The NBA Draft is one day away. Most people see this day as the most important and interesting day for the Warriors, mainly because they’ve been to the playoffs once in the last 18 seasons, so the only day of hope Warriors fans get is Draft day.
This draft day could have been much better if the Warriors weren’t winning needless games to get Don Nelson his coaching wins mark. They even inexplicably beat playoff teams after Nelson got his record, dropping them from the 3rd highest percentage of winning the draft lottery into a tie for 4th. When they won the coinflip to receive one more ball in the lottery than the Wizards, we thought our fortunes were finally changing. But then the Wizards manage to win the draft lottery and the Warriors drop 2 spots to the 6th pick in what is widely considered a 5 player draft. As a Warrior fan, you kind of get used to getting a stomach punch like that, so you curse for a bit, then you move on.
Now, back to the draft. I don’t like most mock drafts, because most of the time draft people don’t really know a team well enough to choose a player that would fit each team. It’s tough enough trying to figure out who would fit on your favorite team that you follow throughout the year. But what the mock drafts do well is inform you who should be considered in the top 5 picks. Which works out well for the Warriors, since they have the #6 pick. It’s a given that John Wall, Evan Turner and Derrick Favors will be gone before the Warriors pick. It’s also strongly suggested that Wes Johnson will also be taken before their pick. So that leaves DeMarcus Cousins, Greg Monroe, Al-Farouq Aminu and Ekpe Udoh as the most likely players to be drafted by the Warriors. And just for fun, I looked at a few “mock drafts” and a few of them also think Cole Aldrich, Patrick Patterson and Xavier Henry were on the Warriors short list.
Let’s take a look at these potential draftees. I’m stealing this gimmick from one of my favorite writer’s by throwing these guys into categories.
The Todd Fuller Category
Cole Aldrich – No, just no. If Aldrich was 7′3″, 270 lb., then maybe, but the guy was measured at 6′8, 236 lb. at the combine. He has a low post game and is a good defender around the basket, but you can find one of those guys in the D-league, which is what the Warriors did last year and look how good the team was. The Warriors would be better off signing Omar Sanham, if he’s not drafted.
The Troy Murphy Category
Patrick Patterson – I believe Patterson will have a good career as a journeyman big man who will be a good role player, but that’s not what you expect from the #6 pick in the NBA draft.
The Ike Diogu Category
Ekpe Udoh – Their names were similar. That’s enough for me to throw him into this category. Oh yeah, I also don’t believe he will ever amount to much in the NBA similar to Ike Diogu.
The Antawn Jamison Category
Al-Farouq Aminu – Aminu is a tweener. He’s a power forward in the body of a small forward. If the Warriors drafted him, they would play him at small forward and that would be wrong. He can’t really shoot or pass that well, which are two things you would like to have in a small forward. The bonus for him is he is a decent defender and is very athletic. If he reaches his projection of becoming the next Josh Smith, that’d be awesome, but Smith was a freakish athlete when he came out of high school, you can’t really say the same about Aminu. The Warriors already have 2 young athletic power forwards that still haven’t reached their potential. Would adding a third one really make any sense when they have so many other holes to fill?
The J-Rich Category
Xavier Henry – It’s a given that Henry and J-Rich don’t have similar playing styles. J-Rich was an extremely athletic high flying 2 guard that dunked anything he could. While Henry is a shooter that scores all over the court. What is similar about the 2 is that they both are questionable defenders, have good work ethics and I believe if the Warriors drafted him, Henry would become a fan favorite for his scoring and his willingness to improve his game. Will he be an all-star? Highly unlikely, but he has the ability to put up at least 15 a night and has the size and potential to defend shooting guards in the NBA.
The Joe Smith Category
Greg Monroe – We don’t know what style of play the Warriors will play under when Don Nelson leaves, so it’s hard to pull the trigger on drafting Monroe. He seems like the ideal candidate for a Nelson run system, big man who can pass, run in an uptempo system and hit a mid range jumper. So if the Warriors give Keith Smart the job, this wouldn’t be a bad pick. But if they go to a more traditional lineup, how well will Monroe hold up banging down low against real centers on a nightly basis? If that’s the case, I’m worried that the Warriors will push him down to a PF, which is the position we’d like Anthony Randolph to man for the next 10+ years. My hope is that the Kings draft the next Vlade Divac, so the Warriors can draft this next big man…
The CWebb/Joe Barry Carroll Category (He gets two because he’s an enigma)
DeMarcus Cousins – He would be the ideal pick for the Warriors if he’s available. Imagine Cousins, Curry and Randolph running up and down the court in a Warriors uniform for the next decade. Awesome right? Similar to Curry last year, the Warriors will need some teams ahead of them to make questionable picks for them to land him. But if he does somehow drop to the #6 pick, he’d be the best big man/post player the Warriors have had on their team since… (correct me if I’m wrong) they moved to Oakland. There are a bunch of red flags that come up when discussing Cousins; the Zach Randolph comparisons, he’s a diva, having two young whiners on the team (Anthony Randolph), he’s crazy, throwing him into a dysfunctional team is guaranteeing him to fail, etc. You know what, I don’t care, I’d still take him if he’s there at number 6. The Warriors have missed on so many draft picks that it wouldn’t phase me, they’ll just get another high draft pick next year. But if they hit on Cousins and he turns into an all star center the Warriors would finally be a legit team again. I’d take that gamble any day of the week.
