LonZoBallin wrote:is there any trade history of a team trading two picks in the 20's to move up in the draft? How high were they able to move up?
Yes, it happens frequently. But there is less of a pattern to how high one can move up. It depends on the quality of the draft, the position of the picks, etc. The most ambitious moveup I can remember was when Houston packaged three firsts on draft night in 2001 - the picks were #13, #18, #21 - for the #7 pick to select the late Eddie Griffin. The deal worked out well for the Nets who got Richard Jefferson, Jason Collins and Brandon Armstrong. Considering the Raps and Clips picks are in the 20s, but also that this is considered a particularly deep draft with rotation calibre players available throughout the first round, I'd guess that dealing our two firsts *AS THEY CURRENTLY STAND* would get one a pick in the mid to late teens. It's said to be a particularly good point guard draft, so a team with such a need plus a desire to add a little more youth and athleticism at another position might find the PG pickings on their list just as good as hanging on to the mid-teen pick they earned with their W/L record. For example, if the Knicks feel they need young PG but also want to fill a second position for the future, they might be targeting a player who is likely to be available at #25, so why pick him at #17? And they have other needs and an aging roster. The Bulls are in the same boat.
But such trades almost never happen before draft night. Often they are contingent on the availability of certain players as the draft proceeds through the first round.