballhandler who can give the team some structure, but not too much structure that they won't be picking in the lottery next year. (joking)
Wizards- Coulibaly is a fine value for where they took him, I just hope they don't ruin his career by failing to develop his talent. Vukcevic is a very good pickup at 42.
Warriors- Brandin Podziemski and TJD are both well suited to being quick contributors on the Warriors bench. I'm really not a huge Podz guy, but the Warriors have the scheme and personnel to use him and take advantage of his shooting. TJD is an amazing pick at 57.
Pistons- I'm a huge fan of a team like Detroit taking the kind of player you'd normally see a contending team pick up. The high floor, low ceiling guy. Sasser can give them some steadiness and is just great value at 25. Ausar is a good talent, and he complements Cade and Ivey very well.
Timberwolves- For where they picked, they did extremely well. Two very good players with great value for where they were picked. The Twolves seem like they're always collecting these high-floor backup types, but Clark and L. Miller are great.
Spurs- Wemby + Cissoko. Cissoko is the kind of talent that needs/deserves to be developed, and I'm extremely happy he's gone to a team that has that kind of time.
Trail Blazers- Good players. Not the highest or lowest on Rupert/Murray. They got Scoot, they're winners.

Fine

Nuggets- I don't really know what to do with their draft. They got some plug and play guys, but it's strange to see a team draft
so so so hard for immediate fit in their rookie year and basically completely ignore upside. They came in with a goal, and they did what they wanted to. Drafting for the "best 10th man available" is an unusual approach to the draft.
Nets- Clowney, Wilson and Whitehead are all high upside long term projects. I really was not a fan of Clowney because of how long I expected the timetable to be for him, but Brooklyn has forever to wait. Whitehead is very boom/bust, which is also fine for Brooklyn, and gives them a chance to develop another big talent package over time.
Thunder- Cason Wallace is a good player, Keyontae Johnson is a good player, but OKC may have been thinking too much about filling out their team instead of continuing to be aggressive with talent acquisition.
Lakers- JHS is a pretty mediocre player, but there's no doubt he can walk around a screen, snake, pull up or hit a pass. For the Lakers, he's a good fit. Maxell Lewis is terrible.
Kings- Colby Jones is good but adds very little to this Kings team. Jalen Slawson could make a decent impression of Domas coming off the bench. Meh.
Clippers- Kobe Brown is good and may be able to contribute quickly. Jordan Miller is fine.
Raptors- Gradey Dick is another player I dislike, but if Toronto really wants to be Miami, I guess they need their shooter.
Suns- I barely even remember who Toumani Camara is at this point.
Cavaliers- They needed a wing, they got Emoni Bates. He is not what they need. He's an iso scorer with no defense. Not much to be done about it with where they were picking. Arguably, he's the best trade asset they could've got with their 2nd rounder, he's at least got some talent and if they work on him, maybe they can wheel and deal.

Losers

Magic- I just am not a big fan of Black and I had Jett Howard as a 2nd round talent. Thought 6 was very high for Anthony Black, but I understand what they were going for. He's a good player for a young team, but they're still at the point where they should be looking for more upside.
Pacers- for me, Jarace Walker = automatic loser. With how it all shook out, I think they coud've done better than King and Wong. Sheppard is a good player and a good value at 26.
Miami- Jaquez Jr. at 18 was a reach. He has some plug and play ability, but may also be useless as a 6'7 post up scorer. Too much hard bust potential, with too little ceiling, with too high of a draft pick, for a team that wants short-term contributors.
Bulls- Julian Phillips is a type of player Chicago really doesn't need- some rando forward who will need another 5 years to figure it all out.

[Upperclass]

Gradey Dick is who the Hornets evidently think Miller is.. He looks like a 17ppg scorer very quickly

Jazz picked 3 contributors

[SeattleJazzFan]

Biggest loser was LAL picking JHS so high. Even if he were good, he's a horrible fit with the team, what's going on.

Jazz passing on Whitmore at 16 was a head scratching move to me as they picked a less talented but still ultra cancerous wing right afterward at 28. I think Sensabaugh is good value at 28, but if you disliked Whitmore for being a low BBIQ blackhole who feuded with his coaches, made his teams worse, didn't try hard, had a bunch of really concerning injury history, then I have some bad news for you about Sensabaugh. Obviously the two players are different, but Sensabaugh is a much better shooter whereas Whitmore is a much better driver and defender so I think Whitmore should have a fairly large edge here.

is any of this documented anywhere? or are you just a tOSU fan that is in the know, perhaps? maybe it's common knowledge and i've been living in a cave?

not that i don't believe you but as a jazz fan i'm curious to learn more about it.

[EvanZ]

I mentioned in the Sensabaugh thread he was dropping because of knee concerns.

[BostonCouchGM]

Wall of text alert. On the whole most teams did well for themselves.

A lot of teams came away with a good player. There were a lot of players I wasn't a huge fan of, but can't deny they went to a really
good situation.

Winners

Jazz- Keyonte George, Sensabaugh and Taylor Hendricks. Made out like bandits.
Hawks- Bufkin, Gueye and Lundy are three of my favorites in this class. Well done.
Mavericks- Filled two big holes with two of the better players in this draft class. Omax is exactly what they need. Lively is a perfect fit.
Hornets- No doubt I'm not a fan of Miller, but Nnaji, Bailey and Miller, for me, means they came away with 3 top ~15 players.
Milwaukee Bucks- Getting the best plug and play defender in the class, along with a 5star long term talent in Chris Livingston, to me they threaded the needle and came out very happy.
Grizzlies- Aside from Morant nonsense, they have a strong young team who can put GG Jackson on the right path, make him feel included, make him want to contribute, and they're too good for GG Jackson to **** around and expect to get any special treatment. Capitalizing on culture to get a talent like him is a major win.
Pelicans- Hawkins is a good fit and a very good argument for BPA at 14.
Rockets- Amen and Whitmore is definitely not what I thought would happen. Amen fits extremely nicely for them, gives them a lead ballhandler who can give the team some structure, but not too much structure that they won't be picking in the lottery next year. (joking)
Wizards- Coulibaly is a fine value for where they took him, I just hope they don't ruin his career by failing to develop his talent. Vukcevic is a very good pickup at 42.
Warriors- Brandin Podziemski and TJD are both well suited to being quick contributors on the Warriors bench. I'm really not a huge Podz guy, but the Warriors have the scheme and personnel to use him and take advantage of his shooting. TJD is an amazing pick at 57.
Pistons- I'm a huge fan of a team like Detroit taking the kind of player you'd normally see a contending team pick up. The high floor, low ceiling guy. Sasser can give them some steadiness and is just great value at 25. Ausar is a good talent, and he complements Cade and Ivey very well.
Timberwolves- For where they picked, they did extremely well. Two very good players with great value for where they were picked. The Twolves seem like they're always collecting these high-floor backup types, but Clark and L. Miller are great.
Spurs- Wemby + Cissoko. Cissoko is the kind of talent that needs/deserves to be developed, and I'm extremely happy he's gone to a team that has that kind of time.
Trail Blazers- Good players. Not the highest or lowest on Rupert/Murray. They got Scoot, they're winners.

Fine

Nuggets- I don't really know what to do with their draft. They got some plug and play guys, but it's strange to see a team draft
so so so hard for immediate fit in their rookie year and basically completely ignore upside. They came in with a goal, and they did what they wanted to. Drafting for the "best 10th man available" is an unusual approach to the draft.
Nets- Clowney, Wilson and Whitehead are all high upside long term projects. I really was not a fan of Clowney because of how long I expected the timetable to be for him, but Brooklyn has forever to wait. Whitehead is very boom/bust, which is also fine for Brooklyn, and gives them a chance to develop another big talent package over time.
Thunder- Cason Wallace is a good player, Keyontae Johnson is a good player, but OKC may have been thinking too much about filling out their team instead of continuing to be aggressive with talent acquisition.
Lakers- JHS is a pretty mediocre player, but there's no doubt he can walk around a screen, snake, pull up or hit a pass. For the Lakers, he's a good fit. Maxell Lewis is terrible.
Kings- Colby Jones is good but adds very little to this Kings team. Jalen Slawson could make a decent impression of Domas coming off the bench. Meh.
Clippers- Kobe Brown is good and may be able to contribute quickly. Jordan Miller is fine.
Raptors- Gradey Dick is another player I dislike, but if Toronto really wants to be Miami, I guess they need their shooter.
Suns- I barely even remember who Toumani Camara is at this point.
Cavaliers- They needed a wing, they got Emoni Bates. He is not what they need. He's an iso scorer with no defense. Not much to be done about it with where they were picking. Arguably, he's the best trade asset they could've got with their 2nd rounder, he's at least got some talent and if they work on him, maybe they can wheel and deal.

Losers

Magic- I just am not a big fan of Black and I had Jett Howard as a 2nd round talent. Thought 6 was very high for Anthony Black, but I understand what they were going for. He's a good player for a young team, but they're still at the point where they should be looking for more upside.
Pacers- for me, Jarace Walker = automatic loser. With how it all shook out, I think they coud've done better than King and Wong. Sheppard is a good player and a good value at 26.
Miami- Jaquez Jr. at 18 was a reach. He has some plug and play ability, but may also be useless as a 6'7 post up scorer. Too much hard bust potential, with too little ceiling, with too high of a draft pick, for a team that wants short-term contributors.
Bulls- Julian Phillips is a type of player Chicago really doesn't need- some rando forward who will need another 5 years to figure it all out.

good stuff. I agree with a lot of it. I will say that the Nuggets already have their core stars and just need ready to contribute depth that can help withstand FA losses and they got that. That's why I think they took high floor/low ceiling guys.

[BeiBeau]

I think in terms of that actual draft picks that the Mavs made I would give them a A- or A. I think out of all the rookies Lively probably has the best situation. He now gets to be the roll man for Luka and Kyrie. Luka has made Dwight Powell look like an all star at times in the past few years. OMax will easily get court time if he can just hit on open spot up 3s and hustle points.

Where Dallas really made out like bandits and made the night a A++ is when you consider that they 1. Saved money, 2. Got the rookie they wanted, 3. Got a vet big who has an easy path to revitalizing his career, 4. Got rid of Bertans, 5. Picked up a 2nd 1st round pick out of thin air and got a good defensive wing. They pulled some magic bull cause they turned 10th overall and a negative contract into 12, 24, and a Vet.

[CP3nthusiast]

The Gradey Dick selection for Toronto pretty much confirms they're running it back, right? Great fit but his ceiling is low. Best case scenario is he's Duncan Robinson with better passing and defense.

You just described a starter that every team would love to have. Robinson is a career 40% 3pt shooter on 7 attempts per game. You get that and solid passing and defense at the 13th pick? You take that and run.

Yeah, that's best case scenario. A more realistic outcome is that he's actually Duncan Robinson.

As a Raptors fan, I would've much rather had a higher ceiling prospect like Bufkin or George but I just have to live with the fact that this front office seriously thinks a Siakam/VanVleet/Barnes trio can win a championship.