Official 2009 NBA Draft Day Thread

[DPG21920]

Which fits better and has less risk?

Hedo+Lee+Alston+Battie

VC+Anderson+Gortat

Hedo and Lee got to the finals with the Magic and know the system. Is the upgrade that you get with the VC side enough to justify giving up the expirings?

Unless you think AC is a good enough second pg, the Magic still need one along with signing Gortat.

[Trimble87]

I dont see how the VC trade effects the Spurs or the RJ trade at all. If we get to the finals we can worry about the Magic or whoever we face then. I have never been a fan of VC, he was always a ball hog and a bad team mate. Add to that the fatc that he is on the down side of his career I would much rather have Jefferson then Carter.

Considering how huge VC's contract is I would imagine the Magic are done with Trukoglu... and I would definitely take Turkoglu over VC.

If they can manage to keep Turk with VC at SG then that is a lot of firepower to be sure. But the Magic never lacked for offense, carter is not a good defender and seems to sleep walk on that side of the floor.

To me the biggest concern for the Magic in the playoffs was lack of mental strength and low basketball iq. I cant count how many times in close 2-8 pt games they would run down the floor and fire up contested 3's instead of running a set play or spotting up Howard in the post. VC does not help them in that department at all either.

[DPG21920]

Not to mention I think Battie is better than Ryan Anderson at this point.

[objective]

Vince Carter would have finished that alley-oop, no doubt in my mind.

[kace]

yep, pretty much head and shoulders above a Parker-Ginobili-Jefferson-Duncan-Bonner/Rasheed/Dice/Gortat/Zaza/Gooden lineup. By a clear margin. And with Pietrus off the bench.

pretty much the same bs that people saying we are way behind LA with the new big 4 healthy and another legit big.

TP >> Nelson
manu = Carter
RJ = Hedo
Sheed = Lewis
TD = Howard and for the last four, you could even say spurs have every time a slight advantage.

How does that would lead to Magic starting 5 >>> Spurs one as you say ???

and Hill has the upside to equal Pietrus off the bench.

[Mel_13]

Ya, but what about next year? Battie and Alston were expiring.

With the deals for Lewis, Howard, Nelson, and Pietrus already on the books, Orlando doesn't seem to concerned about cap space. With this trade they have pushed another pile of chips into the pot. It will be interesting to see which player, Hedo or Gortat, is their highest priority to resign.

[DPG21920]

With the deals for Lewis, Howard, Nelson, and Pietrus already on the books, Orlando doesn't seem to concerned about cap space. With this trade they have pushed another pile of chips into the pot. It will be interesting to see which player, Hedo or Gortat, is their highest priority to resign.

Maybe, I just do not think VC+Ryan is a big enough upgrade over Hedo+Lee+Alston in order to justify handcuffing yourself to a certain degree.

Only time will tell and it certainly was not a bad move, but I just do not know if it was the right move. If they break the bank and resign Hedo, then I think it is awesome. If not, well, I have said my part...

[DPG21920]

pretty much the same bs that people saying we are way behind LA with the new big 4 healthy and another legit big.

TP >> Nelson
manu = Carter
RJ = Hedo
Sheed = Lewis
TD = Howard and for the last four, you could even say spurs have every time a slight advantage.

How does that would lead to Magic starting 5 >>> Spurs one as you say ???

and Hill has the upside to equal Pietrus off the bench.

One problem, the Spurs do not have Wallace.

Then again, the Magic do not have Hedo.

[objective]

pretty much the same bs that people saying we are way behind LA with the new big 4 healthy and another legit big.

TP >> Nelson
manu = Carter
RJ = Hedo
Sheed = Lewis
TD = Howard and for the last four, you could even say spurs have every time a slight advantage.

How does that would lead to Magic starting 5 >>> Spurs one as you say ???

What BS with LA? LA was a much better team than the Spurs this year.

Sheed isn't close to Lewis. Anyone who watched him play this year could see he was just about done. Better than anything the Spurs had, but still done. He vomits up threes and clanks way to many of them and has lost what mobility he had on defense, he's strictly a post defender now.

I'd take Hedo over RJ any day of the week. Hedo can affect games when he's not scoring with his playmaking and rebounding, RJ can't.

Again, I'm not saying the Spurs are doomed if they play them in the finals. If they even get that far.

I am saying that's a damn impressive lineup and on paper I think is better than any foursome the Spurs put out with any big they are thought to be after, unless Ian comes through.

OF COURSE, that's only IF the Magic bring back Turkoglu.

[timvp]

Michael Jackson Dies

Posted Jun 25th 2009 5:20PM by TMZ Staff

Michael JacksonWe've just learned Michael Jackson has died. He was 50.

Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon and paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back.

Michael is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson II.

Jackson had 13 number one hits during his solo career

Busy draft day

[DPG21920]

Wtf

[timvp]

I'm not waving a white flag, but on paper, I like that lineup significantly more. They made the finals with Lee and a disposable Alston and add Carter. Spurs got rolled in the first and add Jefferson and bring back Ginobili, if he doesn't fall apart again. And still don't have a legit starting big next to Duncan with no guarantee to get one.

Who is the legit starting big next to Howard? If the Magic and Spurs meet, expect a whole bunch of small ball.

[HarlemHeat37]

Wow, dead?..damn..

[vander]

Which fits better and has less risk?

Hedo+Lee+Alston+Battie

VC+Anderson+Gortat

Hedo and Lee got to the finals with the Magic and know the system. Is the upgrade that you get with the VC side enough to justify giving up the expirings?

Unless you think AC is a good enough second pg, the Magic still need one along with signing Gortat.

going forward, Alston and Battie are nobodies IMO, they cut some dead weight there, Anderson will be better than Battie, probably even better than Gortat, and VC will be a little better than Hedu.

so they saved themselves some money next year, while keeping about the same amount of talent, but spread out among fewer players, which is a good thing IMO. if they spend their MLE wisely, I think they are better off then if they would have just kept the same team intact. and that's saying something since they were a few plays from going up 3-1 on the Lakers basically without Nelson and with Howard still far from as good as he can be.

[Mel_13]

Maybe, I just do not think VC+Ryan is a big enough upgrade over Hedo+Lee+Alston in order to justify handcuffing yourself to a certain degree.

Only time will tell and it certainly was not a bad move, but I just do not know if it was the right move. If they break the bank and resign Hedo, then I think it is awesome. If not, well, I have said my part...

I agree with you. I just spelled out the two choices to more clearly see what their choices were for 23M next year. I didn't pick one.

I do believe that Orlando better win a le in the next two years or Otis Smith is going to choke on all those massive contracts and lose his job.

[DPG21920]

I am thrilled to be an NBA fan right now. Lets hope the fireworks continue into the draft. Does anyone have a feeling the Spurs will make a significant trade during the draft?

[EricB]

I am thrilled to be an NBA fan right now. Lets hope the fireworks continue into the draft. Does anyone have a feeling the Spurs will make a significant trade during the draft?

Agreed, the NBA being the top headlines in a good way is awesome.

IMO, I don't think they will get a deal done. Not for lack of trying, but just for not having pieces and or not wanting to s out 3 million like the re ed Knicks.

[HarlemHeat37]

Well Orlando already SEVERELY overpaid for Lewis, and they just made the Finals, so I'm pretty sure it's becoming Finals or bust at this point..

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Busy draft day

Dude what the .

[DPG21920]

Michael Jackson the GOAT. Rip.

[EricB]

Michael Jackson the GOAT. Rip.

Not the GOAT.

But an amazing entertainer.

[Mel_13]

5:45 Update

Plenty of Uncertainty at the Top Still

With just hours to go before the NBA draft officially kicks off, there is still plenty of uncertainty regarding who is going where exactly. Oklahoma City is heavily involved in trade talks for the #3 team, but appears to be asking for too much for the rights to Ricky Rubio.

Minnesota appeared to be playing it cool in regards to Rubio early on, but has emerged as a major suitor for his services this evening, which will make things very interesting leading up to the #3 pick. OKC seems to be asking for Al Jefferson right now…will they settle on Kevin Love?

Right now it appears that Oklahoma City is leaning towards picking Rubio and keeping him as a trading chip to potentially use this summer. A few sources we spoke with mentioned that they still expect Rubio to end up in New York when it’s all said and done.

Oklahoma City is also active in trade talk with Phoenix, with their main target appearing to be Robin Lopez. They are reportedly offering Phoenix their 2010 unprotected pick back in return for Lopez, but that seems like a very high price for the Suns to pay.

Sacramento seems to be leaning towards Tyreke Evans from what we’re hearing, and may have even told him as much.

If Minnesota keeps the pick, it looks very likely that they will take Jonny Flynn with one of those picks, with the other pick likely being used on James Harden. Some people think that DeMar DeRozan could be a target, but that seems far-fetched.

That would leave Golden State with an interesting dilemma at 7—take Jordan Hill or Stephen Curry? It seems like they would lean towards Hill, although this is a tough one to call.

At #8, we might see the unfathomable happen—Stephen Curry available to the Knicks? That would really make for an unforgettable moment in the Garden. Gerald Henderson also appears to be a target here.

At #9, it appears that Toronto will take DeMar DeRozan, if he’s on the board.

That would leave Milwaukee with an interesting choice between Jrue Holiday and Brandon Jennings. All indications are that Holiday has been “their guy” for weeks now since Flynn went out of their range, but Jennings has really come on strong in the last 24 hours, so we may have to wait and see.

At 11, we’re hearing Terrence Williams, and at 12, Gerald Henderson.

We’ll see how things play out…

[SPURSGOAT]

dang! only about an hour to go til the draft!

[DPG21920]

If the Lakers resign Odom and Ariza along with the Cavs getting Shaq and the Magic getting VC, what type of player(s) (caliber wise) do the Spurs need to get in order to have a legit shot at winning a le?

[EricB]

Mcdeyss and or Wallace.