Thunder Deal For 56th Pick, Draft Daniel Hamilton
The Nuggets sent pick No. 56 to Oklahoma City, which selected Daniel Hamilton, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. Denver received cash in return, adds The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The 56th pick originally belonged to the Thunder before they traded it to the Nuggets.
The 6’8″ sophomore out of Connecticut projects as a shooting guard in the NBA. He averaged 12.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists this season with the Huskies. He is a productive scorer and playmaker, but tends to be a streaky shooter and struggles on defense.
Hamilton was considered questionable to be drafted, with ESPN’s Chad Ford ranking him 72nd overall and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress listing him 79th.
Cavs Acquire No. 54 From Hawks, Draft Kay Felder
The Cavaliers, who entered the night without a draft pick, have moved into the second round, buying the No. 54 overall selection from the Hawks, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link), who reports that Cleveland is using the pick to draft Oakland point guard Kay Felder.
According to Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net (via Twitter), the Cavaliers made an effort to buy the Pistons’ pick at No. 49 in an effort to land Felder there. Cleveland ultimately landed the No. 54 pick for $2.4MM, per Amico.
Charania adds (via Twitter) that LeBron James was a major proponent of the move to get into the draft to select Felder.
Blazers Acquire 47th Pick, Select Jake Layman
The Trail Blazers acquired pick No. 47 from the Magic and drafted Maryland’s Jake Layman, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. In return, Orlando will receive $1.2MM and a second-rounder in 2019 (Twitter link).
The 6’9 senior projects as an NBA small forward. He shot 60% from the field, 40% from 3-point range and 85% from the line this season while averaging 11.7 points per game.
Layman ranked 49th in the list of top 100 prospects compiled by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and was 48th on ESPN’s Chad Ford’s top 100.
Suns Acquire No. 8 Pick From Kings, Draft Chriss
10:40pm: The Kings have officially announced the swap (via Twitter).
7:24pm: The Suns and Kings have agreed to a trade that will send the No. 8 pick to Phoenix, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the pick will be Washington power forward Marquese Chriss.
In return, Sacramento will receive Bogdan Bogdanovic and the Suns’ pick at No. 13, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Phoenix’s pick at No. 28 will also be included, along with a second-rounder in 2020, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. That second-round pick originally belonged to the Pistons (Twitter link).
Earlier today, Bogdanovic decided to remain in Turkey for another season before joining the NBA. That decision gives him the freedom to negotiate a salary in 2017, rather than being bound by a rookie contract, which would have happened if he had signed during this offseason.
Nets Acquire 42nd Pick, Draft Isaiah Whitehead
The Nets have acquired another draft pick, as the Jazz agreed to trade the 42nd choice to Brooklyn in exchange for pick No. 55 and cash, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The Nets used that pick to take Seton Hall shooting guard Isaiah Whitehead.
The 6’5″ freshman turned into a dangerous 3-point weapon for the Pirates, connecting on 37% from long distance while averaging 18.2 points and 5.1 assists per game. He led Seton Hall to an upset of national champion Villanova in the Big East title game.
Whitehead was ranked as the 52nd best prospect in this year’s draft by ESPN’s Chad Ford and 57th by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.
Warriors Acquire No. 38 Pick From Bucks
After selecting Malcolm Brogdon with the 36th overall pick, the Bucks have sent No. 38 to the Warriors, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter links). According to Charania, Golden State is using the pick to nab UNLV shooting guard Patrick McCaw.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com reports (via Twitter) that the 38th overall pick has been on sale for several weeks now, so it sounds like the Warriors are simply buying it from the Bucks. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets that Golden State is sending $2.4MM to Milwaukee as part of the deal.
Per Givony, Brooklyn was rumored to have a deal lined up for No. 38 before the Nets acquired the No. 20 pick instead.
Community Shootaround: Draft Night
Everyone knew the Sixers were taking Ben Simmons at No. 1. Everyone knew the Lakers were taking Brandon Ingram at No. 2. Then things got interesting.
The Celtics had several suitors who wanted Kris Dunn with the third pick. Co-owner Wyc Grousbeck called the offers “rip-off attempts” and said the team never came close to a deal. So they kept the pick and took Jaylen Brown. The Suns, in need of a power forward, had trouble deciding between Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss. So they swung a deal for the Kings’ eighth pick and took both.
Dunn, who was wanted so badly by the Sixers and Bulls, fell to the Wolves at No. 5. The Pelicans got a sweet shooter to possibly replace Eric Gordon, landing Buddy Hield at No. 6. The Nuggets finished building their backcourt of the future, grabbing Jamal Murray at No. 7 to team with last year’s rookie sensation, Emmanuel Mudiay.
It was a night of surprises, trades, non-trades and three big sliders in Skal Labissiere, Deyonta Davis and DeJounte Murray. It was a draft rich in international prospects and draft-and-stash projects. It was a draft owned by the Celtics, Sixers, Nuggets, Suns and Raptors, who controlled 14 of the 30 picks in the first round. It was a four-hour marathon from pick 1 to pick 30, and the full impact won’t be known for several years.
But we want to know your opinion now: What were the best and worst picks of the first round? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the topic. We look forward to what you have to say.
Pelicans Acquire No. 33, Select Cheick Diallo
The Pelicans have moved up six spots in the draft, sending the Nos. 39 and 40 selections to the Clippers in exchange for the No. 33 pick, reports Dan Woike of The Orange County Register (via Twitter). With the newly acquired pick, New Orleans selected Kansas big man Cheick Diallo.
Diallo, a 6’9″ freshman out of Senegal, was projected as a late first-rounder. He was ranked 24th by ESPN’s Chad Ford and DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony on their lists of the top 100 prospects.
Diallo averaged just 7.5 minutes of playing time at Kansas, scoring 2.5 points per night and grabbing 1.9 rebounds. He is known as an excellent defender and rebounder, but needs to develop an offensive game.
Celtics To Trade Deyonta Davis To Grizzlies
The Celtics will trade Deyonta Davis, the first pick of the second round, to the Grizzlies, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. Boston sent picks No. 31 and 35 to Memphis in exchange for the Clippers’ 2019 first-rounder that the Grizzlies owned, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman (Twitter link).
The 6’11” freshman from Michigan State had been projected as a mid first-rounder. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress had Davis ranked 11th in his most recent list of top 100 prospects, and ESPN’s Chad Ford put Davis 16th in his top 100.
The 19-year-old Davis averaged 7.5 points and 5,5 rebounds during his lone season with the Spartans. He has NBA size, but scouts say he needs to get stronger and become a better finisher in the lane.
Draft Rumors: Celtics, Bender, Ingram, Valentine
The Celtics weren’t able to find “realistic deals” for the No. 3 pick, tweets Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. There was speculation that several teams, most notably the Sixers, were trying to acquire the pick to get their hands on Providence point guard Kris Dunn, but the Celtics never found an offer they liked. Instead, Boston used the pick to grab California power forward Jaylen Brown, whom the team intends to keep, according to Andy Katz of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck said the team never came close to making a deal, tweets Adam Kauffman of WBZ News Radio in Boston. “We did not sniff a trade today,” Grousbeck said. “It was a collection of rip-off attempts, and we laughed at them.”
There’s more as draft night heats up:
- French power forward Guerschon Yabusele, the Celtics’ pick at No. 16, will probably be a draft-and-stash player, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical.
- The NBA opt-out clause for Dragan Bender is $1.2MM, according to international basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The Croatian big man, who was selected fourth overall by the Suns tonight, will contribute to his release, says Pick.
- Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said his team received a lot of trade interest in the No. 2 pick, but was’t offered anything compelling enough to give up the rights to Brandon Ingram, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.
- The Bulls will keep Denzel Valentine, who was their choice at No. 14, according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Chicago had him ranked second on its draft board behind Dunn.
- Before they made their pick at No. 13, the Kings called the Pistons about the possibility of moving back to No. 18, but Detroit turned down the offer, reports Jake Fischer of Liberty Ballers (Twitter link).
- The Cavaliers, who currently don’t have a pick in either round, are trying to obtain a second-round choice, tweets Chris Haynes of The Cleveland Plain-Dealer.