(Image courtesy of usatoday.com)
The 2012 NBA draft is now behind us and before the proceedings it was said that this was a mediocre draft after the first pick of University of Kentucky superstar Anthony Davis. Yet upon further review several teams helped themselves and have several players that could provide immediate help to the respective franchises. Let's take a look at some of the teams that may have recieved the most significant value as well as immediate help moving forward. Four teams in my estimation got A+ grades for upgrading their existing rosters.
Golden State: The first team I want to take a look at is a team that may be flying below the radar but the impact of now 2nd year head coach Mark Jackson and his impact on changing the culture of the Warriors continued last night. At #7 Golden State got supreme value with UNC All-American Harrison Barnes who is an amazing talent and high character guy who can be the face of the organization. With the addition of Barnes the Warriors could have formed the most potent trio of perimeter scorers since the beloved "Run TMC" of the early nineties. Uniting Barnes with Steph Curry as well as last years first round pick Klay Thompson is a group that could be very good for years to come. The Warriors also got help in the transition from small ball run and gun style of Don Nelson by adding a couple of intense post players in All-SEC center Festus Ezeli and Michigan State All-American Draymond Green. All in all I give the Warriors the highest grade of any team in the draft for selecting players for impact as well as immedate contribution.
New Orleans: Of course you can't go too long without talking about the clear #1 player in the NBA in Anthony Davis. He was the best player in college basketball in his one season at that level and he will be a player at the next level as well. Then the Hornets went and found him an extremely lethal pick and roll partner in Duke super frosh Austin Rivers who is a dynamic talent in his own rite. Pairing these two young guns as well as re-signing free agent Eric Gordon could go a long way to helping the Hornets back to they playoffs sooner than later. New Orleans also picked up a nice experienced do it all wing player and former teammate of Davis in Darius Miller. At 6-8 Miller has the size as well as the shooting prowess to help contribute on a Hornets team that can use all the help they can get.
Boston: The Celtics are another team that made the most out of their two first round pick though both with in the twenties by selecting a pair of much needed big men for their aging roster. First was possibly the biggest steal of the first round in Ohio State All-American Jared Sullinger who if healthy will provide a significant and immediate impact for the Boston front line. In need of consistent low post scoring Sullinger is everything that the Celtics could have asked for. To go along with the great offense of Sullinger the Celtic used the #22 pick to select Syracuse center Fab Melo who will bring a significant post presense as well as much needed size to the Celtic bench. For their second round selection Boston went back to Syracuse to draft wing Kris Joseph who at 6-8 never lived up to the immense potential and hype that he recieved in college, but he does have the talent and athleticism to contribute at the NBA level.
Oklahoma City: The Thunder only had one pick in the 2012 NBA draft and they did a great job and made the most out of it. With the 28th selection of the first round Oklahoma City seleted Baylor sophomore Perry Jones III. There were red flags about possible issues with his knee, but with a selection near the end of the first round the risk was definitely worth it. Had Jones come out as a freshman last year he was a projected as a lock top 3 pick because of his superior size (6-11) and athletic ability playing out on the wing. This move gives the Thunder some great flexability heading into next season adding another extremely talented peice to arguably the most talented team in the NBA. Jones if healthy will be able to help with his length down low as well as on the break and if he can begin to harness his immense potential and undeniable talent. In this case the rich definitely got richer!
