#1-Blake Griffin
#2-Ricky Rubio
#3-James Harden
#4-Brandon Jennings
#5-Hasheem Thabeet
#6-Tyreke Evans
#7-Johnny Flynn
#8-Stephen Curry
#9-Demar DeRozan
#10-Jordan Hill
#11-Earl Clark
#12-Gerald Henderson
#13-Jrue Holiday
#14-James Johnson
This will be my first "out on a limb" pick and I'm going to go with BJ Mullens, and there are some reasons for this. The Pistons are no longer in "win now" mode and are willing to blow up their core. Billups is already gone, Rasheed will be out this summer, Iverson will leave almost as if he was never there, rumors of both Tayshaun and Rip being traded. Detroit is one of the few teams that can wait on BJ's potential to come through because they're not going to be winning a championship anytime soon.
Also when looking at their roster...their top 4 scorers came from a guard or small forward. Rasheed Wallace was the 5th leading scorer and won't return. Antonio McDyess was their 6th leading scorer and is nearing retirement. Walter Hermann is a free agent. Kwame Brown, Jason Maxiell, and Amir Johnson are the lone big men on the team. Impressive huh?
I also thought about Eric Maynor, and making Stuckey the permanent SG. But Rip would have to be gone for this.
Count:
BJ Mullens-7
Austin Daye-1
Terrence Williams-1
Last edited by Posterize246 : 06-17-2009 at 07:42 PM.
BJ Mullens here as well.They need a big man for the future.They have the wing occupied and need to get rid of some people before drafting more guards.Hes a nice athletic big that's long.Pair him with a developing Amir Johnson and Maxiell for now and you have a pretty long and athletic front court.
I really think they should just take BJ Mullens and run. This draft has three things potential picks, role-players, and Blake Griffin. BJ Mullens is one of only a few players in this draft who will almost definitely be a consistent starter down the road, because there just aren't many centers in the league. BJ has a long ways to go, but his size and athleticism are too much to pass on in such a weak draft. Could be a bust, but I don't see any players further down the board that are likely to have them kicking themselves.
Another person that draft sites seem to think they will take is Austin Daye, which is just nonsense. That kid is a straight b*tch until further notice, he shouldn't even be a first rounder.
I think it could be Mullens as well. Although I think they would have to take a long hard look at Hansborough if he's still available here too.
I disagree about the Pistons not being in win now mode. They have a ton of cap space and will get a big time FA. Add that with Rip, Stuckey, and Prince and that is a very tough team. Plus they should be able to add some solid role players too. Detroit isn't far off. This isn't a typical "rebuilding" team.
Considering Earl Clark is off the board, and it's still too early to take Taj Gibson, I'd say Austin Daye. I'm not a fan of Mullens and there's a reason that he's still available on the board at this point. He has potential to develop into a decent center, but I don't think his style fits the Pistons very well.
Terrence Williams. They could trade Rip or Prince for a big man or possibly sign Bosh. A Stuckey/Williams backcourt will be nasty. Williams is a lottery talent and will be a five time all-star miminum in the NBA.
BTW, is a Bosh/Boozer frontcurt possible? Detroit would be nasty with Stuckey/Williams/Prince/Boozer/Bosh.
Last edited by UConnCeltics : 06-17-2009 at 07:44 PM.
ISH Mock Draft - #15 Overall -Detroit Pistons
