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Oklahoma City trades No. 21 and 26 for the rights to Cole Aldrich and Morris Peterson

We heard about it for weeks. The Thunder wanted in the lottery. And they got there, getting their man, Kansas product Cole Aldrich.

(Just so you know, this trade won’t be official until July 8 because of a moratorium period that I don’t completely understand. But it’s virtually a done deal.)

What’s weird about this is that Aldrich wasn’t really ever on many radars. We heard a ton about Daniel Orton. We heard a bunch about Solomon Alabi. We wondered if OKC could get high enough to grab Cousins or Monroe. But in the end, it was Cole Aldrich (and Morris Peterson) coming from New Orleans for the 21st and 26th pick.

Basically, if you deduce these events, the Thunder traded the 32nd, 21st and 26th pick for Aldrich, Daequan Cook and Peterson. That’s not bad at all. Before the night started, everyone agreed the Thunder’s needs were inside big man and shooter. Needs: addressed. Well, potentially. Cook is a proven shooter and even Peterson can stroke from outside, depending on where he fits on the roster, but Aldrich isn’t a finished product, at least offensively. And you would hope not, with the guy being 21 years old. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Last year, we were in an entirely different boat. The Thunder’s place was set in stone and really the only question was, Rubio or Harden? Oklahoma City was picking in the top three and all eyes were on us. It was exciting.

This year, it’s different. The draft’s not nearly as exciting in a sense of the Thunder adding a top five impact player, but it’s probably more intriguing because of the options OKC comes in with. Three picks in the first round with only a couple of roster spots? Something’s gotta give here.

6:25 PM CST: Almost time for the fun to begin. The latest rumor coming from Marc Spears of Yahoo! is that Tibor Pleiss is rocketing up boards and OKC might take him at 18. Or OKC might trade that pick. Or OKC might not draft anyone at all and use the picks on a vending machine and a new copier for the coach’s office. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.

6:35: This is taking far too long. It’s obvious this is a TV decision, just so that we can all hear from Jay Bilas, Jon Barry and Jeff Van Gundy talk about stuff we already know. I love television run draft events.

6:38: Oh, John Wall.

6:41: I swear I saw Daniel Orton in one of those John Wall highlights. I imagine we’ll see that same highlight when Orton is picked later, because you know, there aren’t many to pick from. Because he didn’t play very much you see. Read more…

Diary 2010 NBA Draft

Here’s an early afternoon recap of the trade rumors circling about involving Oklahoma City. I’ll update this throughout the day when more surface. Also, if you’re not going to Toby Keith’s, follow along with me as I do another wildly popular live draft diary of tonight’s events. It will be life-changing.

1:35 PM CST

• OKC and Indiana’s deal is dead, but the Thunder are now working with New Orleans to move up to No. 11, DX reports. OKC is using picks No. 18 and 21 as bait.

• However, Adrian Wojnarowski just reported the Thunder haven’t been successful in its efforts.

• Woj says the Hornets want to attach a contract to the deal, like Mo Peterson’s. Hmm, I remember someone hatching up this scenario one time… But then again, I also said OKC probably wouldn’t make a deal before draft day, so keep in mind here, I’m not really that smart. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

UPDATE: Marc Spears of Yahoo! reports the deal was discussed but is now “doubtful”.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! just reported on Twitter that the Thunder and Pacers are in “serious talks” about a deal involving Eric Maynor, OKC’s 18th and 21st picks and the 10th overall pick held by Indiana. (Update: Chad Ford and Andy Katz are also reporting this too.)

I definitely don’t love that deal, and that’s not just because I like Eric Maynor a lot. But it’s pretty clear that today’s trade bringing Daequan Cook and the 18th pick to OKC was just the beginning. Presti is really cooking something up, but what it exactly is, isn’t really clear. Eric Maynor is nothing more than a quality backup point guard which isn’t the hardest thing in the world to replace. And I’m sure Maynor would love to go to Indy and become their starting point man right away. But for a team as desperate as Indiana to acquire a point guard, it just seems like a big price to pay for No. 10.

Who is Presti targeting? Will Greg Monroe last to No. 10? Possibly. Draft Express reported that the Warriors are extremely interested in Ekpe Udoh at six. The teams drafting seven to nine (Pistons, Clippers, Jazz) aren’t locks to draft a big man, but chances are pretty good they will. The Pistons have liked Ed Davis for a while, but if Monroe fell in their lap, I’m sure they’d have to think about it. And I don’t think Monroe would make it past Utah either.

DX also reported that OKC likes Cole Aldrich and Udoh at 10. If the Thunder got there, their options would open some as to what big man they could get, but is it really worth it? Is Aldrich worth Eric Maynor and two picks? Is Udoh, who is basically a watered down Serge Ibaka? Maybe Presti knows something and is expecting Monroe to fall, which would be fantastic but probably a pipe dream. Just getting to 18 opened up a number of new options, but drafting 10th would welcome a bunch of new faces into the equation. Patrick Patterson, Udoh, Aldrich, Al Farouq-Aminu, maybe Monroe and Ed Davis. But again, are those guys worth Maynor and two picks? I don’t really think so.

Whatever the case, don’t go anywhere. Stuff is going down and this is starting to get good. At this point, if Presti traded the 51st pick for Kyle Korver and the ninth pick, I don’t think I’d be surprised.

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Tibor Pleiss, 7’1 center from Germany.

With OKC’s second pick, if the Thunder hang on to it, it just doesn’t make sense to draft another American born player that would further congest the roster. Craig Brackins? Stanley Robinson? Where do those guys fit now? So Presti does what he’s proven successful at and looks to the future and drafts an international prospect.

Pleiss is a solid offensive player with an already developed mid-range game. He needs work in the post and needs to fill out a pretty lanky frame. He has the potential to being a strong, influential defender, but again, he needs some bulk. You can’t deny his size and it’s hard to teach the feathery jumper he’s already developed. He’s sort of a Nenad Krstic, but with healthy knees and the potential to develop.

I think Presti likely prefers Kevin Seraphin as an international project over Pleiss, but with Minnesota already snatching him up, the Thunder has to look at other options. And at 26, Pleiss is the best option for an international big man project. The Thunder still needs to address the shooter option, but that shouldn’t come until 32 or 51.

How fellow TrueHoopers have it shaking out: Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

The 2010 ESPN TrueHoop Network NBA Mock Draft is here and I’m happy to represent the Thunder with the 21st and 26th overall picks. Each selection will be made available on network sites (picks and links at the bottom of this post), will cover just the first round, and will be made according to prediction, not some blogger preference. Enjoy.

Most every mock drafter has Daniel Orton going to Oklahoma City at 21. Some rumors have even come out that the Thunder has made a promise to Orton. And you know what that means? It probably, most likely, almost definitely will not turn out that way.

But I have OKC taking him anyway at 21. It was between him and Alabi here and for whatever reason, I tilted toward Orton. And I almost immediately regretted it. Alabi is probably more of a sure thing, or at least as much of a sure thing as a late first rounder can be. But there’s just something about Orton.

The story on him is so hard to understand. He was an excellent high school player but missed a lot of his senior season due to injury. He went to UK but got stuck behind two talented power forwards. He decided to declare for the draft against common sense. He’s had subpar workouts, there are still questions about his injured knee and there may be some issues with a meddling family life. Yet the guy has lottery talent. And with my instinct saying pick 21 is do or die time for Orton because I’m guessing he won’t last to 26, here’s where I have OKC going with its first pick. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Don’t read any other mock draft. Because THIS one is totally correct. Or totally incorrect. Whatever.

Two excellent DT contributors gathered in with me and we formulated our mock draft. If you recall last year’s, we actually didn’t do too bad. That’s actually a pretty good thing for a mock drafter. Hey, we actually didn’t do too bad this time. Twenty percent correct! New record!

Bear in mind on this mock, we picked not as what we THOUGHT the franchise should do with its pick, but what we think they WILL do. And in most cases, we’re probably way off. I’m already wondering what the heck I was thinking in taking Hassan Whiteside for the Rockets at 14. I apologize for this, King Morey. There are so many moving parts to a draft, especially the deeper you go. Guys are still available you didn’t think would be. Someone is gone you didn’t think would be. It’s actually probably harder to draft than to predict the darn thing. Regardless, we tried. And likely crashed and burned.

1. Washington Wizards – John Wall, PG, University of Kentucky
This is a done deal. Washington isn’t even going to work out Evan Turner, and why should they? Wall is the only player universally believed to be a without-a-doubt superstar in this draft. Of course, Washington is probably the worst possible situation for him, the league, and potentially the Washington Wizards.

Short of the Wizards hiring Isiah Thomas to make this pick and assemble a team around him, Wall could not be destined for a worst situation. This is a franchise that is recovering from a devastating season that played out like a spaghetti western which led to every player of any value being traded off for pennies on the dollar. The only player of any circumstance remaining is their incumbent weapons toting point guard (same position as Wall) whose max-contract and balky knee still has four years and eighty million left. (Clark Matthews) Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

So the rumors are starting to fly (per Chad Ford) now that every team outside of the Top 4 (Wizards, Sixers, Nets and T-Wolves) are interested and open to trading down in this draft (with the Pacers, Bulls and Hornets open to trading OUT of the draft altogether), which means picks 5-14 in the lottery are potentially up for grabs and an option if said team that’s trying to trade up has enough assets (cap space, players, picks, charming good looks) to get a deal done.

And guess which team Ford lists as one of the five most likely to make a trade…that’s right, your Oklahoma City Thunder.

But in a draft where the Top 9-10 players are easily head and shoulders above the rest, is there really value in moving up from #21 to any spot in the lottery that’s not a Top 10 pick? Would the Thunder be better off just standing pat and selecting the best player available at #21 or selecting a player who would fill a need at #21 instead of giving up solid assets for a minor bump in potential production?

We’ve all speculated for the last, oh, two months and some odd weeks about where the Thunder could move up to given their assets and who they should pick at said spot, but with the draft a mere three days (THREE DAYS, PEOPLE) away, it’s time to put your money where your mouth is.

I’m going to throw out three scenarios in which the Thunder trade up and acquire the 5th pick, 8th pick and 11th pick (two of those being trades I can actually see happening, whereas the Kings moving the 5th pick is, well, a bit of an impossible dream—though the Dalembert trade certainly opens that possibility up a bit especially after reports from Cousins camp came out that he’d prefer to slide to Detroit and is not the biggest fan of Sac-town, per DraftExpress).

So to get us going, I’m going to put my picks out there first and I bet a few of them surprise you…as they certainly surprised me!

5th Pick – Thunder send cap space, their two first round picks, their promised first born and at least one player of SIGNIFICANT value to the Kings (it would probably be someone who can play the 3, defend the perimeter and slash—two people come to mind, so pick one so I don’t have to!) for the fifth overall selection

The Thunder select… Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Per Chad Ford:

I’ve heard that the Kings, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, Toronto Raptors, Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers and Denver Nuggets have all been talking about moving picks. The Kings, Pacers, Hornets and Bucks would like to trade down, the Pistons, Grizzlies, Raptors, Rockets, Spurs, Thunder, Blazers and Nuggets would like to move up and the Pacers, Hornets and Bulls might want to get out of the draft completely.

…

From what I can gather, the Pacers, Hornets, Raptors, Spurs and Thunder are the most active right now.

So to recap: The most active teams that want to move down or out are the Pacers and Hornets and wanting to move up are the Raptors, Thunder and Spurs. The Hornets draft at 11 and likely want to shed some salary (Paja, Okafor, etc) for the price of draft picks plus a quality player, and the Pacers draft at 10 and likely want a point guard.

Other 2010 NBA Draft

Time to get my Jay Bilas back on. I plan on using “upside,” “motor,” “length” and “potential” as many times as possible in these next 3,000 words. So prepare yourself.

Tier 3: Pick 26, or maybe 32

16. Tibor Pleiss – 7’0, 220, C, Germany – video highlights
I like the idea very much of taking an international big with the 26th or 32nd overall pick. Presti has had success stashing away prospects in Europe to save money and also let them potentially mature into a contributor. Finding that solid European big is never, ever easy, but Pleiss definitely has the credentials. He has the size as well as the necessary talent to potentially evolve into a legit NBA big man. Pleiss isn’t a defensive stopper or shot blocker, but that’s mainly due to his lack of strength. He has the potential to be a fantastic offensive big man with his feathery touch, ability to step out to 15 feet and beyond and an improving post game. Leave him in Europe to season a bit and you might have a diamond in the rough.

17. Craig Brackins – 6’10, 230, PF, Iowa State – video highlights
For whatever reason, Brackins’ name has popped up a bunch with the Thunder. I don’t see how he fits all that much, seeing as he’s a three trying to disguise himself as a four. But he’s got a great offensive game and with a little weight on his frame, he could be an excellent offensive player. He’s super long at 6’10 and has a natural offensive game that stretches beyond the 3-point line. His main issue will be defending opposing power forwards and rebounding in the paint in traffic. But he could potentially be a role player next year to add depth. His stock was higher last year, but he’s could still be a pretty good value pick at 26 or 32. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

This was insanely hard. You’d be shocked at how many times I moved a name up or down. Well, you probably wouldn’t be shocked but you get the point.

We’ve got four sections of players. One where OKC would have to move up, another with players that might be available at 21, another with players that should hover around pick 26 or 32, and then the last one of all late second round sleepers. Not included in Tier 1 are players like Wesley Johnson, Al-Farouq Aminu, Gordon Hayward and Luke Babbitt. The Thunder aren’t losing assets to move up to get one of those guys. And we already know John Wall, Evan Turner and Derrick Favors are pretty much going one, two and three.

What you’re drafting at 21 is a role player. You likely won’t nail down a star. So OKC is looking for someone to fill a very specific need and role. Whether that player pans out and actually does will have to be determined at a later time.

So this is top 30 players in the draft, in accordance with the Thunder’s needs. Obviously there will be disagreement, but hey, that’s what comments are for.

(Keep in mind, this is based only off of the Thunder’s needs, not the overall best available players. So a very good player like Xavier Henry was left off because there’s just not a need for another slashing two-guard.Just because a player wasn’t listed doesn’t mean he’s not good. It’s just that it’s a “fit” issue. And also keep in mind that there’s about a five percent chance the Thunder actually moves up anyway. ) Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Interesting note from Chad Ford today (Insider):

Per sources in the league, the Philadelphia 76ers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder have all had discussions about moving up, down or out of the draft.

The Pistons, Spurs and Thunder have been the most aggressive about moving up.

The Pistons have been searching for a big and would love to get their hands on either DeMarcus Cousins or Derrick Favors. The Spurs and Thunder are also in the hunt for a big and have targeted a number of teams in the lottery to move up a few spots. The Thunder have multiple picks to offer. The Spurs have Tony Parker or George Hill. While the Spurs aren’t necessarily shopping either player, they’re not untouchable either. If the Spurs can get another big man to help prolong Tim Duncan’s career, they’ll do it.

News 2010 NBA Draft

Don’t believe a single word of whatever you hear from now until June 24th.

Now I realize that I just told you to pretty much not believe anything while I’m trying to get you to believe something but that is precisely my point: everything is a smoke screen behind the curtain of an enigma wrapped inside a question that’s tucked away in a riddle of fog–or is it smoke again?

This is the Thunder’s second trip through the perilous puzzle that is the world of NBA Draft rumors and if we’ve learned anything from last year’s maiden voyage it’s that we really don’t learn anything in the weeks leading up to the big shindig in Madison Square Garden because Presti and the Thunder organization employ Jedi mind tricks to try and keep the front office locked up tighter than Fort Knox regarding their plans and who they may or may not draft (or if they will or will not move up/down/all around).

But there are three very distinct things that you must not, at all costs, put stock in over the next three weeks (ish) regarding what you hear about the Thunder’s “plans” because, I can assure you, no one in the media or the NBA has any better clue than you do about what Sam Presti, Scott Brooks, and the rest of the Thunder’s secret keepers will do on the night of the draft because everyone admits to having no clue as to what the Thunder will do. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

Hitting that home run in the second round of the NBA Draft is like closing your eyes and swatting a fly in a warehouse. There aren’t really any sure things. But there are great players to be found. I don’t think I need to list any, but I of course will: DeJuan Blair, Manu Ginobili, Carlos Boozer, Michael Redd, Paul Millsap, Anderson Varejao, Nick Van Exel, Rashard Lewis, Toni Kukoc, Dennis Rodman, Gilbert Arenas – the list could go on and on.

So with the Thunder holding some 47 draft picks this year, assuming they choose to hold on to all of them, there’s a better than usual chance for OKC to find the elusive diamond in the poo. So I’ve compiled a short list of players that might deserve a look with one of those second rounders. These guys could very well never seen anything other than Greece or Israel. But maybe they’re the next big thing from the second round. It’s a total crapshoot, the second round is. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft

From his chat today:

Adam (Eldridge): Chad, since Bosh to OKC doesn’t look like it will work, what are the chances David Lee goes there? Or do you see the Thunder not making any big moves this off season?

Chad Ford (1:38 PM): I’m not sure Thunder will spend their money … I hear they’re willing to take back a player with a contract in order to move up higher in the draft. If they can get Top 5, look for them to run toward DeMarcus Cousins. In top 10, Daniel Orton.

This makes for an interesting question: Is it better to play the free agent market and try and find the right player for the right price, or use that cap space to essentially draft another young, but talented guy and develop him? I honestly don’t know what’s better at this point. At first glance, you’d say get the veteran piece that helps you have a chance to win NEXT YEAR. Read more…

Commentary 2010 NBA Draft