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Miami Heat

2017 NBA Draft Winners and Losers

by Nate Draxler June 28, 2017

2017 NBA Draft Winners and Losers

Rank	Player	School	Year	Pos	HT	WT	Drafted
1	Markelle Fultz	Washington	Fr	PG	6-4	195	1
2	Lonzo Ball	UCLA	Fr	PG	6-6	190	2
3	Jayson Tatum	Duke	Fr	SF	6-8	205	3
4	Josh Jackson	Kansas	Fr	SF	6-8	207	4
5	Jonathan Isaac	Florida St.	Fr	SF	6-10	210	6
6	De’Aaron Fox	Kentucky	Fr	PG	6-3	170	5
7	Malik Monk	Kentucky	Fr	PG	6-3	200	11
8	OG Anunoby	Indiana	So	SF	6-8	235	23
9	Dennis Smith Jr.	NC State	Fr	PG	6-3	190	9
10	Lauri Markkanen	Arizona	Fr	PF	7-0	230	7
11	Frank Ntilikina	INTL	–	PG	6-5	175	8
12	John Collins	Wake Forest	So	PF	6-10	235	19
13	Justin Jackson	N. Carolina	Jr	SF	6-8	210	15
14	Donovan Mitchell	Louisville	So	SG	6-3	205	13
15	Luke Kennard	Duke	So	SG	6-6	202	12
16	Bam Adebayo	Kentucky	Fr	C	6-10	245	14
17	Justin Patton	Creighton	Fr	C	7-0	230	16
18	Terrance Ferguson	INTL	–	SG	6-7	186	21
19	Jarrett Allen	Texas	Fr	C	6-11	235	22
20	Ike Anigbogu	UCLA	Fr	PF	6-10	250	47
21	Ivan Rabb	California	So	PF	6-11	220	35
22	Zach Collins	Gonzaga	Fr	C	7-0	230	10
23	Jordan Bell	Oregon	Jr	PF	6-9	225	38
24	Harry Giles	Duke	Fr	PF	6-10	240	20
25	Frank Jackson	Duke	Fr	SG	6-3	205	31
26	Josh Hart	Villanova	Sr	SG	6-5	215	30
27	DJ Wilson	Michigan	So	PF	6-10	235	17
28	Semi Ojeleye	SMU	Jr	SF	6-7	235	37
29	Johnathan Motley	Baylor	Jr	PF	6-10	230	Undrafted
30	Jawun Evans	OK st.	So	PG	6-1	180	39

This was my Top 30 Big Board prior to the draft. I added the final column to show where that player actually got drafted as a reference.

So according to my personal rankings, the NBA GMs agreed with me on the top 6 picks. We differ on Markkanen and Monk apparently. I would take Malik Monk over Lauri Markkanen 100 times out of 100. Monk is going to be a bucket-getter in the NBA for the next 12 years. I told everyone that Jonathan Isaac was a top 6 player and I was proved correct. I also said Bam Adebayo was being severely underrated by all the mock drafts listing him as a late 1^st or 2^nd rounder. He went in the lottery.

The other player I tried to tell everyone about was Josh Hart. Some people considered him an undrafted free agent candidate. That’s crazy talk. He’s a proven entity. He went in the 1^st round to the Lakers. They made a good choice with that one.

The biggest reach of the draft in my opinion was Portland taking Zach Collins at #10. Call me crazy, but I don’t want to draft a guy in the Top 10 that didn’t start a single game in college. If you’re not good enough to start in college, what are the chances you are good enough to start in the NBA? Not likely. Collins is foul-prone with a limited upside. Can you picture Zach Collins playing meaningful minutes in an NBA finals game in the current NBA? I can’t. He would get destroyed on pick-and-rolls. Lauri Markkanen at #7 is also a reach in my opinion. I’m not sold on him.

The biggest steals of the draft were Malik Monk at #11 and OG Anunoby at #23. Jordan Bell at #38 was also good value, especially considering the team fit. Golden State doesn’t need offense; but they would love some big man athleticism with rebounding and shot-blocking. That describes Bell’s game exactly. Malik Monk in Charlotte will be great. He is possibly the best pure scorer in the draft. I can’t believe he fell to #11. The Bulls at #7 or the Knicks at #8 should have jumped all over him and reaped the rewards. Instead they went with Euros.

Draft Winners:

Charlotte Hornets – Picks: Malik Monk (11), Dwayne Bacon (40)

Philadelphia 76ers – Picks: Markelle Fultz (1), Anzejs Pasecniks (25), Jonah Bolden (36), Mathias Lessort (50)

Sacramento Kings – Picks: De’Aaron Fox (5), Justin Jackson (15), Harry Giles (20), Frank Mason (34)

Los Angeles Lakers – Picks: Lonzo Ball (2), Kyle Kuzma (27), Josh Hart (30, from Jazz), Thomas Bryant (42)

Needless to say, the Minnesota Timberwolves were the big winners on draft night. Not because of who they drafted but because they traded for Jimmy Butler. Butler provides every single trait the Timberwolves need to progress to the next level: defense, toughness, veteran leadership, clutch scoring, etc. It was the perfect trade for Minnesota.

Draft Losers:

Denver Nuggets – Picks: Tyler Lydon (24), Vlatko Cancar (49), Monte Morris (51)

Portland Trail Blazers – Picks: Zach Collins (10), Caleb Swanigan (26)

Chicago Bulls were losers on so many levels. Traded an All-NBA player for 2 flawed young players and then used the draft pick to reach for a 7-foot Finnish kid who only shoots 3s but can’t rebound or play D. Well done Bulls!

Nate Draxler is a Writer for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

June 28, 2017 0 comment

Miami Heat NBA

Miami Heat Bench Will Determine Game 4

by Jermaine Lockett June 11, 2014

written by Jermaine Lockett

[soliloquy id=”715″]

Ok Miami Heat fans, its not time to hit the panic button but it sure is getting close. The San Antonio Spurs walked into Miami with vengeance on their minds. They destroyed our precious Heat in the first half of game 3 by averaging above 75.6% from the field. They then held on to a commanding lead to finish off the game 111-92. The Spurs now lead the series 2-1. If they win tomorrow’s game in Miami, the series will be over. No team in the last 10 years has come back from a 3-1 deficit to win a playoff series. Miami’s back is against the wall and it doesn’t matter how many celebs fill the building, Miami will have to rely on the Star-Power within their bench to pull out the a “W” tomorrow to keep the series alive.

The main factors that put the Spurs in such a colossal lead in the first half were Kawhi Leonard, who was 5/5 for 16 points in the first quarter. He would go on to finish the game with 29 points. On top of that, Danny Green was all over the place; he finished the game with 5 steals, tying an NBA Finals record. Just a small sidebar, LeBron James had 5 that night as well. Both Leonard and Green played above their normal level Tuesday evening. When Green is actually driving to the hoop consistently and playing solid defense, you have to stop and check the number to ensure it’s him. I’ve never see Leonard play with such confidence, putting up 29 points on the night. His defense on James was remarkable as he held James to 22 points. LeBron had seven turnovers on the evening as well; one could say Leonard had something to do with that. When you can hold the best player on the planet to only 22 points, pat yourself on the back. This disruptive behavior caused by such uncharacteristic play by both Green and Leonard will return to earth come Thursday night, as they are not consistent enough to keep up that type of performance. Miami now needs to look to two of their own to get hot and I mean White-Hot!

Ray Allen and Norris Cole need to step up when called upon. Allen, who is normally a timeless-ageless money veteran, was cold as ice last night, as he only put up 11 points. Of that 11 points, he only hit two “3s”. Cole in my opinion is a better G than Mario Chalmers and is a more aggressive to the hoop. I believe if the defending champs want to tie the series up, they will need to get Cole and “Jesus Shuttlesworth” (Allen) more involved. If not, we might see a repeat of last night’s performance and an unfortunate step closer to San Antonio’s “drive for five”.

Jermaine Lockett is a writer for CouchRiderReport.net. Follow him on Twitter, like him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

June 11, 2014 0 comment

Miami Heat NBA

No Free Coffee For You San Antonio

by Jermaine Lockett June 8, 2014

written by Jermaine Lockett

epSos de-Flickr

For those of you San Antonio people who were looking forward to your “java-fix” tomorrow morning, you will have to dish out the cash. In case you don’t know, Valero loves the San Antonio Spurs and their customers so much, that with each win the people of San Antonio get free coffee. I fear my workday in this town tomorrow, due to this loss. I don’t drink coffee but the Spurs fans around me do. Being a Heat fan does not help my case either. The Miami Heat came out on a mission with a brilliant performance to cap off game-2 of the NBA Finals with a 98-96 win over the San Antonio Spurs. The series is now tied 1-1. The story of the evening was of course LeBron James putting up 35, as he went to town on the Spurs but lets look deeper. Manu Ginobli is too old to be called on to carry the Spurs coming from the bench.

19 of the Spurs’ 96 points came from the Argentina Native. 20 percent of a team’s production should be coming from the starters not one player from the bench. Is it nice to know the Spurs can get that type of production out of him? Sure, but the problem with that is San Antonio could not get into a rhythm, as they went 44% from the field. Manu had to step up because of the poor ball movement by his team. As a Heat fan, I am excited to know he’s on the court, because 36-years-old in the NBA is ancient and I know he will burn out somewhere in the second half, especially with him playing 28 minutes a game. This is not the norm in San Antonio and I’ll prove it.

We know that players show up more, when the game is on the line but when you have a player who normally averages 22 minutes per game, add an additional 6 minutes onto his playing time, there might be an issue. Greg Popovich even mentioned in his post game press conference “we didn’t take advantage…we made bad decisions”. Of course you did Sir’, of course you did. Poor ball movement to key players is the reason the series is now tied.

Had the Spurs moved the ball around more and given Danny Green more playing time, he would have had more opportunities to get open for the “three” and we might be looking at a completely different game outcome. However, I must thank you San Antonio, because that did not happen and now you have to listen to me sing “The Heat is on!!!”, while I tease you all about not getting your free coffee in the morning.

Jermaine Lockett is a writer for CouchRiderReport.net. Follow him on Twitter, like him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

June 8, 2014 0 comment

Miami Heat NBA

Lance Stephenson Almost Stole Game 2 from Miami Heat

by Jermaine Lockett May 21, 2014

written by Jermaine Lockett

Matt Velazquez-Flickr

The story of tonight’s game was Lance Stephenson. Mr. “Born Ready” had more heart than any player on the floor. Even as a Miami Heat fan, I think the way this Indiana Pacer played was simply remarkable. Miami may have won tonight, but I believe there will be extensive tape review of Lance’s gameplay. Adjustments will need to be made to ensure that the fire he brings to the Indiana Pacers is extinguished.

Stephenson put up 25 points with 6 rebounds and 7 assists. His stats from the last two games are notable, but it was the tenacious manner in which he went about scoring and getting his team involved that was most impressive. One could even say Larry Bird was impressed with Stephenson’s aggressive gameplay based on his body language towards him when Stephenson sat by him for a rest during the game.

While I do applaud the valiant but fruitless efforts of the Brooklyn native, I have to give partial credit to the thoughtless tactics of the Miami Heat head coach, Erik Spoelstra, for matching Norris Cole up on Stephenson. The Brooklyn native saw the mismatch right in front of him and clearly took advantage of it for all of three quarters. In my opinion, I believe LeBron James on Stephenson would have been the better matchup. Hopefully they make that adjustment in game 3.

What shocked me was how Stephenson went to sleep in the fourth quarter. Cole’s defensive strategy did not change. It appeared the former Cincinnati player had run out of gas against the Heat. It was as if he took a sit and never returned to the game.

If the Heat plan on being successful in future games of this series they will need to shut Lance down. James even said in a post game ESPN interview that “we got a lot of work to do”. The problem with that is Stephenson when gassed-up is such a talent, that he refuses to be denied. Because of him and his cast of All-Star teammates, this is going to be a very long series. Look for Miami to game plan him specifically in the next epic match-up.

Jermaine Lockett is a writer for CouchRiderReport.net. Follow him on Twitter, like him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

May 21, 2014 0 comment