Draft Thread Continued. 2011 part two...

[no D in Hibachi]

Kind of funny to think of two first round picks as filler. Plus like it or not, Rashard takes up a roster spot next year. So is your point that yes, we should package numbers for talent?

Maybe the better way to ask the question is: who isn't coming back next year?

I was thinking that if the Wiz want to consolidate talent for a star in a couple years it's best if they have a pocketful of picks. I'd more inclined to trade this pick for a future protected pick.

[Hoopalotta]

I truly believe Terrence is the steal of this draft and see those later lotto teams taking some risks on Euros instead. To me the Bobcats could be a candidate there at around the 11th pick. I wouldn't take on Diop or Carroll on in a move-up, but would be interested in just absorbing a small 1 year deal, like Najara. Thoughts?

First, I'd say teams have historically pumped in value to move bad salary when they have an obvious objective; I don't think we can just expect a team like Charlotte to comply with our whims as moving a light burden like Najera doesn't do much for them, especially as they just got rid of Wallace's money.

Second, the CBA and 2012 cap-line uncertainty, compounded by Nick's restricted status, probably torpedos our ability to pull salary absorption trades before the draft. Those sorts of trades might be nixed by the league office outright, but even if not, we couldn't be sure about what we were getting ourselves into.

After the lockout, there might be some good opportunities which could be in the form of 2012 picks, but those sorts of hijinks are at least iffy in the short term. Not absolutely impossible, but I wouldn't just assume they were on the table.

[Hoopalotta]

We're just about at the point where we're guaranteed the 18th pick from ATL. There's a few extreme scenarios that could push us back a slot, but it's almost in the bag now.

[Hoopalotta]

According to a host of excited tweets, Otto Von Bismack.....OK, Biyombo, has put on a nearly historic shot blocking exhibition at the Hoops Summit amidst a triple double.

@DraftExpress This is a joke. Bismack Biyombo blocking shots with his elbow now. Who cares how old he is? How high does he go after this?

Tying Saer Sene! How's that for auspicious? Here's what Givony has to say about that:

@DraftExpressFor those saying Bismack Biyombo is just another Saer Sene, he's been doing this same stuff for a while now in the ACB. Totally different.

@DraftExpressSaer Sene couldn't get off the bench for Pepinster, the worst team in Belgium. Bismack Biyombo plays for a playoff team in Spain.

Anywho, I'm thinking the main effect from a Zardian perspective is that someone gets pushed back to our Hawks slot with the Congolese 'appendages surnaturel' going late lottery.

[Rafael122]

Yeah, Givony is pimping Bismack huge lately.

[Black Eyed Sooz]

Speaking of the latest International Man of Mystery, this is a write-up about Biyombo at SI.com.

To sum it, up, one of the scouts says, "He's Ben Wallace, basically."

I was hoping he'd be there at the Atlanta pick, but he's probably gone well before that. He sounds like the kind of prospect that goes somewhere late lottery - maybe around 10 like Chris Reina predicted in his first mock draft. Even if he is a little older than 18... which he probably is. And as they said in the article- he's not just a big body, he's got some quality intangibles (maturity, vocal leadership, and his drive and motivation). For him to get from the Congo to a Spanish team in the top basketball league in Europe, that is not something that happens without a lot of determination on his part.

I hope we get him (maybe package the Atlanta pick and Blatche to get into the 8-13 range?) We could really use the next Ben Wallace, and it looks like from those grainy clips that he has some offensive potential- he's raw, but very ambidextrous.

Not to mention he has one of the great basketball names of all time- Ted needs to start printing up those "You've been BISMACKED" Wizards T-shirts right now.

[tsvqt]

Quick question: seems like we have a numbers game.

At guard: 5
Wall, NY, JC, 2nd round pick, and I think this Jeffers guys should stick

SF: 2
Our 1st round pick, Rashard

Bigs: 5
Baltche, Javale, Booker, Seraphin, Atl pick

Does that leave this Owens guy the man out? He looks pretty good so far?

Clearly, Josh Howard, Yi, Mo Evans, and Shakur are gone. N'mdiaye as a 13th man? Sounds like we should package numbers for talent upgrade in the top 7. Should we actually be looking to deal some picks?

We don't have a numbers game. Our roster looks like this:

Guards: Wall, Young, Crawford
Forwards: Blatche, Booker
Centers: McGee, Seraphin

Everyone else is filler.

I agree with the fact that we don't have a numbers game. I don't agree that it's a lock that Mo Evans is gone next year. If management is smart, this guy will be in our long term plans. He provides toughness and leadership for our youth. Gotta keep a vet like this around.
As far as the draft, I PRAY we get DWill (Hear my cry O'Lord).....but I think we'll end up drafting 4th with DWill, Irving, Kanter off the board, which would leave us Barnes/P.Jones. I could live with either.
Therefore I see our 2011-2012 roster looking somewhat like this;
PG - Wall, F/A, (Crawford)
SG - Young, Crawford, Evans, Jeffers
SF - Lewis, Barnes/P.Jones, (Young)
PF - Blatche, Booker, (Atl pick)
C - McGee, Seraphin

[nate33]

I'd be fine with Mo coming back on a one-year deal too. I'm just saying, there's no need to commit to it right now. We have 8 players under contract prior to the draft. We should draft with only those players in mind and then decide on signing Mo Evans after the draft based on need.

[Rafael122]

Nike Hoops Summit on FSN in a few minutes. Or Comcast Sportsnet, whatever you call it.

[closg00]

Nike Hoops Summit on FSN in a few minutes. Or Comcast Sportsnet, whatever you call it.

Thanks, checking-in late and watching.

[eitanr]

The certainties for next year in my mind are:
PG John Wall
SG Jordan Crawford
C JaVale McGee / Kevin Seraphin
SF Rashard Lewis
PF Trevor Booker

I feel Andray Blatche will be shopped around in the off-season and/or draft time if the team can fetch a 2012 pick, or a solid 2011 pick for him and expiring contracts. I still feel Memphis will want to make a deal for him involving Mayo who could be shipped to a 3rd team like Indiana in which case perhaps their current pick and/or 2012 pick could come to Washington.

I feel Nick Young coming back is also no guarantee. The team saw how successful Jordan Crawford was and may not want to shell out a longer contract for Young even if it just costs them the full MLE. Young could also be a valuable piece via a sign and trade to gain further picks or assets.

I do believe guys like Mo Evans and Othyus Jeffers have a shot at coming back next year pending what offers they fetch elsewhere and who ends up being drafted via the Wiz. With how well those 2 played and how cheap they may be to re-sign, they may be a much better value to Washington than re-signing Young.

Obviously a lot depends on the lockout.

[Hoopalotta]

Let's go Raptors!



Up by double digits at home early against the Nets.

[pancakes3]

I feel Andray Blatche will be shopped around in the off-season and/or draft time if the team can fetch a 2012 pick, or a solid 2011 pick for him and expiring contracts. I still feel Memphis will want to make a deal for him involving Mayo who could be shipped to a 3rd team like Indiana in which case perhaps their current pick and/or 2012 pick could come to Washington.

i really just don't see us getting equal value back for blatche if we grade him. who will we get that would be either a) a better talent, or b) a better deal? i can't think of a single player. in your scenario, we're trading blatche for a low teens draft pick? that's just absurd. the idea that we can just miraculously draft a 16/8 PF anytime we want. blatche for all his shortcomings is still a darn good PF. Just because we're losing games left and right doesn't make a guy like say... David West any "better" of a player.

I feel Nick Young coming back is also no guarantee. The team saw how successful Jordan Crawford was and may not want to shell out a longer contract for Young even if it just costs them the full MLE. Young could also be a valuable piece via a sign and trade to gain further picks or assets.

if a guy like Nick Young doesn't deserve the MLE than who does? Nick Young does the hardest thing to do in basketball - shoot the basketball, and he does it well. Guys like kerry kittles got above the MLE. i have a hard time believing that there are people out there who think Nick Young isn't as good a scorer as kerry kittles. I mean heck, Nick is playing as well as Michael Finely was back on the Mavs (imo). Why wouldn't we pull the MLE or even a little above that for him?

I do believe guys like Mo Evans and Othyus Jeffers have a shot at coming back next year pending what offers they fetch elsewhere and who ends up being drafted via the Wiz. With how well those 2 played and how cheap they may be to re-sign, they may be a much better value to Washington than re-signing Young.

I love mo evans and othyus jeffers and i want them back. heck, i even like that owens guy and wouldn't mind him back either. however, none of those players has any bearing on the Wiz resigning young. Young is a bona-fide scorer in this league and no matter how much hustle Jeffers puts in, he won't be able to duplicate what Young does. Not even crawford. We've groomed nick to be the player we want him to be - 18 ppg on reasonably well efficiency. Now we drop him for the sake of rebuild? Watch him go kevin martin on us in Indy? Deal Blatche away and watch Rasheed 2.0 go deep in the playoffs for someone else?

honestly, i think some guys on this board have a hard time realizing how hard it is to come by talent in this league. if we keep blowing the team up because we don't have the IDEAL, PERFECT player in place, we'll perpetually be the team who's tanking, bitter, and fielding teams with a Popeye Jones/Jahidi White frontcourt.

yes Blatche is a knucklehead. yes Young is 1 dimensional and could cost up to 45 mil to resign. These are things that teams have to put up with. As much as Blatche is a knucklehead, so is Zach Randolph and he's making the playoffs in the west. sorry to rant, and sorry for all my posts lately being pro-blatche but it's almost compulsive.

[Ed Wood]

There are aspects of all that I agree with (the idea that the ability to score is sometimes minimized or almost vilified for one) and aspects I don't (the fact idea that spending nine million dollars a year on Nick is a good idea, the idea that retaining anyone with any talent at all is paramount even on a bad deal or a player with significant flaws) but I'm just going to say that there are actual and legitimate reasons why Andray isn't as good a player as David West.

The two are roughly equivalent as rebounders, passers and in the volume of their scoring (West has a small edge in scoring) but the consistent and significant difference between the two in efficiency is not a minor thing and it alone makes West a significantly better player. West also appears to be a better defender, despite having what you'd figure to be physical disadvantages compared to Andray. And I'm not sure I'd call Andray darn good, his volume of production is good, but that's not enough.

[Dat2U]

On trading Blatche for a mid-round pick. How many middlin' draft picks do we really need? Booker, Crawford, Seraphin, the ATL pick. At some point were going to be talking about overkill. I'm all for adding young talent but devaluing our assets or trading them at their lowest value only short circuits the rebuilding process.

I can certainly understand the feeling amongst many that Blatche isn't the championship caliber PF of the future but the future isn't here yet. We are still a few years from not only getting into the playoffs, but being competitive when we get there. I see no real benefit for rushing to dump young productive talent out the door b/c it's not a perfect fit.

Did anyone notice how completely noncompetitive we were with Blatche NOT in the lineup? For all his faults, and he's got a ton of them, his presence on the court isn't the worst thing in the world. There is certainly no evidence to indicate we are better w/o Andray. If there is, I'd love to see it.

I have no problem with Blatche eventually being moved, but it needs to be a reasonable trade that brings back something of quality. I honestly haven't heard anything from the Blatche haters that remotely approaches that.

[closg00]

Yes, the Raps keeping our drafting hopes alive for now.

[mhd]

On trading Blatche for a mid-round pick. How many middlin' draft picks do we really need? Booker, Crawford, Seraphin, the ATL pick. At some point were going to be talking about overkill. I'm all for adding young talent but devaluing our assets or trading them at their lowest value only short circuits the rebuilding process.

I can certainly understand the feeling amongst many that Blatche isn't the championship caliber PF of the future but the future isn't here yet. We are still a few years from not only getting into the playoffs, but being competitive when we get there. I see no real benefit for rushing to dump young productive talent out the door b/c it's not a perfect fit.

Did anyone notice how completely noncompetitive we were with Blatche NOT in the lineup? For all his faults, and he's got a ton of them, his presence on the court isn't the worst thing in the world. There is certainly no evidence to indicate we are better w/o Andray. If there is, I'd love to see it.

I have no problem with Blatche eventually being moved, but it needs to be a reasonable trade that brings back something of quality. I honestly haven't heard anything from the Blatche haters that remotely approaches that.

Preach on Dat. Blatche isn't highly paid, and he;s clearly the best alol around front-court player we have. FA is fools gold unless you sign a superstar. Exhibit #1 are the Bucks who used their cap space to resign Salmons and Gooden and trade for Maggette.

[Hoopalotta]

Here's some more Valentine footage from about a month ago; not really pure highlights as it's 13 minutes of footage edited out of a single game showing plays in which he was involved - the good and the bad.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iruI_sTo6y0[/youtube]

For context, the big ugly on the other end is 24 year old Stanko Barac (!!!!!!), the 39th pick in the 2007 draft.....

http://www.euroleague.net/competition/p ... ubcode=BAS

.....and Saski Baskonia-Caja Laboral were the 2010 Champions in the Spanish League.

Valentine with 9 points and 11 boards in the game.

[eitanr]

In my original premise was based on not simply dealing Blatche just to continue the rebuild and simply acquire more mediocre picks. It is also based on the assumption that Washington will land (or try and land) a big via the draft that will need minutes in order to develop sooner rather than later. It also would hopefully net Washington an expiring deal that would help down the line to add further value.

Also, who came up with David West? I wasn't trying to compare the two in any way.

Here's my thought...in a situation were Washington lands one of Derrick Williams, Enes Kanter or Perry Jones with their first pick and management sees that guy as a legit starting PF for them it may make sense to explore dealing Blatche IF and only IF the deal would allow Washington to add a high quality asset that would personally make sense for their rebuild.

Now Blatche could be good on several teams. I feel Memphis should really look to try and acquire him for example considering the uncertainty of Z-Bo's future there. He's far from consistent, and I feel he's been in the league long enough to let us know what we'd get from him.

I'd rather give minutes to our Rook to properly develop and get assets to further help the rebuild then continue handing minutes to a product who both won't help our rebuild (i.e. a veteran who can inspire the youth like Mo Evans has, or a good mentor etc) or isn't part of our rebuild.

As previously mentioned I also love Terrence Jones and feel that if a Blatche deal helps Washington land him and expirings, I personally am on board...maybe that's just me...that's fine.

As far as middling picks etc, it depends where their at, who's available, and what year draft it is. A late lotto pick in 1996 is far better than one in 2001 for example. If Barnes, Sullinger and all the other questionables stay in college, AND considering the freshmen talent pool expected to come out as well next year does, then 2012 could be an extremely deep and talented draft. To get a late lotto pick in that draft, plus gaining more cap space potentially via an expiring contract which can also help down the line to add assets etc, could be a very worthwhile result in a potential Blatche deal.

So no, I wouldn't advocate dealing Blatche for a middling 1st rd pick if we can't get guys who could fit the rebuild well in that scenario (again my idea is Terrence Jones) or in a future draft if we don't have a good feeling about that draft (like the current one). I'm saying though that if a deal is there to get an asset in a good draft, or nail one down if its there in this one, then dealing Blatche could very well make sense.

[closg00]

SAC wins by a point.