Draft In Review

Volume 23 Number 1	2021
	The irregular publication of Hoopstaz Online

Season Opener

Draft in Review – Jan 3^rd, 2021
2020-2021 Season

The last issue of the boards was during the 2015-16 season – yikes 5-ish years ago. Knicks Junky and Shark Bait (any recall them?) were in, Glass was a sophomore, GBC was out that year, and BUC had the #1 pick. Fast forward to 2020-2021, the docket has 11 previous owners with one New Edition — welcome B-Sizzle (aka Barry 2). Thus, here we are with another full slate of 12! The season is off and running, and it is time for the long overdue season opening edition of The Boards… The Draft in Review.

Following a COVID truncated 2019-20 season, the league added guardrails and flex rules for this season. There were no direct rule changes to the draft, however – player selection priorities and alternate strategies were assuredly in place.

The Lottery netted a Hoops Gauntlet at the top with BnG, ATM, CMC, and MAC; but otherwise the typical smatterings. The draft was at night for the first time in 20+ years and ran in 3 to 4 hours to complete the 144 (-12) selections. MCB did not show up (auto [show] issues, hmmmhm) nor set-up auto draft; thus, all MCB selection were made after the Live Draft was concluded.

So, onto the review! Starting from the top…

B-n-G (BNG)

Slot : 1st	Barry W			Previous Finish: 9th
BNG took a predictive and conservative route out the gate with Giannis (duh). The first bookend-double of Beal and franchise staple of Vucevic were hardly surprises given both players’ histories and trends. BNG rounded the starters with his 2nd bookend selections of Tobias Harris (another staple) and Ja Morant. A very solid starting 5. The bench selections offered a bit of intrigue. Lonzo Ball (PG) at 6th immediately raised a brow. Ball should have the numbers by the season’s end, but the selection comes with a bench maximation hit which was curious. And at 7th, LeVert was one of those whose numbers could go either way given all the returns in Brooklyn… But he had to get drafted somewhere. Should he be 72nd overall is a “wait and see” … seemed like a decent roll with decent coverage. At 8 & 9, Thomas Bryant (C/WAS) got the call to fill out the rotation with Fultz as the first extra. The take, top-notch starters. The combination of (a) core efficiency loss and (b) extra static players… renders few too many questions for our liking. We give the bench an average grade. The starters have deadly potential, but any significant injuries will very likely spring large leaks.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: B-

A-Team (ATM)

Slot : 2nd	Aaron			Previous Finish: **
ATM surprised many by taking The Brow (AD/Davis) — last season’s #5 ranked player at #2, but it’s still a fairly safe bet; plus, there is the “2fer” play if you are a Laker believer. The next pair of Jimmy Buckets and Drummond received mixed crowd comments given the board, but production wise, it hard to argue with either’s historical value – even with Drummond in a new place. The round out the starters, ATM drafted a pair from last season in Jaylen Brown and D’Angelo Russell. Summed-up, not a resounding high-power looking group, but there is line-up flexibility and Jaylen and Dangelo both have should trend up. ATM completed their rotation with the next two selections in stealing Lowry (-40) and Randle (-27) based on production a season ago. And to cap of for extras, S. Adam (C) as the 8th pick provided more depth. This landed ATM a premium bench/rotation scenario after 8 picks… which is a good thing, as selection thereafter were not so special in Griffin, Rubio, Anthony and Vassell (to poke at Ken during the draft). Summed up, ATM should complete with a competent group and flexibility to take on distractions without too much disruption. Expect a steady stream of decent output. The real big question will be can ATM muster enough power spikes to content.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: B+

Cali M Club (CMC)

Slot : 3rd	Mark			Previous Finish: 5th
CMC took Luka on queue as last season’s #3 player at #3. CMC as able to edge the numbers getting Sabonis and Gobert 4 picks sooner than each of their last season’s values. But let’s be real, Domantas is an up-arrow which makes that pick more of steal, and COVID Clown Rudy should be near to who he has been (pretty good). To complete the starters, Fox was pulled before ATM could get him and Middleton returns to duties for CMC. Summed up and presuming Fox can get to form of 2 seasons ago, this is a high-powered starting unit. To start the bench, Big Ageless-Al Horford got the nod. He has been a down-arrow, so the pick is a bit of a TBD. Al generally doesn’t suck – but he does not always appear. Smart has always been a pick of mystery in intrigue – and we won’t try to figure it out… good luck – he is a player who fantasy impact is highly impacted by others that are in or out. ATL’s Hunter was next – one of those young on-the-rise types so TBD –certainly good potential. And then was the largely underachieved Miles Turner. A super value at 98 –especially if he has figured it out. CMC rounded out with Barton and fairly know commodity, Holmes – young with upward potential, and Bertans who came of decent last year with potential. CMC starters will stand toe-to-toe in the heavyweight division. If there is an Achilles heel, it will be switches. Al is aging, Fox is a bit injury prone, and Smart is can be a challenging to predict. Turner may be the biggest difference maker if he can steadily up his output on this much better IND team; and CMC’s gems could turn out big dividends.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: A

Ball So Hard (MAC)

Slot : 4th	Ken			Previous Finish: 8th
MAC ordained Lillard with his first top-10 spot, at 4 (prior 11th was Dam’s highest); and graduates BAM to 20th from 49th a year ago. Siakam followed as MAC favorite at the about the same spot as last year; but his Toronto teammate VanVleet moved up from 88 last year to 44th. To round out the starters, MAC resorted to another faithful in Capela. Summed up, MAC has a lot stretch picks, but a decent 5. Dame had to carry last years’ Blazers but not so much in 2020, thus TBD if Dam’s #4 selection will be warranted in 2020-21 (we are not sold). Bam, Pascal, and Fred have up-arrows trends, and should end-up in the win column; and if Clint’s value holds close to last season, there is a lot of potential in the starting group. The next batch included a few too many precarious selections for our taste. Graham has a decent 19-20, so that picked seemed logical minus the whole Hornet Experience impact. Dinwiddle also has some Attached Jeopardy with the Nets stars returning for 20-21. Bazley – simply was a curious pick. Cousins, PJ Washington, Jones Jr. and Nance Jr were pretty much gambits and short terms opportunity selections, but of all sub-28 players a season ago, except Boogie who was out. MAC starters should standout if Dam is a true #4, and if the young studs hold their trends. The switches will present challenges in the middle if Bazley does not work out and smalls-switches will need things to go right (and that hasn’t exactly happened by week 3).
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: C

B-Sizzle (BZZ)

Slot : 5th	Barry P			Previous Finish: NA
There really are no “Rookies” anymore, so we will just say the “New Barry” joined Hooptaz swinging haymakers. You cannot go wrong drafting the King at any slot, so James at #5 is solid. The next 3 picks were on-point: Simmons, Irving (3rd ?wow?), and DeRozan (4th ?wow?) and all good enough to cover up another. Draymond is back and goes 52nd overall, which is the latest since 2014. BZZ may have the best top 4, but Green will have to prove he belongs there in 2020-21… too early to say as he returns. BZZ bench starts with Love, who like D-Green is another player that could be – so TBD (we aren’t biting yet). Ditto for Bledsoe in a new place. Wendall Carter in the Windy Wonderment (Chi) is yet another TBD with youth but not with history. The last group of Ball & Hachimura (young potential), Rose (old 6th man stuff) and Payton (decent player to stash) were intriguing gathers with potential impact. All-in-all, not ideal on paper to start – but it could morph into something or implode. Summed up, the top 4 are nasty, and if BZZ gets production from anywhere 5-12, the starting group will be solid. A lot will ride on Love and getting production behind Irving.
Starters: µµµµµ (4.5)		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: B+

DC Ballers (DCB)

Slot : 6th	LeRonne			Previous Finish: **
The last time Harden did not go 1 or 2 was 2014, when he went 4th. Thus, despite the Houston noise (or deflation of noise), DCB had to be glad to have had the option of #3 players year ago at 6th. DCB likes Kawhi, no surprises about that pick. At 3 DCB trusted The Bubble and/or Trending Version of Murray as the other backcourt player. To round out the five, Ayton anchors the center spot, who should be solid if he trends as expected; and Hornet’s Hayward who gets to be the Alpha – if he can stay healthy. A respectable collective. The bench frankly is not very impressive. Markken would be a troublesome 6th man to manage but he is the 1st PF selected… that is triple bad news for DCB. Whiteside’s production in 19-20 was amazing, and clearly DCB is counting on at least some of that, which for our money is a reach given the SAC roster. Gallinari and Conley followed — and introduce even more health and/or production concerns. Any of the last picks of Harrell @10, Bridges @11, or Otto Porter @12 may end-up being DCB’s bests based on round/value, if any gather minutes and production. Summed up, DCB has a few bright spots but more than a few asterisks. Harden and Kawhi will need to carry bench production to contend with the pack. Unless *Haywood and/or *Murry go Super Nova, *Whiteside comes back, and so on, there are just a few too many stars to line-up for DCB to be a constant threat.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: C-

Mo City Ballers (MCB)

Slot : 7th	Rhon			Previous Finish: 7th
Nothing to say here.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: NA

Gavin (GFC)

Slot : 8th	Gavin			Previous Finish: 6th
Welcome to the Lottery Trae Young! A big leap from 32nd a season ago. Combined Trae with Embiid @16 – the 1 & 2 picks net-out (should-a be reversed for our dough). SGA garnered a lot of interest with his potential, so @31 GFC gambled on his trend given the board – not a bad selection, TBD if it pays off. Ageless Aldridge on a sea of young’un’s in SAS goes was the 4th, so again, TBD on what that yields in Pop’s process. Round off the starters with Mike Porter Jr. who shows a lot of promise for 2020-21. Summed up, a bit of a mixed back of stars, asterisks, and question marks. Brogdon on new team in IND, is another player who garnered a lot of interest pre-draft landed as the 6th man – but as a 1/2, will likely log starter time to solidify the 1/2 rotations. At the SF however, GFC nabbed Covington (a staple), then TJ Warren, then OG Anunoby. Curious run of 3s. Then added SG Horton-Tucker (curious but an extra), and another SF (?) in Dunkin Robinson. To close PF Brandon Clark got the call. Summed up, GFC has bright spots and some potential dim bulbs that will need offsetting. The roster inventory is tilted and carries quite a bit of dead weight, so the top 7 will need to hold up and trend up, which may be easier said than done. Expect a rash of moves early in the season to recovery, which translated means GFC may be behind the 8-ball before we get out the gate.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: C

N-n-N (NNN)

Slot : 9th	Nelson			Previous Finish: 1st*
NNN landed The Joker Jokic at 9, a definite value to grab a 48-53 over the last 3 seasons at 9th. NNN also bets on Tatum trending big (and for logical reasons) @15. To follow, Holiday (new in MIL) and Z. Levine covered the backcourt. To finish the starters and 6th man, Aaron Gordan with Jonas V. were the pairings grabbed. Historically, not the scariest 5, but the Joker and Tatum are prosed for big jumps; and if Zack can hold the trend line, he is in position to increase also. Gordon – not so much… so there is that, TBD. Jonas V provides both solid rotation and back-up, however at 6th there is some efficiency lost. NNN completed their functional rotation with Barrett (SG/SF) before adding a collection of serviceable fill-ins: Serge, Coby White, Mitch Robinson, Terry Rozier, Evan Fournier… a complete and balanced line of 30 somethings. Summed up, the roster has middle-tier punch, and therefore a punchers change, depending on how much Joker and Tatum carry laggards. The 2nd tier guys have little room for slippage. There is plenty of flexibility to capitalize and insert hot players, which will be helpful (and needed) for NNN; and useful through COVID protocols.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: B

Glass (GAS)

Slot : 10th	Gary			Previous Finish: **
After being drafted 3rd, 3rd, 4th, Westbrook goes 9th for the third consecutive season. Ranked 10th in 2019-20, however, this season’s selection of 9 is the only time Russ’s draft number is lower than his ranking. Thus, call the pick on-point to the value. The question is what will life in WAS yield in points in 2020-21? TBD. Meanwhile, KAT got the pairing pick to set the bookends. Glass went local with Woods (HOU), nabbed UTHs Donovan, and took a leap of faith on Oubre Jr. (GSW), and his GSW teammate Wiggins at 6th to shore up starters and 2 thru 5 rotations. The starting five with 2×50 players is always something to deal with. The questions for GAS — on the plus side is how far has Woods ascended? And on the flipper – is the middle group a set of assets or issues? The bench can go either way. Wiggins provides lineup flex and may jump to starter ranks. The two real intriguing moves are Kristaps at 7th, who is a 44+ when healthy; and can vault GAS scoring when he gets back; and D. Murray (SAS) in the Pop-V-Popper who is the only other drafted PG behind Russ. The reminders with “spike” potential include the largely underachieved Bagley; and others like Delon Wright, Plumlee, and Bojan – never know with them, but they are not core to the rotation either way. Expect GAS to shuffle the deck at least a few of these guys early on. Summed up, the core should hold be able to hold his own. If Porzingis does not take too long to materialize into an asset, the rotation at The Bigs is be solid – otherwise – GAS may have to experiment finding the right subs at the 4/5. Other rotations are fairly-middle-of-the-road, leaving GAS to endure the process of splitting hairs on which combinations are best, without clear and obvious winners… at least for a while.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: B+

GBockers (GBC)

Slot : 11th	Gil			Previous Finish: 12th
2012 was the last time Steph was selected outside of the first round — despite not cracking the 46 mark in five years. I guess Steph is just a likeable guy or GBC is betting on The Comeback plus some extra, which is an understandable bet. HOWEVER, Booker at 12th — a dude who has yet to top a 40.2 finish – is a serious leap that we would not make; and is our least favorite pick of the entire 144-pick draft given its high-value. Ingram @34, however, was one of our favorites. To round off, GBC went straight line to secure the starting PF and center with Collins (ATL) and rookie Wiseman. As a starting unit, for our money, this unit is lacking. Curry should be fine. But is Ingram that 2nd killer GBC needs to keep up against some of the league’s death squads? Will the rook break out (if so, in time)? Will Booker prove GBC a genius? Quite a few ifs and asterisks. Too many. Bench: The good, GBC grabbed a few nice players with real impact potential. The bad, it took GBC a full 10 picks to complete rotations resulting in utility loss and reliance on 10th round players. But hey, if dudes produce, who cares. J-Wall v2.0 looked great in the preseason, hence appears a great 6th pick value. The exact same applies for Oladipo and Jarrett Allen at 7th and 8th. GBC needs start rubbing the genie a bottle after that and hope that Reddish, J-Jackson Jr., and Obi Toppin have some usefulness; and to close out the bench, Sweet Lou at the two. Summary: Team GBC has a few niceties but lacks composite power and the flexibility to sustain or take advance of spikes. GBC was the first in the draft to stretch as soon as pick 12 on a 40.2 dude. That may be too costly to recover from unless Devin becomes Beal or Larry Hughes. Wiseman’s will need go Super Nova now. GBC switch management will need to be near flawless with no crossover capabilities and a 10-man rotation. GBC will have their work cut out.
Starters: µµµµµ (2.5)		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: D

Buck(BUC)

Slot : 12th	Michael			Previous Finish: 7th
BUC raided the 2019-20 M*A*S*H tent and grabbed Durant and Zion with the 11th and 12th picks; and Nurkic plus George at 35 & 36. While KD is well chronicled and deserving of a 1st round selection, Zion has not yet earned it – thus the leap unto the Zion train is based on potential and hope (A bit early for our tastes). Regarding George and Nurkic – presuming they can stay healthy – their roles and histories suggest they will be decent and good values for where they were taken. McCollum and Paul round out the starters, in six picks – which were maybe the two best selections for their slot. This nets to a fairy explosive, yet frail, starter group which will complete. “…IF…” Bench selections were a bit atypical and precarious as the final roster lacked balance, was invalid after 12 picks. BUC grabbed PG Walker (BOS) plus SG Held… OK so far. Then another PG Dragic? Then SF Grant (DET). OK (a pick we liked a lot). Then another PG Sexton (HUH?). BUC close out with Millsap and no back-up center. Given the poor execution at draft, the Bench/Rotation grade suffers. There is recovery potential, but overall, the bench picks put BUC in a hole. Summary: KD – enough said. After that the next 3 starters have production and health asterisks. Assuming 2 – 4 will be available and on par with draft value; the mix-ins with CJ and CP3 make for a starting group with nasty potential. The failure to draft a backup 5 and an overload at other positions leaves BUC behind the curve and having to deal with the waste and course-corrections to stay relevant. Given the seasoning of The Pack, by the time BUC gets out of this is a hole (if the can), the race may be a couple lapse complete.
Starters: µµµµµ		Bench/Rotation: µµµµµ	Draft Grade: D