I’m going to get back into it with a dedication to Greg Oden. Sadly, this may be the last time we mention his name until the next #1 overall pick who can’t live up to expectations needs someone to be compared with. The sad part about it is that this is by no fault of his own. By all accounts he is a worker who has done whatever he can to get back on the court. He just has the most brittle bones since Samuel L. Jackson in ‘Unbreakable’. If you look closely, there is a resemblance between Samuel L. and Oden. It’s a shame for Portland that they didn’t do their due diligence and trace his family lineage.
Now, of course, everyone is stating the obvious that they should have gone with Durant. But, you can’t fault Portland for this. At the time, the majority of analysts where in favor of Oden (if I remember correctly, it was about a 70%-30% split in favor of the potential franchise center). If someone were to tell me in 2007 that three and a half years from now, one of these players would be the cornerstone of Team USA and the other would have only played 82 career games because of injuries, I would have guessed it the opposite of how it has turned out. Coming out of college, Durant weighed 125 pounds (estimate). There were serious questions about whether his body could hold up to the physicality of the league.
But, it’s still fun to think about what teams would have done with a second chance, knowing what we know now about the 2007 draft. So, why not?:
1) Portland
Actual Pick - Greg Oden
Hindsight Pick - Durantula
Kevin Durant, Andre Miller, Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Marcus Camby. That’s a championship caliber starting five.
2) Seattle/OKC
Actual Pick - Kevin Durant
Forced Hindsight Pick - Joakim Noah
This is the toughest pick of this retrospect draft only because I can’t picture the team without Durant. But, suppose he is in Portland, I’d team Russell Westbrook with Noah. Westbrook and Derrick Rose are both athletic, drive to the hoop point guards and we’ve seen that Noah fits well with that type of guard. So, while there are certainly more offensively skilled big men in this draft, Noah’s rebounding and scrappiness is someone you want on a young team. Plus, his ugly, ugly, ugly jump shot does go in, despite how incredibly ugly it is.
By the way, Noah takes home the prize for greatest difference between how much I disliked a player in college and how much I like a player in the pros.
3) ATL
Actual Pick - Al Horford
Hindsight Pick - Al Horford
I think they got this one right. When I said there were more offensively skilled big men in this draft, Horford was who I had in mind. You could make a strong argument for him going #2. He does a little bit of everything, and is a highly skilled passer for his size. Good fit for all of the shooters they have.
4) Memphis
Actual Pick - Mike Conley Jr.
Hindsight Pick - Marc Gasol
Obviously, after the extension Conley just signed, the Grizzlies are happy with him, but hear me out on this one. Had they actually drafted Marc, they wouldn’t have traded his brother, Pau, for him. Instead, they would be starting the Spanish National Team’s front line. Playing with Marc would have kept Pau happy in Memphis and he would have signed a longterm contract. And, most importantly, with their front line sured up, they wouldn’t have had to waste a pick two years later on Hasheem Thabeet. Instead, they could have selected Tyreke Evans or Steph Curry, which would fill the need at point guard from not drafting Conley. Hindsight = 20/20.
5) Boston
Actual Pick - Jeff Green (traded to Seattle for Ray Allen)
Hindsight Pick - Jeff Green (traded to Seattle for Ray Allen)
This one’s looking pretty good for all parties involved.
6) Milwaukee
Actual Pick - Yi Jianlian (whose name I heard an announcer pronounce “Why Geon-Leon” the other night. When you’re an NBA announcer, pronouncing names is one of the major parts of your job. There are only twelve guys on the other team, couldn’t you quickly scan them before the game and ask around for the pronunciation of any you don’t know? Plus, the guy’s been in the league for 4 years. You had to have crossed paths with him before. I don’t know. I guess what I’m getting at is that I want that announcer’s job.)
Hindsight Pick - Carl Landry
Landry’s been a highly efficient player for Houston and, now, Sacramento. He’d bring more scoring ability to their big man rotation of Bogut, Drew Gooden, Mbah-a-Moute, and Ersan Ilyasova.
7) Minnesota
Actual Pick - Corey Brewer
Hindsight Pick - Aaron Brooks
Brooks has the skill to come off the board much earlier than #7, but he didn’t fit with the previous few teams. The biggest upside for this pick: they (probably) wouldn’t have done the Johnny Flynn, Ricky Rubio back-to-back pick two years later. Let’s think about it. They get Brooks as their point guard of the future, draft Steph Curry to play alongside him in a similar two small guard system to what he runs with Monta Ellis in Golden State now, and trade the second pick for future considerations. Brooks, Curry, Kevin Love, and Michael Beasley is a solid nucleus.
8) Charlotte
Actual Pick - Brandan Wright
Hindsight Pick - Tiago Splitter
This one is based purely on hype. The Spurs drafted the Brazilian Splitter, but had to wait a few years for him to come to the NBA from playing internationally. By most accounts, he is going to ease Tim Duncan's workload, and the Spurs expect him to be an important piece for their future. The Bobcats depth chart at center currently reads Nazr Mohammed, DeSagana Diop, and Kwame Brown. In 2004, when those three were in the prime of their careers, that would have been about the 28th best center lineup in the league.
9) Chicago - This one was acquired from the Knicks in the blockbuster Eddy Curry trade. I love reliving that one. Thanks Isiah.
Actual Pick - Joakim Noah
Forced Hindsight Pick - Marco Bellinelli
Bellinelli would be the shooter that the Bulls thought they were getting when they signed JJ Redick to an offer sheet this summer. Bellinelli is already better and has a higher ceiling than both Redick and Kyle Korver, who the Bulls settled on signing when the Magic matched their offer on Redick.
10) Sac-town
Actual Pick - Spencer Hawes
Hindsight Pick - Arron Afflalo
The former All-American has expanded his role with the Nuggets from just a defensive player, to a scorer. The Kings are thin on the wings with Omri Casspi being the only player that fits that mold.
11) ATL
Actual Pick - Acie Law
Hindsight Pick - Mike Conley Jr.
Mike Bibby is getting up there in age and their second option at handling the point, Jamal Crawford, plays better off the ball.
12) Philadelphia
Actual Pick - Thaddeus Young
Hindsight Pick - Wilson Chandler
I always say that Wilson Chandler is a Rich Man’s Thaddeus Young, so this one works out perfectly.
13) New Orleans
Actual Pick - Julian Wright
Hindsight Pick - Big Baby Davis
Baby tends to play well coming off the bench with good teams and elite point guards.
14) Clippers
Actual Pick - Al Thornton
Hindsight Pick - Greg Oden
The quintessential Clipper pick! I just hope for everyone’s sake that Blake Griffin doesn’t follow the same fate.
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