13. New
Orleans Hornets - Nick Young, University of Southern California, SG, 6'6"
Team Needs: There is no question that he Hornets are on the way up, even in the tough Western Conference, but relying on the perimeter skills and health of Peja Stojakovic is dangerous. Chris Paul, David West, and Tyson Chandler provide excellent production and the addition of Young and his mid-range shooting ability (something Stojackovic was supposed to do) will make the offense that much better.
*Young is pretty much steady as it goes here at the 13th spot. Many teams hope that he falls, but his value is still the same.
*14. Los
Angeles Clippers - Julian Wright, University of Kansas, SF, 6'8"
Team Needs: Wright's value drops, but at least he stays in the lottery portion of the draft. Of course, he ends up with the Clippers who took a slide this past season, especially considering the success they had during the 2005-06 season. Can Wright help the Clips get back on point and the way they want to go? Well, he can't do it himself, but he would make a nice addition, but probably would back up Elton Brand or hope he can take some time at the three.
15. Detroit
Pistons - Rodney Stuckey, Eastern Washington, PG, 6'4"
Team Needs: Chauncey Billups could possibly be on his way out through free agency, so why not draft an insurance policy in Stuckey whose stock has moved up fast in the past couple of weeks. Stuckey can score like Billups, but has faced weaker competition just on a college basketball point of view while at E. Washington. But, it's hard to ignore the scoring ability and height. However, the leadership ability will need to come in time.
*Okay, it's official... Billups has declared for free agency and will become an unrestricted free agent. There should be many teams bidding for his services and could be just as good as gone. Drafting Stuckey will help offset that loss at least from a scoring point of view. Whether or not he can become more of a playmaker for his teammates will be something to be addressed since he didn't do much of that while in college.
16. Washington
Wizards - Jason Smith, Colorado State, PF/C, 7'0"
Team Needs: A big man to complement/add to their outside shooters and slashers in Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison, and Caron Butler. Brendan Haywood and Etan Thomas' one dimensional play aren't going to cut it and Smith's athleticism, court vision, and perimeter shooting will fit in perfectly with that high octane offense.
*There isn't much to add here other than the Wizards possibly taking a chance on troubled Boston College center Sean Williams, who is a defensive force.
17. New
Jersey Nets - Rudy Fernandez, DKV Joventut (Spain), SG, 6'6"
Team Needs: Vince
Carter could be on his way out of Jersey, so drafting a shooting guard to take his place in the lineup makes sense. Fernandez' ability to consistently hit from outside,
as well as his ability to run the court and finish should make Jason Kidd content and not want to bolt as well. Fernandez and Richard Jefferson on the wing doesn't have as much of an effect as Carter/Jefferson, but it should be as effective to a degree.
*Sean Williams is another possibility here, but with some rumors of the Nets trading Richard Jefferson for some big-man help, Fernandez could easily still be drafted here, despite the general assumption that Carter will be re-signed; Carter would simply move to the three position while Fernandez could slide in at the two.
18. Golden
State Warriors - Josh McRoberts, Duke University, PF/C, 6'11"
Team Needs: The Warriors obviously like to snap the twine of basketball nets to a large degree, especially from three-point range, but at some point, the bombs won't be falling in. There are perimeter players galore here, so adding a post player like McRoberts who has a lot of offensive skill - able to run the floor, face the basket, or score in the post - makes McRoberts a great addition here as he can hang with all the runners on the team and add a new dimension down in the box for the Warriors.
*Tiago Splitter had been mentioned here, but McRoberts makes too much sense here.
Picks 1-6 / Picks 7-12 / Picks 13-18 / Picks 19-24 / Picks 25-30
Also See NBA
Draft - Position Rankings
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