kodo wrote:You can tank all you want and have the best scouts in the business, but at the end of the day there is one major factor that is 100% out of any GM's control and that's strength of the drafts.
I was in Seattle for the changing of the guard from Ray to KD, and Presti got very lucky in continuing the Seattle tank plan in 3 of the best draft years in recent history.
2007: Oden, Durant, Horford, Conley, Noah, etc..
2008: Rose, Westbrook, Love, Lopez, etc..
2009: Blake, Harden, Steph, etc..
If Presti had gotten 2, 4, 3 in the next 3 years we're looking at:
2010: Evan Turner
2011: Tristan Thompson
2012: Bradley Beal
Presti is an excellent GM and knows what he's doing, but he still got extremely lucky in tanking at possibly the strongest 3 year draft block in the past twenty years, if not ever. Draft quality usually fluctuates, it's almost impossible to have 3 can't-miss drafts in a row like we did back then.
Even the legendary 2003 draft was followed by 2004 where 2 of the top 3 were Emeka Okafor & Ben Gordon.
Hinkie may have done as much research as possible, but he can't control the talent level of kids in high school.
thats assuming he drafts as bad as some of those lottery teams did. and that is a huge assumption. when 76ers took Turner Demarcus Cousins and Paul George were still on the board. in 2011 there was still Klay, Kawhai and Jimmy Butler. and taking bradley in 2012 would be great, as he is one of the best young SGs in the league and was amazing in these playoffs. He still could have built a team drafting any one of those years