The Finals is done, but the NBA Draft is just a week away. I've said from two seconds after the lottery was determined that Bulls will take Derrick Rose. At first, most people were predicting Michael Beasley, but now most are saying Rose. Much like last year, this draft is pretty clear on the top two players, but it's not clear on which team will take them.
The Heat have the No. 2 pick, but don't seem sold on Beasley so someone could trade into that spot. O.J. Mayo appears to be the consensus No. 3 pick and after that it's a mess. Jerryd Bayless, Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Brook Lopez, Anthony Randolph, D.J. Augustin, Joe Alexander, Eric Gordon and Danillo Gallinari appear to be the next nine players drafted but this year could be filled with trades so it's tough to determine what team will draft where.
I like Mayo a lot and think he'll be an excellent pro. He's not Kobe or LeBron, but he works as hard as anyone, is a great shooter and I think he can play point guard or shooting guard. I'm also a Love fan because of his great fundamentals, rebounding, shooting touch and outlet passing. It's like he's Mehmet Okur already and should be a lot better. As for the guards, I'm not sold Bayless being point guard since all I've ever seen him do is shoot the ball. Just because he's short (by NBA standards) doesn't mean he's a point guard. Augustin, to me, bears a striking resemblance to Damon Stoudamire and will be a defensive mismatch since he's not even 6-feet tall. I like Westbrook a lot for his defensive presence and I think Gordon is much better suited to play in the NBA than in college.
As for the bigs, Lopez doesn't impress me. He's 7-feet tall and doesn't play under the basket that much because he's too skinny, but does have a great shooting touch. Randolph has major upside, but is skin and bones at this point so he'll need a few years in the weight room before contributing. Alexander is tough, athletic and a good shooter so he could be very good. And everyone talks about Gallinari's offense, but nobody mentions that he probably couldn't guard me in a pickup game.