SBNation and Friends:
In an unforeseen development, Joakim Noah remained on the board when the Clippers went on the clock with the 14th pick. A special player, who would have been the 1st or 2nd player picked a year ago had he declared, his stock has steadily declined as people realized that he hasn't really gotten any better since the 2006 Final Four, and oh by the way, he can't shoot a bit. But still - 14?
Unfortunately, he's not a good fit for the Clippers, who are in desperate need of some outside shooting. So whereas a front line of Kaman, Brand and Noah would be daunting on defense, the low block would get awfully crowded without anyone to spread the floor. Interim GM ClipperSteve got on the phone to try to work a deal for the suddenly more valuable 14th pick.
In the end, I traded the 14th pick to the Suns for their two first round picks, at 24 and 29. It seems like a win-win - the Clippers can now draft both a point guard and a wing in the first round, and the drop off (Pruitt was arguably the best available at 14 for point guards, Thaddeus Young for wings) won't be huge - they're all projects at this point, really. Meanwhile the Suns, desperate to shave payroll, bring on a single guaranteed salary instead of two, and it happens to be an athletic big who should fit perfectly into their high paced system. Would the Clippers make this trade in reality, helping the best team in the division? Maybe. Two first rounders are pretty compelling.
So here's the updated SBNation and Friends draft:
1 Portland - BlazerDave (Blazer's Edge) - Greg Oden
2 Seattle - Brian (Sonics Central) - Kevin Durant
3 Atlanta - Chase (Impending Firestorm) - Al Horford
4 Memphis - our very own citizen MP - Mike Conley
5 Boston - Jim (Green Bandwagon) - Yi Jianlin
6 Milwaukee - Don (With Malice) - Brandan Wright
7 Minnesota - Sonia (I Heart KG) - Corey Brewer
8 Charlotte - Hugh (The Charlotte Blogcat) - Al Thornton
9 Chicago - Matt (Blog-a-Bull) - Spencer Hawes
10 San Antonio (from Sacramento) - Matthew (Pounding the Rock) - Acie Law
11 Atlanta - Chase (Impending Firestorm) - Javaris Crittendon
12 Philadelphia - Jon (Passion and Pride) - Jeff Green
13 New Orleands - Jake (Bullets Forever) - Julian Wright
14 Phoenix (from LA Clippers) - Dan (Bright Side of the Sun) - Joakim Noah
15 Detroit - Matt (Detroit Bad Boys) - Nick Young
Remember that Tom at Indy Cornrows is hosting and is including everyone's rationale.
The Great Blogger Mock Draft:
1 Portland - Henry Abbott (True Hoop) - Greg Oden
2 Seattle - Chris (Sonics Central) - Kevin Durant
3 Atlanta - Ryan (Hoopsaddict) - Al Horford
4 Memphis - la287 (Daily Basketball) - Brandan Wright
5 Boston - Jeff (Celtics Blog) - Yi Jianlin
6 Milwaukee - Jeff (Celtics Blog) - Mike Conley Jr
7 Minnesota - Sonia (I Heart KG) - Corey Brewer
8 Charlotte - Serena - (Bobcat Bonfire) - Joakim Noah
9 Chicago - Fanatical Pupil (Give Me The Rock) - Spencer Hawes
10 Sacramento - Tom Ziller (SacTown Royalty) - Jeff Green
11 Atlanta - Ryan (Hoopsaddict) - Acie Law IV
12 Philadelphia - Jon (Passion and Pride) - Julian Wright
The Hornets are on the clock. The Clippers are up after that. I promise to keep the pick this time. You can follow the great blogger mock draft on a thread over at BallHype.