Picks and Caps (And Evan): Top 7 players to move at the NBA Trade Deadline

So the 2014 NBA trade deadline came and went, and once again, we were left with little to write home about. More than an opportunity to boost or balance their rosters, most NBA teams used the deadlines to stack up future draft picks and clear cap space. Here are the not-so-top seven players who eventually ended up packing their bags for another town on the deadline.

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Market Men: Biggest names on the NBA’s trading block

3 PM Eastern Time on February 20th – that’s when the NBA market shuts down. And with the deadline looming, teams around the league are exploring, contemplating, and imagining. Some are imagining opposing players in their own jerseys, some are imagining hording up future draft picks, and some are focused single-mindedly on the accounts chart, hoping to clear up as much cap space as possible. Some wanna get better now, some wanna get better later, and some are clueless.

There aren’t too many big names or current All Stars involved in serious trade rumours this season, but here are the top players that could be on the market if their team gets an exciting offer or two.

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2 Be or not 2 Be

Perhaps the Kevin Durant bonanza in 2007 was a way of the basketball gods to level things out of the 'second place' curse. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist better watch out, because since 2002, the fall and mockery following many of the past decade’s Number 2 picks could make up for a Shakespearean tragicomedy.

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Wizards select John Wall with 1st pick of the Draft

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The NBA Draft offered no surprises - as expected, the Washington Wizards selected John Wall from the Universty of Kentucky with the number one pick. Evan Turner, Derrick Favors, Wesley Johnson, and DeMarcus Cousins rounded up the top five.

Here is the entire list of the first round picks:

1. Washington Wizards: John Wall, PG
2. Philadelphia 76ers: Evan Turner, SG
3. New Jersey Nets: Derrick Favors, PF
4. Minnesota Timberwolves: Wesley Johnson, SG
5. Sacramento Kings: DeMarcus Cousins, PF
6. Golden State Warriors: Ekpe Udoh, PF
7. Detroit Pistons: Greg Monroe, C
8. Los Angeles Clippers: Al-Farouq Aminu, SF
9. Utah Jazz: Gordon Hayward, SF
10. Indiana Pacers: Paul George, SF
11. New Orleans Hornets: Cole Aldrich, C
12. Memphis Grizzlies: Xavier Henry, SG
13. Toronto Raptors: Ed Davis, PF
14. Houston Rockets: Patrick Patterson, PF
15. Milwaukee Bucks: Larry Sanders, PF
16. Minnesota Timberwolves: Luke Babbitt, SF
17. Chicago Bulls: Kevin Seraphin, PF
18. Oklahoma City Thunder: Eric Bledsoe, PG
19. Boston Celtics: Avery Bradley, SG
20. San Antonio Spurs: James Anderson, SG
21. Oklahoma City Thunder: Craig Brackins, PF
22. Portland Portland: Elliot Williams, SG
23. Minnesota Timberwolves: Trevor Booker, PF
24. Atlanta Hawks: Damion James, SF
25. Memphis Grizzlies: Dominique Jones, SG
26. Oklahoma City Thunder: Quincy Pondexter, SF
27. New Jersey Nets: Jordan Crawford, SG
28. Memphis Grizzlies: Greivis Vasquez, PG
29. Orlando Magic: Daniel Orton, PF
30. Washington Wizards: Lazar Hayward, SF

Although the top two picks are guards, this has been a particularly good year for big men, and really, the league needs them more than ever before. The likes of Derrick Favors, DeMarcus Cousins, Ekpe Udoh, Greg Monroe, Cole Aldrich, Ed Davis, and Patrick Patterson were all chosen in the top 14.

The winners of the draft day were really the Bulls, who traded away their 17th pick and Kirk Hinrich to the Washington Wizards, and were thus able to clear enough cap enough for the available class of excellent free agents, including LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Carlos Boozer, Amar'''e Stoudemire, etc, etc, etc...

With John Wall and Kirk Hinrich in the back court, now it seems more and more likely that the Wizards will trade away Gilbert Arenas.

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To Mock a Draft

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In less than 48 hours, the NBA is going to be officially injected with a boost of fresh blood - the NBA draft will be held at the Theatre in Madison Square Garden, New York, where NBA teams will pick amateur players from US college basketball and other eligible players, including international players. The Washington Wizards won the lottery, and thus the rights to make the draft's first pick.

With the help of many different sources, including Draftexpress, SLAMOnline, Yahoo! Sports, ESPN, and other sources, I've been able to draw my own picture and predict how the players will be picked on the evening of June 24th / the morning of June 25th, if you happen to be watching from IST.

So, without further ado, here is Hoopistani's Mock Draft 2010 of the top 14 (lottery) picks:

1. Washington Wizards - John Wall: Wall was the favourite months before the lottery, during the lottery, after the lottery, today, and tomorrow. By far the most explosive player in this draft, Wall will immediately become one of the best young point guards in the league, adding competition to the likes of Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo, Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, etc. Move over Gilbert Arenas, it's gonna get Wall-E over in Washington!

2. Philadelphia 76ers - Evan Turner: There has been some talk of the 76ers potentially ignoring Turner and picking a big man like Derrick Favors, but they should play it safe and pick the former national player of the year. He's bound to become the best answer to their woes since The Answer himself.

3. New Jersey Nets - Derrick Favors: This is a draft class heavy on talented big men, and I feel Favors is the best one of them all. He will make a dangerous tandem in New Jersey with Brook Lopez.

4. Minnesota Timberwolves - Wesley Johnson: Johnson's stock has increased a lot recently, and some even expecting him to go third. I feel the Timberwolves will be calling the services of this talented wingman.

5. Sacramento Kings - DeMarcus Cousins: Cousins' attitude may have caused a drop in stock for him, but I feel any team will be dumb to let him fall outside the top 5.

6. Golden State Warriors - Greg Monroe

7. Detroit Pistons - Ed Davis

8. Los Angeles Clippers - Al-Farouq Aminu

9. Utah Jazz - Ekpe Udoh

10. Indiana Pacers - Xavier Henry

11. New Orleans Hornets - Luke Babbit

12. Memphis Grizzlies - Cole Aldrich

13. Toronto Raptors - Paul George

14. Houston Rockets - Gordon Hayward

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Wizards win No. 1 Pick

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Quicker than you can say "Kwame Brown", the suffering Washington Wizards beat the odds and years of bad fortune to win the NBA Draft lottery last night and have the rights of the number one pick of the draft.

If you don't know: the NBA Draft is the time of the year when NBA franchises get a chance to pick new players for the their team. The 14 teams who do not make the playoffs are put into a draft lottery system, and the team with the worst regular season record has the best chance of getting the highest pick. The playoff teams get to pick their players based on reverse order of their regular season standings. Get it?

But of course, things don't always turn out well for the worst ones - just as the Nets. The worst teams only have a 25 percent chance of winning the first pick, and the Wizards, who had the fifth-worst record, struck lucky last night and won that honour.

Here is how the lottery ended up. The Draft Day this year is on June 24th:

1. Washington Wizards
2. Philadelphia 76ers
3. New Jersey Nets
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
5. Sacramento Kings
6. Golden State Warriors
7. Detroit Pistons
8. Los Angeles Clippers
9. Utah Jazz (from the Knicks)
10. Indiana Pacers
11. New Orleans Hornets
12. Memphis Grizzlies
13. Toronto Raptors
14. Houston Rockets

The Wizards have had a fairly unfortunate recent history, and especially a tragic last season. Not even Gandalf (the White, not the Grey), the greatest Wizard of them all, couldn't save them. Neither could Michael Jordan, who was probably greater. The last time the Wizards got a first pick was eight years ago, when then part-owner Jordan decided to pick a young Kwame Brown who turned out to be my favourite bust ever.

And then last season happened. Wizards entered the year with optimism, as they boasted a formidable Big 3 of Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler, and Antawn Jamison. The season turned to turmoil after Arenas' injuries/gun case: Butler was traded to the Mavericks, Jamison became LeBron's newest sidekick as Cleveland, and Arenas was last seen serving his sentence at a halfway house. Hibachi!

But now, they have a chance at redemption. The biggest name in the draft this year is Kentucky point guard John Wall. Wall's explosive skill make him the favourite to be picked first.

The argument against Wall is that he plays essentially the same position as Arenas, and the predicted second pick, shooting guard Evan Turner from Ohio State might be a better fit to play along with Arenes in the Wizard backcourt. Turner was the 2010 College National Player of the Year.

But I am of the belief that teams should always pick based on talent, not position. Pick the best player available, and the rest will figure out for itself. In the case of the Wizards, they should definitely go for Wall, and then trade Arenas for a quality big man if possible. Let the 76ers deal with Turner at number two.

My favourite draft website is Draft Express, who keep detailed and meticulous tabs on draft prospects all year round and are about 467 thousand times better informed than I am in this particular topic. Here is their top-10 picks from the mock draft, as of today:

Wizards: John Wall, PG
76ers: Evan Turner, SG/SF
Nets: Derrick Favors, PF/C
Timberwolves: DeMarcus Cousins, C
Kings: Al-Farouq Aminu, SF/PF
Warriors: Wesley Johnson, SF/PF
Pistons: Cole Aldrich, C
Clippers: Ekpe Udoh, PF/C
Jazz: Greg Monroe, PF/C
Pacers: Ed Davis, PF

I agree with their top four picks, but I would probably put Greg Monroe a little higher. June 24th is the big day when the picks, and more sensationally, the trades, could change the landscape of the league. And as the crazy free agent rush of the Summer of 2010 looms, this Draft Day could turn out to be more important than ever. I will have a more in-depth preview of the draft as the day approaches, adding my predictions for the picks.

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