As the NBA season winds down and all signs point to a Los Angeles-bound Championship many an NBA heads attention will turn (if not turned already) to the upcoming NBA Draft. The draft has the potential to cement a team as a contender (see 2007-08 Celtics and their draft-day trade for Ray Allen) or remind us all that we'll being seeing the same teams at this time again next year (see Los Angeles Clippers). The draft has always had the power to greatly influence a team's fortunes and that's why such a large amount of care is taken when a team is analyzing potential picks. The NBA Draft throughout history has shown us that the margin of error between selecting a good pick a bad pick or even a bust is minuscule.
The Portland Trailblazers in recent years have made a habit of making excellent draft-day decisions. Portland has had success through their cunning draft-day trades (Randy Foye for Brandon Roy and Tyrus Thomas for LaMarcus Aldridge) and getting lucky when the ping-pong balls fell their way when they were gifted Greg Oden and his lumbering, injury-prone frame. The Blazers showed their draft skills by acquiring three serviceable rookies from last years draft (Jerryd Bayless, Rudy Fernandez and Nicolas Batum). Portland also has the benefit of having Kevin Pritchard as their GM, which means that at almost every draft they leave with at least one solid player on which they can build for the future. Portland is a prime example of when the NBA draft is used correctly that it can transform your team from a bunch of rogue stars to one of the the most exciting young franchises in the League.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are also an excellent draft-day team, though their record may beg to differ. Over the past several season's the Thunder (then the Seattle SuperSonics) have been stockpiling draft picks via trades and many seasons of lottery pick status. When they lost out to the Blazers in '07 draft and had to settle for Kevin Durant the rebuilding process began, they traded away Ray Allen for the 5th pick (now known as Jeff Green) and some role players. After another lottery year and a change of location they found a gem in choosing Russell Westbrook with the 4th pick in the 2008 draft. This year they have the 3rd pick and whoever they end up taking will certainly bolster their roster and their fan base. The stockpiling of picks and the shedding of inflated contracts is an effective technique for a rebuilding team looking to strike it big in the draft.
A team who over the years has drafted extremely well but rarely got to taste the fruits of their draft-day labour is the Phoenix Suns. Over the past decade(s) they have made some excellent picks and have subsequently traded them away. They picked Steve Nash back in 1996 and got him back just before he blew up, they saved themselves from another blunder there. They chose Stephen Jackson in '97 he didn't do too much for them and they let him go so I'll let that one slide. But, every year since 2003 they have drafted a good player and traded him for almost (in some cases you can scratch the almost) nothing. In 2004 they picked up Luol Deng and traded him for Jackson Vroman (Who!?), in '05 they picked (Krypto)Nate Robinson and Marcin Gortat and traded them for Q-Rich and Kurt Freaking Thomas! In 2006 they drafted Rajon Rondo and Sergio Rodriguez and continued the trend of trading away solid picks. In 2007 they shipped their newly acquired Rudy Fernandez off to the Blazers. To top it all off the pick they decide to hold on to is Robin Lopez! The moral of the Phoenix Suns draft story is that sometimes its alright to be satisfied with the guy you end up with on that one night in June.
Drafting in the NBA is easy, say a guy's name, shake hands with him and hope he helps your team in the near future. Drafting well in the NBA is hard, it requires cunning, skill, luck and some big cojones as evidenced by the Blazers and the Thunder/Sonics and further highlighted by the plight of the Phoenix Suns.
(Here's a funny picture of Peja Stojakovic on draft night)
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