Zonkerbl wrote:But can you win a championship that way (with "blech" rookies on "cost-effective" rookie contracts earning significant minutes)?
No -- you still need great overall production.
And I'm not one who worships at the altar of "building through the draft," as if that excludes other ways of acquiring talent. My point is that the draft continues to be a place to find contributors wherever a team picks.
For example, in 2011, the Kings took Isaiah Thomas with the last pick in the draft. He'd have made a fine backup PG behind Wall, and he'd STILL be playing cheap.
Basically, the front office's disdain for using 2nd round picks is wrong-headed thinking. Second round selections are sorta like very small bets. Make the pick, pay him a small signing bonus, invest some coaching time and attention to work with him. Maybe there's a 1-in-10 chance he'll be a significant contributor (though the odds are likely better than that).
To me, that doesn't suggest avoiding the second round, it would suggest getting more -- or at least being willing to use the ones I have.
Think about it like this: Say there's a carnival game where you get to throw a bean bag through a hole. There's a 1-in-10 chance of getting it through the hole, but if you can do it, you could win $100,000. The cost per toss is 1-cent. Don't know about you, but I'd want to buy lots of throws.
Who's 
