Analysis: 2007 NBA Draft a Letdown

After seeing my first four picks go like clockwork I was poised for greatness as I sipped my soda and munched on my bacon cheeseburger. Then I nearly choked on it when commissioner David Stern stepped to the podium at Madison Square Garden for the fifth pick and announced a trade between the Boston Celtics and the Seattle SuperSonics. Folks, my NBA Draft experience for the year 2007 would never be the same, for I, like so many other prognosticators, had been bamboozled.

Things settled down in the teens to early twenties but those damned Europeans messed up my predictions once again as we neared the thirties. Only ESPN's self=proclaimed Euro-expert Fran Fraschilla knew any of these guys with things like "Oh yeah, I saw this guy in a tournament a few months ago," or "He'll probably play in Europe for a few more years," which didn't mean anything to me, except the NBA Draft made me look like a fool. But I'll deal.

Here's how the 2007 NBA Draft went down, blow-by-blow:

1. Portland, Greg Oden, C, Ohio State. The Blazers went with the skater dude from "Get that s*** out of here land" as predicted. No surprise there. But the Blazers did surprise, as you'll see later.

2. Seattle, Kevin Durant, F, Texas. Again the Sonics went with the guy who is the best player in the draft. But it's what they did a few picks later that shocked the world.

3. Atlanta, Al Horford, F, Florida. The son of NBA player Tito Horford went at No. 3, setting the stage for Florida to almost steal the limelight from Portland.

4. Memphis, Mike Conley Jr., G, Ohio State. I thought for sure Memphis would deal this pick to somebody like Sacramento, but it didn't happen. And the son of Olympic gold medalist (and super-agent) Mike Conley is now a Grizzly.

5. Boston, Jeff Green, F, Georgetown. (traded rights to Seattle) After the Celtics got Ray Allen and his bazillion points per game average, this trade made sense. Before that, I was literally screaming at the TV set. I know; I need some help. Sue me.

6. Milwaukee, Yi Jianlian, F, China. This pick has WTF written all over it. For starters, Jianlian's people (read: financial advisors) don't want Yi drooling over some poor Wisconsin farmer's daughter in his free time. You know, the man is down for his Sean John and he needs, yes, NEEDS to be in an environment where his little spoiled ass can enjoy the finer things in life, such as a "Shrek 3" Hollywood premiere. The only thing he'll be sampling in Old Milwaukee is beer and cheese. Don't worry that hardly anyone saw him work out, or that he put up six and six averages. He's still a can't miss. (Laughing.)

7. Minnesota, Corey Brewer, F, Florida. Speaking of farmers, look what them 'ol Wolves did. Dey got themselves a hard workin' man! Atta way, McHale!! In all fairness, Brewer seemed very gracious and it was a poignant moment when he stepped on the stage. The son of a tobacco farmer, Brewer is the kind of player who might make himself into something great. And that's the story of McHale, as well.

8. Charlotte, Brandan Wright, F, North Carolina. (traded rights to Golden State) Michael Jordan should already be looking for another job. An absolute ridiculous trade, in which a Tarheel goes somewhere where he will excel under Don Nelson and in return the Bobcats get total crap and a large contract in the form of Jason Richardson, a good player who is not in his prime.

9. Chicago, Joakim Noah, F/C, Florida. The son of tennis legend Yannick Noah and a Swedish supermodel, Noah has superstar written all over him. That is, unless you see his shooting touch, which looks like he's playing a weird game of hot potato. But his work ethic will suit him well under Scott Skiles.

10. Sacramento, Spencer Hawes, C, Washington. When I saw Hawes pass his family as I went to the podium, it reminded me of how close Washington and Utah are to one another. I see kids like Hawes every other day in the Beehive State, in terms of their clean-cut appearance. But the way the ESPN guys gushed over this kid, you'd think he was already a sure thing. I'm thinking Shawn Bradley, Mark Madsen and Hanno Mottola, just to name a few. Way too early for selection, but oh well.

11. Atlanta, Acie Law IV, G, Texas A&M. I nearly fainted when the Hawks picked a point guard. Law is not quite in the league of Conley, but he's close. And God knows the Hawks need one.

12. Philadelphia, Thaddeus Young, F, Georgia Tech. This pick perplexed me, as I'm sure it did you. But the Sixers more than made up for this blunder later.

13. Charlotte, Julian Wright, F, Kansas. Wright looks like he's 25 already and from the looks of it he seemed slighted that he went at No. 13. Not a good sign for opponents.

14. L.A. Clippers, Al Thornton, F, Florida State. It will be interesting to see if the Clippers actually keep Thornton, a rugged power forward. They do like to trade these picks, you know.

15. Detroit, Rodney Stuckey, G, Eastern Washington. Mark my words: You don't know how good this kid is. In a summer league with last year's ROY Brandon Roy, STUCKEY WAS THE BEST PLAYER. That should say everything you need to know about this future star.

16. Washington, Nick Young, G, USC. Young is young, unpolished and raw, much like his compatriot Gilbert Arenas was when he entered the league out of Arizona.

17. New Jersey, Sean Williams, F, Boston College. The Nets and Rod Thorn have once again delved into the DOC to find their next big thing (read: problem child).

18. Golden State, Marco Belinelli, G, Italy. The Warriors surprised everybody in the United States by going to Belinelli about 10 picks earlier than expected. And Belinelli surprised everyone around the world by bringing his girlfriend, so it was a good trade-off.

19. L.A. Lakers, Javaris Crittenton, G, Georgia Tech. Continuing the fine tradition of Tech guards like Stephon Marbury is Crittenton, but it still won't be enough to keep Kobe in la-la land.

20. Miami, Jason Smith, C, Colorado State (traded rights to Philadelphia). Smith is a tweener and more of an offensive threat than a low-post type of player, but the Sixers have basically cornered the market on every type of big man in this draft.

21. Philadelphia, Daequan Cook, G, Ohio State. (traded rights to Miami) Cook is an athletic tweener, which means he'll likely play the three at Miami since D-Wade and J-Will are there.

22. Charlotte, Jared Dudley, F, Boston College. His Airness did something decent, but it will take lots of explaining to the Charlotte faithful.

23. New York, Wilson Chandler, F, DePaul. Only superfan Spike Lee knew who the kid was, it seemed. But then New York helped themselves via the trade route, so all was not lost.

24. Phoenix, Rudy Fernandez, G, Spain. (traded rights to Portland) The Blazers got their greedy little paws on another unsuspecting youngster, but he'll stay put in the Euro League for now.

25. Utah, Morris Almond, G, Rice. The Jazz surprised nobody with this pick and now slip back into a coma.

26. Houston, Aaron Brooks, G, Oregon. Another player who feels slighted he wasn't picked earlier. And he's feisty as all get-out and the reason Oregon made it to the Elite Eight.

27. Detroit, Arron Afflalo, G, UCLA. The Pistons quietly continue their night of conquest, nabbing a sharpshooter and a key cog in the Bruins' NCAA Tournament run.

28. San Antonio, Tiago Splitter, F, Brazil. Damn, I was hoping Splitter would drop to the second round and into oblivion. But leave it to the Spurs to mine that ever-so-volatile but sometimes beautiful strip of Euroleague scenery. If anyone can turn this kid into a diamond, it's them.

29. Phoenix, Alando Tucker, F, Wisconsin. Tucker fills a need at the three-spot, though it remains to be seen how long he will be a Sun.

30. Philadelphia, Petteri Koponen, G, Finland (traded rights to Portland). Even ESPN had a puzzled look on them when this pick was announced. But he was there, by golly, meaning that Portland was out doing their thing (again!). But what did you expect during the draft?

And that was just the first round.