The NBA Draft is today! ESPN's coverage begins at 4 PM, with the draft itself kicking off about 4:30. Teams have five minutes between picks in the first round, and the league and ESPN want them to use all of that time so they can do interviews and other fluffy things in between. You need time for Dick Vitale to complain about all the international players taking jobs away from the fantastic college kids, after all. And while it doesn't take much time to say "motor" and "bouncy" and "long" once, it can really start to add up when you say those things a million times each.
So you can figure on some time after 6:30 for the Clippers to be on the clock... but who are we kidding, you'll be watching from the start anyway. This draft is as wide open as any in years -- we don't even have a consensus first overall pick, though it will probably still be Nerlens Noel. And every draft features trades, mostly small, but some big.
The Clippers are likely going to be choosing from a half dozen or so wings, maybe three of whom are still on the board, when it's their pick. I say likely -- but this draft is really unpredictable, and anything could happen. There seems to be a consensus in the organization that they want to add shooters (doesn't everyone?) and the wing is where they could use the most help, and in particular could use an infusion of youth. Allen Crabbe, Reggie Bullock, Tony Snell, Jamaal Franklin, Ricky Ledo, Tim Hardaway, Jr. -- which of those players will be available at 25, and which might the Clippers take?
Of course, in every draft highly regarded players drop lower than expected, and it seems even more likely to happen in this draft. There could be a player available at 25 that no one really expected to see there (Kelly Olynyk, anyone?). Would the Clippers change course if that were the case?
The Clippers haven't had a first round pick since 2010 when they took Al-Farouq Aminu (a miss) with the eighth pick and then acquired the 18th pick to take Eric Bledsoe (a hit). Not only has the team been out of the draft for a while, we've all also been distracted by the exciting and convoluted process of hiring a new coach. So the draft has really snuck up us -- but it's always fun, and in about eight hours we'll know the name of the newest Clipper.
Tell us who you think the Clippers will pick in the comments. If you turn out to be correct, you will win my undying though lukewarm respect.