2014 NBA draft/off-season thread

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

On TMZ, all athletes are "stars."

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

Has he even played a game yet?

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

Noel has all the tools to eventually overtake Andrew Bynum as the Most Spectacular Sixers Flameout of All Time.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

It's widely believed that with a normal rehab schedule, he could have played at some point this year for the Sixers, but they initially went very conservative because they didn't care about winning in the 2013-14 season. As a result, he didn't play at all. IIRC, Chad Ford said that if he wasn't hurt, he probably would have been in the 4 to 7 range for this year's draft.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

ESPN said his agent told them more on his status would be shared Friday. The foot injury plus the back injury probably pushes him out of #1 though, especially since there are some as-good prospects without the injury baggage, seemingly.

So much variance in the quality of centers though, and if you want an elite / all-star level one, they almost never go after the first couple of picks.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

I think Cleveland is insane if they pass on Wiggins, especially if it's to take Embiid.

If you look at the worst picks in NBA history, most of them are centers.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

Just to start a list of bust centers ...

Sam Bowie, Greg Oden, Chris Washburn, Joe Barry Carroll (Was servicable,but not nearly worthy of No. 1 overall), Hasheem Thabeet, Shawn Bradley, Kwame Brown, Michael Olowokandi.

I am not sure if he was picked high enough or was actually a center, but William Bedford also comes to mind.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

But here's the list of Hall of Fame centers picked after pick No. 5: Mel Daniels (9th overall), Artis Gilmore (7th round NBA originally, mostly because he was in the ABA already I believe, where he got to pick his team), Sabonis (24th, but in the Hall for his European playing), Robert Parish (8th), Moses Malone (ABA)... And that's it, I think. There is such a gulf between the very best and very worst at center that if you're any good at all, you go REALLY early.

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

William Bedford, part of that great era that included the likes of Chris Washburn. I believe his nickname was Willie B., as in "Willie B. at practice? Willie B. at the game?"

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

Can we add Pervis Ellison to that list of bust centers?

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

And Nikoloz Tskitishvili.

Not like the Nuggets really whiffed that hard, though, given what was in the 2002 draft. OK, they could have had Amare Stoudemire or Caron Butler or Nene (who they did get, eventually), but they also could have had another bust center in Curtis Borchardt.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_NBA_draft

 

Re: 2014 NBA draft thread

Marvin Webster?