[whatsmyname]

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[rocketeer]

Originally Posted by Fork

Figures.

did you read his list? any list that puts austin daye in the top 10 is garbage. singler and hummel in the lottery? please.

and i love that you defend him as a draft analyst by saying he had crittendon over law, thad young as being underrated, and rudy being the only worthwhile sg like anything has been determined about any of them.

[MrJayremmie]

Ed Weiland of hoopsanalyst.com has this as his top 10. In order:

Michael Beasley
Kevin Love
Derrick Rose
Ty Lawson
Tyler Smith
Austin Daye
Richard Hendrix
Nick Calathes
James Harden
Roy Hibbert

Next 10:

Blake Griffin
OJ Mayo
Kyle Singler
Robbie Hummel
Eric Gordon
Jerryd Bayless
Danny Green
JJ Hickson
Marreese Speights
Mario Chalmers

Bubble first rounders:

Ryan Anderson
Joey Dorsey
Chase Budinger
Kenny George
Chris Douglas-Roberts
Donte Greene
James Johnson
Bill Walker
Darren Collison
Anthony Randolph
Geoff McDermott
DeAndre Jordan
Hasheem Thabeet
Kyle Weaver
Pat Calathes
Jonny Flynn
DJ Augustine
DJ White
Brook Lopez
Brandon Rush

Last 20:

Russell Westbrook
Wayne Ellington
Reggie Larry
Malik Hairston
Devon Hardin
John Bryant
Jujuan Smith
Stephon Hannah
AJ Ogilvy
Jason Thompson
Greivis Vasquez
AJ Price
Jaycee Carroll
Damion James
Luke Harangody
Sean Singletary
Paul Harris
Darrell Arthur
Jeremy Pargo
Tyler Hansbrough

---

You can dimiss him all you want, his analysis has been fairly close to Kevin Ma's 'Moneyball' analysis I've seen in the past.

Examples:

He had Javaris Crittendon ahead of Acie Law last season. Law sucks and I saw nobody else anywhere predict that.

He had Rudy Fernandez as the only SG worth anything in last year's draft.

He had Thad Young as one of the most underrated players in the draft.

The year before, he had Roy as the best player in the draft.

That would be awesome if that was what happened! Westbrook is low. We wouldn't have to trade. chad Ford said Westbrook will be top 10 though, and said no way he slips past Portland. Chad Ford said he would be perfect for us. So i'm not buying him bein' that low, but i would like it.

[Verro]

Originally Posted by Fork

Ed Weiland of hoopsanalyst.com has this as his top 10. In order:

Michael Beasley
Kevin Love
Derrick Rose
Ty Lawson
Tyler Smith
Austin Daye
Richard Hendrix
Nick Calathes
James Harden
Roy Hibbert

Next 10:

Blake Griffin
OJ Mayo
Kyle Singler
Robbie Hummel
Eric Gordon
Jerryd Bayless
Danny Green
JJ Hickson
Marreese Speights
Mario Chalmers

Bubble first rounders:

Ryan Anderson
Joey Dorsey
Chase Budinger
Kenny George
Chris Douglas-Roberts
Donte Greene
James Johnson
Bill Walker
Darren Collison
Anthony Randolph
Geoff McDermott
DeAndre Jordan
Hasheem Thabeet
Kyle Weaver
Pat Calathes
Jonny Flynn
DJ Augustine
DJ White
Brook Lopez
Brandon Rush

Last 20:

Russell Westbrook
Wayne Ellington
Reggie Larry
Malik Hairston
Devon Hardin
John Bryant
Jujuan Smith
Stephon Hannah
AJ Ogilvy
Jason Thompson
Greivis Vasquez
AJ Price
Jaycee Carroll
Damion James
Luke Harangody
Sean Singletary
Paul Harris
Darrell Arthur
Jeremy Pargo
Tyler Hansbrough

---

You can dimiss him all you want, his analysis has been fairly close to Kevin Ma's 'Moneyball' analysis I've seen in the past.

Examples:

He had Javaris Crittendon ahead of Acie Law last season. Law sucks and I saw nobody else anywhere predict that.

He had Rudy Fernandez as the only SG worth anything in last year's draft.

He had Thad Young as one of the most underrated players in the draft.

The year before, he had Roy as the best player in the draft.

Analytical profiles like these can be useful. It could cause GM's to take a second look at projected 2nd round picks who rate extremely high, or question projected lotto picks who rate extremely low. There are some trends in Ed's analysis though. He seems to understate the value of agility and speed in bigmen at the next level, as can be seen by the high rankings of Love and Hendrix. He also must place a lot of weight on guard playmaking abilities (where I agree wholeheartedly, as one of the few Blazers fans not enamored by Westbrook), and he understates athleticism. Elite athletes that he has rated highly, are some the players that I'm most excited about particularly Griffin, who'd be an absolute steal if he declared and was available at 12-13 when we draft.

[MAS RipCity]

Originally Posted by MAS RipCity

Assuming we are picking at 13, what is everyone's top 10 draft board?
It can be a realistic draft board of who will be there or it can be best player available or a hybrid mix.

1-Derrick Rose
This is a no-brainer. Our weakest spot is at point guard and he is CP3 level. KP will not break up the big 3 to get anyone in this draft so the only way we see Rose in the Rose City is if either we win the lotto or by a ticket to see him play against the Blazers. I was skeptical of him before the tourney, but he is just improving literally every day. The upside on this kid is amazing. He really is a Payton/Wade hybrid. He just looks so poise out there, always in control of his body and his IQ is through the roof. Part of me wishes we sucked a bit more this year in order to have a better shot at drafting this kid.

2-Russell Westbrook
If you can't draft the best, you get the best defender to slow him down. Westbrook is untapped potential, as his improvement is drastic from Freshman to Sophomore. I hope he still has a lot of room to grow, because he looks fantastic. He does have limitations with his jump shot, but shooting wouldn't be his M.O. and he is lightning quick which enables him to get to the rim at will. He is amazing in the open court as well. Finally, what makes him so desirable is his perimeter defense. We need someone out there to bagger and hassle guys like Kobe and Monta so Roy doesn't always have to use all of his energy on defense. I like this kid so much, I would trade Rudy in order to move up and get him. Luckily, I don't think he will go that high.

3-Eric Gordon
He was once a hot commodity, but after Kelvin Sampson resigned he and the team went down the drain. This could be a blessing in disguise for Portland as his stock has taken a bit of a hit. I think moving up to 6-8 to obtain him would be doable without breaking up our core. I love how he has a killer instinct and can flat out score. He reminds me a lot of Monta Ellis and that would be amazing next to Roy as well. He is a combo guard but has the necessary ball-handling skills to play point guard and isn't too small at 6'4" to play off of the ball. I haven't evaluated his defensive skills yet, but it doesn't seem to be a liability. Bottom line is I believe we need a finisher, a guy who will take shots that will keep the foot down on the gas peddle and finish teams off. All too many times have I seen our Blazers blow big leads this year because lack a killer instinct. This kid has it, and it would rub off on our guys.

4-OJ Mayo
Almost a reversal of Gordon's season, Mayo started slow and finished very strong. I love the idea of a big point guard and he did play very well against Memphis early on this season. What I love about him is his big game ability. He always seemed to shine in the spotlight which is what we need. Like Gordon he is a combo guard with good ball handling skills. Before USC, I had thought of him as a selfish player, but after viewing him he really looks to get his teammates involved. He also didn't have any run-ins this year at SC which is good for his character. I just love the idea of a big backcourt.

5-Blake Griffin
No, PF is not need, but I could definitely get used to a 4-man rotation of LMA, Oden, Joel, and Griffin. Actually, Joel and Blake would be a match made in heaven down low. Blake is a scrapper and a bruiser, something we have been desperately searching for this year since Zach and Buck have left the franchise. Coach Mo would love this kid. I really just love the insurance factor. If one of the bigs goes down, we have suitable backups. I have only seen a few games of his, but his mid-range jumper is nice and he attacks the hoop. I can definitely see the Boozer comparisons.

6-Danillo Gallinari
I have never seen him play and am only going on hype. I am not sure I would trade up to obtain him, like I would the prior 5 guys. Danillo doesn't fill a need but I have heard KP has an eye for him and he is just BPA at this point for me. He would fit in if we lost James and Channing so Travis could play 4 and Martell and he could split minutes at the 3. I like the comparison to Detlef, which at least shows that some scouts believe he has some toughness in him, unlike the stereotypical Euro.

7-Nicolas Batum
Same as Danillo pretty much. I would love it if he turned out like Rudy Gay.

8-DeAndre Jordan
Now, Jordan is not ready for the NBA, but he has potential and potential for insurance. We have great depth with Joel, LMA and GO, so we could take our time with him and we do have Rudy coming over so theres an impact rookie as well as Oden, so it is not imperative to draft an impact rookie. He is a low-risk high-reward type of player if he fell to us at 13. He is physically ready, he just needs to fine tune his skills.

9-Kevin Love
I am in love with his outlet passes and think it would spark some awesome fast break opportunities. I do not think he will dominate like he did in college but at 13, that's great value. My only concern is his dad and his ego. I don't think playing in Portland would be the best thing in the world for him, there could be a lot of distractions for him. He is a defensive liability but he has shown nice range and can flat out rebound. He would be a superb backup, which is what we need at the 4.

10-Tyler Hansbrough
I do not think he comes out after the Final Four loss nor would I take him at 13, I just want Psycho T on my squad. This kid goes balls out every second on the court. He would be like Brian Grant for us. Not only would he bring energy and passion to the game but he would really give LMA all he could handle in practice on a daily basis. No championship team is based around 12 superstars, it is a mixture of stars and role players and we are really lacking a guy who gets everyone fired up. Joel is like our enforcer, but Tyler would get the crowd rowdy and the team would thrive off of his energy.

Yes Beasely is not on my list. I do not think he would be a good fit for us and don't think he will be #1 level NBA prospect.
Can someone please stick this so we don't have 139852 draft threads?

With a bunch of new entrants and a few defections, here is my updated top 10:

1- Derrick Rose
2- Russell Westbrook
3- Eric Gordon
4- OJ Mayo
5- Kevin Love (+4 from last week)
6- Danilo Gallinari
7- DeAndre Jordon (+1)
8- Nicolas Batum (-1)
9- Hasheem Thabeet (NR)
10-Jerryd Bayless (NR)

Dropped out:
Tyler Hansbrough-
I don't think he'll declare and using a lotto pick on him is too much.

Blake Griffin-He said he was going back to school. I really wish he would have stayed in the draft; he would have been a bruiser.

[ThatBlazerGuy]

Here is my top 10....

1. Derrick Rose PG
2. OJ Mayo CG
3. Eric Gordon CG
4. Russell Westbrook CG
5. Jerryd Bayless PG
6. Danilo Gallinari SF
7. Nicolas Batum SF
8. Donte Greene SF
9. Kevin Love PF
10. Anthony Randolph F

[Oldmangrouch]

Changing gears just a tad, what do people think of Donte Greene out of Syracuse? 6'10" SF. Has slipped into the 12-15 range in most mocks because he was unable to carry a crippled team by himself, and wore down late in the season.

[Sonny-Canzano]

Trade.up.for.Russell.Westbrook!

The best defensive player in the entire draft.

[MrJayremmie]

Yea, Russel is #2 overall player on my board after Rose. I feel that we will end up with him, as Chad Ford mentioned that Pritchard likes him and scouted him and that he is perfect for us. There were articles in the paper that mentioned Westbrook to Portland.

If he does come out, then i'd say his most likely destination is Portland, as he will be a late lottery pick.

Changing gears just a tad, what do people think of Donte Greene out of Syracuse? 6'10" SF. Has slipped into the 12-15 range in most mocks because he was unable to carry a crippled team by himself, and wore down late in the season.

I like him alot, not for us though.

[MAS RipCity]

Donte reminds me of Rashard Lewis..and I'm not so sure that's a great thing.

[dwood615]

Originally Posted by Sonny-Canzano

Trade.up.for.Russell.Westbrook!

The best defensive player in the entire draft.

i would love to get westbrook