NBA Draft Grades

By James Sheldon on June 25th, 2010

Yeah, I write for Manolith, we’re not a sports blog, but I will boldly and proudly claim that I can offer better or comparable NBA draft grades to those who work at ESPN or CBSSports.com – as a matter of fact, I said that 5 Kentucky players would go in the first round. Who else said that? I’m a biased, Kentucky fan, what can I say?

I’d love to offer a run down of each team’s draft grade, but like I said, we’re not a sports blog. I will however offer a few opinions on some teams who did some nice work in the first round.

Washington gets an “A,” though they’re still around a “D-” as a team. I think John Wall is the best offensive point guard to come out of college since Earvin “Magic” Johnson. I do think Wall needs to put in some work on defending away from the ball, but he’s got all the tools and desire–here’s to hoping he keeps his head on when he gets around the real money.

I’m not quite sure what the Wizards are doing overall. They just signed Kirk Hinrich, and are in need of freeing themselves of the max. signed Gilbert Arenas. Ugh. Yeah, they’ll still suck, but John Wall will be exciting to watch.

Continuing on my Kentucky trend, I offered an “A’ to the Oklahoma City Thunder when they snagged Eric Bledsoe. I quickly changed my tune and offered a “D-” for trading him away to the Clippers. I thought his youth and ability to run at the Thunder pace for 40-plus minutes would take this team even deeper into the 2011 playoffs.

I had to chuckle to see Gordon Hayward go to Utah. Man, they love the whities in Salt Lake City, don’t they? Regardless, I give them an “B+” for the pick. I think Hayward would have been best served staying at Butler for another year, and pressing toward NCAA domination, but in so many ways, he’s still a canvas to be worked into art. His coachability should mesh well with Jerry Sloan and the Jazz organization.

After scoffing at the Bledsoe trade, I was happy to see that OKC picked up Quincy Pondexter from Washington. His game is similar to Kevin Durant’s, and I pity many of their opponents in 2010-2011. They simply won’t be able to match up. Had they kept Bledsoe…Oh, I would have loved to have seen it. With the pick, however–a “B+” for the first round.

Finally, I’ll toss this one out there. “A” for Orlando in drafting Kentucky’s 6th man, Daniel Orton in the first round. I saw this coming, but not to Orlando. He’ll be a beast of a complement to Dwight Howard. A big body, a great defender, rebounder and an underrated passer. Like many of the Kentucky kids, this Frosh would have started on any other squad in the NCAA. He just happened to be playing behind two lottery pick caliber big men.

Of all the picks, I’m most interested to follow the career of Evan Turner from Ohio State, who went second to the 76ers. This kid is a “get on my back and ride” type of a player.

(Image via: With Malice)