NBA Draft 2015 and Mock Draft

Thursday, June 25th, 2015 the 2015 NBA Draft will happen in NY. This year is headlined by 2 promising big men. Either could go #1 but it seems that Karl-Anthony Towns will most likely be selected by the MN Timberwolves as the #1 pick over Jahlil Okafor.

Earlier this year I wrote a piece about Okafor being the #1 pick and that any team that doesn't pick him would make a big mistake. I have to change my mind on that after watching Towns more closely at the end of the year. Don't get me wrong, Okafor is a lock at #1 or #2, but I believe Towns has way more versatility than Okafor has. Especially with the NBA merging into a small ball game, with a PF that can play Center because he can also switch on picks to guard other players. Okafor is a traditional big man with tremendous back to the basket skills, which the team that picks him will utilize him for. The thing is that with the transformation of the small ball game with evidence that it works, (i.e.watch NBA Finals Golden State) the traditional center is losing its value and need. Phil Jackson is not a fan of small ball and would take Okafor before Towns because he is still a believer in working the ball inside out, getting penetration, and get post touches.

It might be my Minnesota bias to why I'm changing my mind from drafting Okafor to now Towns, but I truly believe Towns has so much more potential to become a legitimate super star within a few years. To me he is the next Anthony Davis. He has all the same attributes, minus the offensive abilty that Davis has, but he has a nice mid range jump shot and a decent back to the basket game already. He is a little raw on offense, but will a little NBA help he will become a 20-10 guy within 3 years.

As for the Timberwolves, this pick is a no-brainer. Towns will fit right in with the Wolves. With the rapid development of Wiggins, a young, talented co-star like Wiggins could become one of the best duos in the league for the next 10 years! Yes, that is an optimistic thought, but a very realistic thought if Towns pans out. Having KG will also be very important for the development of Towns. KG has more wisdom than anybody left in the NBA, so for Towns to learn from him, he could become a very tough, young player early in his career. The Wolves also have a lot of assets they are willing to trade to get some more pieces to the puzzle. Possibly trading former #1 pick Anthony Bennett for a draft pick or a proven vet could really be exactly what the Wolves need. A Ricky Rubio and Pekovic package trade for the Knicks #4 pick and a little extra would not be a bad idea either because both Rubio and Pek are injury prone and take up a lot of the Wolves' salary cap.


For the rest of the draft and the reason I wanted to write this post is due to European players, particularly the buzz around Latvian prospect Kristaps Porzingis. Another year, another draft class with tall Europeans that can shoot the 3 and be a swing 4. Every year this happens and do you how many of them turn out??? Andrea Bargnani? NOPE! NONE! Dirk is the sole reason for this false sense of over excitement for tall Europeans. Because he (Dirk) was a pioneer of a big man from Europe who could knock down the 3 consistently, now every draft analysis thinks any tall European that can shoot the 3 will be the next Dirk. It literally drives me crazy. Dirk is the 1/100 European swing 4's that turns out. The rest are drafted and back in Europe within 2 maybe 3 years. Look at the tweet from Jay Bilas and try to argue against it, you CAN'T !! European big guys that can shoot are the worse fallacy in the NBA. These scouts who call themselves professions, literally are delusional to how bad European basketball is compared to the NBA and NCAA Division 1 college basketball. Until one of these draft picks proves otherwise, I will keep this opinion.

Here's a list of NBA Busts http://www.thescore.com/nba/news/783326

Here is an article that has a similar take on European players http://www.lostlettermen.com/article/what-if-frank-kaminsky-was-european

Sleepers:

Sleepers are my favorite type of draftees because nobody expects them to be great and it gives the player motivation to work hard to prove to teams they missed out on them. My biggest sleepers this year are JP Tokoto from UNC, Rakeem Christmas from Syracuse, and Anthony Brown from Stanford. Tokoto is my favorite among anyone. He is extremely athletic, long, and can defend. Limited and raw offensively, but with some NBA help he could turn into a lock down defender on a championship team, coming off the bench for energy. I would compare him to a more athletic, but not as good of shooter as Matt Barnes.


My NBA Mock Draft (1-10):

1. Minnesota Timberwolves: Karl-Anthony Towns

2. Los Angeles Lakers: Jahlil Okafor

3. Philadelphia 76ers: D'Angelo Russell

4. New York Knicks: Emmanuel Mudiay

5. Orlando Magic: Justise Winslow,

6. Sacramento Kings: Kristaps Porzingis

7. Denver Nuggets: Willey Cauley-Stein

8. Detroit Pistons: Mario Hezonja

9. Charlotte Hornets: Stanley Johnson

10. Miami Heat: Kelly Oubre

Final thoughts:

The NBA draft is a life changing event for players and teams. Some players turn out to be superstars while the majority end up having short lived NBA careers, but being drafted is an amazing accomplishment that every player that gets drafted should be proud of.

Mark my words: If Emmanuel Mudiay goes to Sacramento he will be a bust.

Trey Lyles will be an interesting pick. I see him becoming a starter within 3 years on a middle of the pack team. A lot of potential for him.

I included Oubre in the top 10 because I think he has a lot of potential to be a scorer in the league within a few years. To me he is a steal or bust.

On one mock draft, I saw 2 of the sleepers I like going to MN. Anthony Brown and Rakeem Christmas.

Next week free agency starts so I wouldn't be surprised if any of these picks were traded for some already proven players such as the Lakers trading their pick to Sacramento for DeMarcus Cousins.

Free Agents for this summer: http://www.sbnation.com/a/nba-free-agents-2015

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NBA: Free Agency LA Lakers

Now that Kevin Love just opted out of his contract maybe we will finally see the Lakers revamp their roster before Kobe goes out.

I wrote about the Lakers landing a huge free agent last summer, but it never happened, which is why they were so bad last season. I'm hoping with all the free agents this summer LA is bound to pick up one and get back to a respectful team.

If dreams came true for LA:
1) Trade their #2 pick for DeMarcus Cousins
2) Sign Jimmy Butler
3) Sign Kevin Love or LaMarcus Adridge


OK now that probably won't happen but hopefully one of those events will.

If all 3 did happen, imagine the Lakers Roster:

C: DeMarcus Cousins
PF: Kevin Love/LaMarcus Aldridge
SF: Jimmy Butler
SG: Kobe Bryant
PG: Jordan Clarkson

Bench:
Nick Young as back up SG and legitimate scoring threat
Jeremy Lin: back up PG
Julius Randle: has yet to play, but would be in a great position to come off the bench
Ed Davis, Jordan Hill and Ryan Kelly would fight for the back up positions, but provide depth and flexibility.
Wayne Ellington: Back up SF/SG

Lakers need to get rid of Boozer.

Just remember this is a hypothetical dream scenario that has little to no chance of ever happening, but it sure would be a way to get the Lakers back to championship caliber.

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NBA Finals - Game 6

"When facing elimination, LeBron James averages 31.9 PPG, the highest in NBA playoff history among players with at least 5 such games in their careers. His teams are 7-7 in those games, but they’ve won 5 of the last 6." - ESPN

What more could LeBron do tonight that he hasn't already done? He's scored 40 in 3 out of the 5 games in this series. He's had a triple double in 2 of them. If only one of his teammates could step up and carry some of the load, LeBron and the Cavs would have a much better chance of winning. Tonight is different. LeBron and the Cavs are facing elimination. Tonight will be all about Lebron James, not about how much his teammates will help. Tonight will be all about attacking every opportunity he gets. I wouldn't be surprised if LeBron surpasses the 30 point mark at halftime if he's truly playing in desperation mode.
Just like in Game 6 at Boston in 2013, LeBron will be on a mission tonight. The one thing I truly believe he's lacked effort in this series and most of the post season is his INDIVIDUAL defense. Yes, I know he's basically the Cavs' only threat on offense, thus him conserving energy on the defensive side, but tonight he is going to have to play just as hard on defense as he has been on offense if the Cavs want to stay alive. If you don't agree that he hasn't given his full effort on defense, look at the play that Harrison Barnes dunked on him on the offensive rebound putback slam. Also, watch him guard Iguodala, yes he is suppose to give him room to shoot, but his close outs are lackadaisical and effortless. He needs to take command and guard Steph Curry when Steph is starting to heat up to prevent the Warriors from going on a big run or score 17 points in the 4th quarter.

When it is all over it will come down to a win or another NBA Finals loss.

My Final thought is that LeBron will come out hungry and have a big 1st half. Although he will be gunning, I think the Warriors will stay right with the Cavs. The difference tonight will be the help of the whole team in terms of defense and making shots when called to. The 4th quarter will be the final factor as to why the Cavs win or lose and I think LeBron will take over, willing his way to force Game 7 with an incredible offensive output, but even more importantly, taking responsibility on defense, shutting down Curry.



Here is an interesting article on Lebron's performance through the 5 games.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/lebron-james-may-go-down-as-the-greatest-loser-ever/

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NBA Finals - Game 4 recap - Game 5 preview

It was about time that Cleveland's gas tank hit completely empty, they have had their gas light on since the 4th quarter of Game 3. We all knew that this would inevitably happen with the minutes that the Cavs player were playing. LeBron finally returned to mortal and was a non-factor in the second half. Pretty much every Cavs player had a bad night except Mozgov who had the best game of his career finishing with 28 points. This was about the only thing Cleveland did well. With the Warriors playing small, Cleveland had to use their size and take advantage. Unfortunately nobody else could make a shot, especially from outside and from 3, where the Cavs shot 4-27. JR Smith has been absent from this series and thus I predict a breakout Game 5.

Game 5

These 2 days between games will make a big difference for the depleted Cavaliers. After a horrendous Game 4, I expect LeBron to return to his SuperMan like form and have a big Game 5. I hope JR and Shumpert can get it going as well because they were so bad in Game 4. My guess is that Game 5 is another down to the wire, one possession game. I have a feeling LeBron is going to have a big game along with one other teammate, hopefully JR Smith and they pull out a win.

Cleveland wins and takes a 3-2 lead back to Cleveland.


Side note: Andre Iguodala has been the MVP of the Warriors and is the biggest reason they won last night.

LeBron will bring back the over-sized sweatband.

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NBA Finals - Game 3 recap - Game 4 preview

Once again another very inefficient game for LeBron. 14-34 is better than Game 2, but still not the best. 46 minutes added to his minutes total, getting him to 142/154 minutes possible. His efficiency is really taking a toll because of his lack of rest. That being said, this is how he has to play with the line-ups he is playing with. I was impressed with how he came out attacking in the 1st half and 3rd quarter when they pushed the lead to 22. The 4th quarter was a different story though, after what we thought was turning into a blowout, the Warrior came back and cut the lead all the way to 1 point. A lot of this was because of stagnant offense by the Cavs, but another reason was because Steph Curry finally found his shot and started lighting it up from downtown. Fortunately for the Cavs, the Warriors could not complete the full comeback, due to some clutch free throws by LeBron and Dellavedova. Curry ended up scoring 17 in the 4th and 27 in the game.

Delly! Delly! Delly! Dellavedova deserves all the praise and attention he is receiving. He out played the MVP, maybe not in stats, but in terms of hustle, heart, and defense. He is giving his all and it shows. I doubt he will have the same kind of performance he had in Game 3 in Game 4, but if he plays with the same intensity and effort, expect him to frustrate Curry and the Warriors again.

Tristan Thompson was much better in Game 3 than Game 2. A key stat worth noting is that he played 44 mins, only 2 less than LeBron who played 46. TT was also very efficient last night getting some easy finishes off 4 offensive rebounds finishing 4/6 from the field with 13 rebounds, a team high. It seems to be that when one of Cleveland's bigs is on the other is off. They work so well at protecting the rim and rebounding, but if they could both be on for one game, the Warriors would have their hands full. I know Cleveland is switching all picks when Thompson is the center, but he simply cannot guard Steph.

Looking ahead to Game 4

As the Cavs take a 2-1 lead into Game 4 and home-court advantage, I wouldn't say anything is locked up for them at all. After last night's loss, I believe the Warriors finally have felt like they can actually be beat. Their body language said it all. They seem like they have lost all their confidence and chemistry. Klay Thompson was MIA last night after having a huge Game 2. Steph didn't find his shot until the 4th quarter. The Golden State front court of Bogut, Green, and Barnes was absolutely horrendous. The only reason they stayed in the game was becasue of the combo of Iggy, David Lee, and Barbosa. Yes, the very unlikely trio. If I'm Steve Kerr, I would piss these guys off to get a fire lit under them. Also, maybe David Lee has to play more. He ended with a +17 rating. That's riddiculous. I think Golden State will come out firing on all cylinders showing everybody that they haven't thrown in the towel yet and make this another close game. The difference between Game 4 and the first 3 games will be that Golden State will actually lead most of the game rather than the Cavs. The Cavs have been leading most of the game because LeBron has been controlling the tempo, disabling Golden State to play at a fast pace and get transition baskets. At the end of the game, Golden State will tie the series 2-2, unless an unexpected performance from Dellavedova, JR Smith, or Iman Shumpert.














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NBA Finals - Game 2 recap - Game 3 preview

In all honestly LeBron played very inefficient in terms of offense and amount of minutes he played. Nobody cares about efficiency though, because the highlights and history books only care about "how many" points, rebounds, assists rather than efficiency. Both Game 1 and 2 LeBron has been very inefficient but all people will see is that he has scored 44 & 39 respectfully in each game. None the less, 39 points and a triple-double is extremely impressive and will go down as one of his best performances in NBA Finals history, joining the elite company of James Worthy as the only players with 35, 15, & 10. Not to shabby Mr. James.

The difference in tonight's game was what the Cavs missed in the first game and that was a bench or their role players stepping up. Game 1 was 2 stars against the Warriors. Game 2 was about 1 guy and a group of guys stepping up to a challenge and beat a deeper team. The player that's not getting the press that should be getting talked about more is Mozgov. He had a very quiet, but extremely efficient 17 points and 11 Rebs. He was the Cavs' second highest scorer, yet nobody is talking about him because he hardly played in the last periods of the game.

As for Matthew Dellavedova, he deserves all the press he's getting. After posting an absolute goose egg in Game 1, he got the call to start and guard Curry all night. He might have done the best job anybody has EVER done guarding Curry. Curry ended with 19 points and had one of the worst shooting nights of his career including a record setting, most missed 3 pointers in a game going 2-15. I would have to give almost all the credit to Delly, who when guarding Curry, caused him to go 0-8. 0-8 when guarded by Dellavedova! The best shooter in the world. That's heart. Not only did Delly play stellar defense, but he posted a +15. Tristan Thompson was excellent on the rebounds, grabbing 14 rebounds but posted a team worst -21. I just wish the Cavs could get him a little more involved in the offense, getting him more touches and easy buckets, but as of now he is doing his role as best as they could ask him.

Game 2 might have been even more enticing than Game 1 just due to the fact that the Cavs won while being without their second best player and on the road after losing a heart breaker. 

I hope Game 3 will live up to what Game 1 & 2 have been, which I think it will. My guess is that the Cavs shock the world an take Game 3, forcing the Warriors and the rest of the world to doubt how good the Warriors are. Doubt is just what the Cavs have installed into the Warriors heads after winning in Golden State. Had the impossible just been done? I think the Warriors are stunned and are in a vulnerable spot right now coming to Cleveland, with the momentum on Cleveland's side. 1 day of rest is in favor of GS because of their depth.

Maybe I'm being too optimistic in thinking the Cavs are going to win the series and are just on a high from winning Game 2 without Kyrie, but I truly think Cleveland is in just as good of shape as they were before Kyrie going out. I think this because, yes Kyrie is really good and I think he would help a lot, but with him gone others really have to step up without having to go out of their comfort zones. For example, Dellevedova didn't do anything special last night in terms of playing outside his abilities, he just accepted the challenge in front of him and stepped up to it. LeBron is the one that will have to do more and something different. The rest of the Cavs just need to step their game up and know their role.

As for Game 3, I would hope Cleveland shows up like they did in Game 2, but nobody can believe Steph Curry will shoot as bad as he did in Game 2 again. I'm afraid he will have one of his "video game" like moments and get his teammates to play like they did all regular season. It's how the Cavs respond to a Curry "video game" unstoppable moment that will decide the game, if they cave in and let the lead get around 15 it might be done, but if they can sustain a big run by GS and not get knocked out (theoretically speaking) they might have a chance to play well enough to take a 2-1 lead into Game 4. This series has been a gift from the basketball gods that we should all be thankful for. I can't imagine not having 3 or 4 more epic games to lead into another epic NBA Finals like we had in the 2013 Finals between LeBron's Miami Heat and Tim Duncan's SA Spurs. After a lot of thought and research I have came to the prediction that the Cavs will take Game 3 and take a series lead into Game 4. 

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NBA Finals Game 1 recap - Game 2 Preview

Is this series déjà vu from the OKC 2012 Finals series when LeBron won his first ring or are the Cavs facing a very steep up hill battle? I'm afraid that it will be a very tough climb for the Cavs. LeBron did what everyone expected him to do by literally carrying the team on his back, scoring a new NBA Finals career high with 44 points. He was just another step back game winning buzzer beater away from stealing Game 1 on the road and adding to his already impressive "greatness" resume.

For how confident people were in the Warriors to beat up the Cavs, the Cavs held their own the entire game including a 10 point lead after the first quarter, but we all know basketball is a tale of 2 halves and sometimes 5 extra minutes in Game 1's case. That extra 5 minutes appeared to be too much more the gassed Cavs. Not only were the Cavs already exhausted by the end of the 4th, they ended up losing their star point guard, Kyrie Irving, within 2 minutes of the overtime period. Talk about killing 2 birds with 1 stone for the Warriors. Beat the Cavs and have them lose their PG. That's bad news for Cleveland and their title hopes. Still, LeBron has brought a lesser talented roster to the Finals, circa 2007. Not saying they had any success, but with a more developed LeBron James and a starting line up that is one of the best in the NBA, there is still a chance for the Cavs to win a championship without Kyrie.

The Cavs' bench which is stripped down to nothing as is, just a got a little thinner, as Kyrie Irving left Game 1 with a knee injury that will probably alter his effectiveness and status of his play. Most likely, JR Smith will have to move into the starting line up, which is no problem, but that leaves almost no bench. The irony of the bench scoring difference of 34-9 is that the Cavs record since Jan. 15 was 34-9 which I talked about in my last post.

My take for Game 2

The Cavs fought hard all game, owning the lead for a majority of the game. The effort they put into Game 1 will show up in their lack of energy for Game 2. Unless LeBron has yet another miraculous "MJ" like performance for Game 2, Cleveland stands very little chance. I don't think Kyrie will play, which hurts them even more, and even if he did, he wouldn't be at 100% or as good as he was last night. All in all, I think the Warriors will win by 11+ and take a strong 2-0 lead into Cleveland for Tuesday's Game 3.

Optimistic thought: JR Smith goes off again like he did vs Atlanta and/or Mike Miller comes in like he did for the Heat in their 2012 NBA Finals series against OKC. #Wishfulthinking

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NBA Finals - Cavaliers vs GS Warriors

NBA Finals - Cleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors

This year's NBA Finals are another gift from the basketball gods to us. We get this season's MVP against the Best Player in the world going head to head. For the 1st time in 40 years for Golden State and the 1st time since 2007 for the Cavs when LeBron was still young and still developing his game. The video-game like play with street ball handles against an unstoppable freight train. This is one of the finals that we dream of, yet people are thinking this one is over before it has begun. That is not the case in my opinion.

Remember earlier this season when Lebron sat out for a 2 week stretch to rest? This nine day break between games will me much similar to that. The Cavs were 1-7 on the 8 game streak without LeBron posting a 19-19 record. Since the Cavs' horrendous start and disregarding LeBron's first game back against Phoenix, the Cavs had the best record since January 15th (34-9).

The 34-9 record is because of a few things:

1) LeBron returning. Obviously he is the main reason for the Cavs' success, but that 2 weeks of rest really helped him.

2) The trades and players signed the Cavs made mid season. Trading away Dion Waiters, whom did not fit well with the Lebron and Blatt's game plan, was one of the best moves
Cavs made. Waiters simply did not flow with LeBron's style. Picking up JR Smith and Iman Shumpert from the Knicks might be the key to puzzle for the Cavs to win a championship. The two have been crucial parts during the Cavs' magical post season run. JR has been lights out and Shumpert has filled in great on defense and shooting the 3. The last part was getting Mozgov, the center Cleveland needed to block shots and own the boards alongside Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love (while he played).

3) The back end of season also developed many of Cleveland's role players like Dellavedova and Thompson to get them comfortable playing big minutes with the starting group. The Cavs have really gelled this post season and could take the series from Golden State with their intensity on defense and team chemistry.

Why I think the Cavs will win the 2015 NBA Finals Championship:

1) NUMBERS NEVER LIE: The Cavs' defense has been superb this post season. They have the best opponents PPG at just over 92. They also have a slight edge in off and defense efficiency over the Warriors. They have lead the post season in Blocks per game with Thompson and Mozgov protecting the rim. They also have a slight edge for the lead in rebounds per game over the Warriors.  Its frustrating to read articles saying the Cavs don't stand a chance, when on paper they are just as good or better than Golden State.

2) Like I mentioned before, the new comers and role players have really stepped up this post season. JR Smith has been huge, and he is just what LeBron and Cavs needed with the injury to Kevin Love. He is a legitimate 3rd scoring option for the Cavs. His shining moment was Game 1 against the Hawks when he could not miss a shot. He ended up with 28 points. TT's rebounding has really made him emerge this off-season, proving he's worth a contract extension and a legitimate PF in the NBA. Dellavedova and Shumpert have also been good, having their own shining moments and stirs of controversy. Gaining Smith and Shumpert has allowed the Cavs to play small ball with the line up of Irving, Smith, Shumpert, James, and Thompson which has been deadly, allowing the Cavs to space the floor with shooters all over and LeBron playing point forward, given him space to get to the rim or dump to Thompson for a flush. I expect this line up to play the majority of minutes for defensive purposes to be able to guard all of Golden State's weapons.

3) Most importantly, LeBron's experience in the playoffs and finals is legendary. 5 straight NBA Finals, that hasn't been done since Bill Russell and the 1960's Celtics teams. He has put himself in another group of history. I think losing last year fueled him to make it to another finals, but he has carried this team and has felt the effects physically. I think he is a little more banged up then previous seasons and Kyrie and Love being injured or out has not helped, making him carry even more of the load. I will never bet against LeBron even if the odds are against him in these finals.

Why the Warriors could win the 2015 NBA Finals Championship:

The Golden State Warriors are really, really good, They were the best team during the regular season, and had the MVP on their team. They are really good at defense and offense. Their depth is what sets them apart from just about everyone. I think Kerr's experience playing with Jordan and the Spurs really has shaped his coaching style, emphasizing team basketball. There is a reason why they are at the top for assists per game, even with a point guard that is top 10 in scoring and shots. They are versatile and deep. Just about 1-10 could be a starter on most teams in the league, but their sacrifice to come off the bench and play as team is what makes them so dangerous. My biggest fear for them and what I believe is their achilles heel, is that they have no NBA Finals experience, but one could say the same about the Cavs, minus LeBron.

I am very excited about this year's NBA Finals and have came to my final thoughts.

My prediction is that the Cavs will be crowned Champions at Golden State after Game 7. I picked them before the season started and am sticking with em'. Never bet against the king or you will pay. I wouldn't be surprised if Golden State won, because their core has been together for a few years, starting when they pushed the Spurs a few seasons ago. You can't honestly believe that the Cavs were meant to win in LeBron's first season back in Cleveland with a group of young stars that have never even been to the playoffs (Irving, Love, Thompson). I didn't expect them to win this year, but I think LeBron's goal and reason to come back is so that they could start a dynasty for years to come with LeBron and Kyrie at the core.

Just a side thought that I had: With Kyrie getting these 2 weeks of rest, who knows maybe he will have a coming out series and be able to match Steph Curry's performance. Kyrie is my sleeper in this series, with his ability to score, when healthy, I wouldn't be surprised if we see a big game from him and steal a road game, like when he put up 57 vs the Spurs earlier this season.

CLEVELAND WINS 4-3

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