My ESPN Experts league, which runs on 8 category, roto keeper settings, just had our draft last night. What follows is the draft round by round, along with my thoughts on each round.
| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Kevin Garnett - BOS [PF] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Kobe Bryant - LAL [SG] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | LeBron James - CLE [SF] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Gilbert Arenas - WAS [PG] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Yao Ming - HOU [C] | |
| 6 | TGB | Shawn Marion - PHX [SF, PF] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Dirk Nowitzki - DAL [PF] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Steve Nash - PHX [PG] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Dwyane Wade - MIA [SG] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Pau Gasol - MEM [C] |
Just about everyone went where I thought they would here with the exception of
Round 2
| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Chris Paul - NOH [PG] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Amare Stoudemire - PHX [C] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Tim Duncan - SAS [PF] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Jason Kidd - NJN [PG] | |
| 5 | TGB | Chris Bosh - TOR [PF] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Andre Iguodala - PHI [SG, SF] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | Josh Smith - ATL [SF, PF] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | Paul Pierce - BOS [SG, SF] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Allen Iverson - DEN [PG, SG] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Rashard Lewis - ORL [SF] |
There were few surprises in the second round, much like the first. One shocker was seeing Kidd go so early in a keeper draft due to his age. Of course, experts have been predicting a drop in stats due to his age for years, but he hasn’t slowed down yet. I was happy to land Josh Smith at 17, and think that Sillyball got a bit of a steal with Amare at 12. Allen Iverson went a little early for my liking, but I wouldn’t quite call him a reach there.
Round 3| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Chauncey Billups - DET [PG] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Deron Williams - UTA [PG, SG] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Al Jefferson - MIN [PF, C] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Joe Johnson - ATL [SG] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Ray Allen - BOS [SG] | |
| 6 | TGB | Vince Carter - NJN [SG] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Caron Butler - WAS [SF] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Dwight Howard - ORL [C] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Tracy McGrady - HOU [SG] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Marcus Camby - DEN [C] |
The third round saw some young guys with potential to continue growing (Williams, Jefferson, Johnson, Butler) mixed with a large group of older players hoping for one more season of brilliance and health (Camby, TMac, Ray Allen, Carter, Billups). I don’t like the Billups pick in particular, since Deron Williams was still on the board. I think Williams will have a better season this year, and since he is much younger has more potential for the future, which is key in a keeper league. Dwight Howard may have gone a little early for a roto league, but his talent is undeniable. I was torn between Joe Johnson and Caron Butler (after Jefferson and Williams went just before my pick), but decided that JJ’s threes and scoring would fit my team best.
Round 4| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Carmelo Anthony - DEN [SF] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Michael Redd - MIL [SG, SF] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Brandon Roy - POR [SG] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Gerald Wallace - CHA [SF, PF] | |
| 5 | TGB | Carlos Boozer - UTA [PF] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Mo Williams - MIL [PG, SG] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | Emeka Okafor - CHA [PF, C] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | Kevin Durant - SEA [SG, SF] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Baron Davis - GSW [PG] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Jermaine O'Neal - IND [PF] |
There were some really great players still available in the 4th round. In particular Carmelo Anthony and Brandon Roy should have big years. Rookies are always a risk, but Durant could also be a great value here. I like the Jermaine O’Neal pick, IF he can stay healthy he will likely perform better than his draft spot suggests. I was happy to get Emeka Okafor’s rebounding and shot blocking, although truthfully I was hoping Carlos Boozer, Anthony, or
| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Zach Randolph - NYK [PF] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | David West - NOH [PF] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Mike Bibby - SAC [PG] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Kirk Hinrich - CHI [PG, SG] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Luol Deng - CHI [SF, PF] | |
| 6 | TGB | Leandro Barbosa - PHX [PG, SG] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Josh Howard - DAL [SF] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Raymond Felton - CHA [PG, SG] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Lamar Odom - LAL [PF] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Ron Artest - SAC [SF] |
If Lamar Odom gets traded to Phoenix Sillyball will have the steal of the draft here. If I had seen the rumors before I picked I would have taken Odom myself, since I was going back and forth between him and Hinrich. Zach Randolph is a risky pick in NY, since no one knows how well he will play alongside Curry (can 2 bigs who don’t play D be on the court at the same time?). I also think David West went a little early, but if he can up his rebounding numbers it will be a justifiable pick. Shutton may have gotten a major steal with Felton as well now that Brevin Knight is out of
Round 6
| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Tony Parker - SAS [PG] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Antawn Jamison - WAS [PF] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Jason Terry - DAL [PG, SG] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Kevin Martin - SAC [SG] | |
| 5 | TGB | Mike Miller - MEM [SF] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Monta Ellis - GSW [PG, SG] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | LaMarcus Aldridge - POR [C] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | Andre Miller - PHI [PG] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Andrei Kirilenko - UTA [SF] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Ricky Davis - MIN [PG, SG] |
Some really surprising names still sitting around here in Round 6. Jamison, Mike Miller, and Kevin Martin all should have great seasons (of course they all went off the board before I could get them). In particular, Papabear and TGB both got major steals there. With Oden’s injury keeping him out for the year I felt like the 6th round was a great spot to grab Aldridge, so I was happy with that. AK47 probably won’t play any worse than he did last season…if he is still in the country. Ricky Davis is a talented player and will put up great stats if he stays in
Round 7
| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Ben Gordon - CHI [SG] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Tyson Chandler - NOH [C] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Randy Foye - MIN [PG, SG] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Danny Granger - IND [SF] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Rasheed Wallace - DET [PF] | |
| 6 | TGB | T.J. Ford - TOR [PG] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Samuel Dalembert - PHI [C] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Rudy Gay - MEM [SG] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Rajon Rondo - BOS [PG] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Manu Ginobili - SAS [SG] |
Hey, after writing a blog all about how smart it was to take Granger in the 7th round I couldn’t ignore my own advice. Manu Ginobili at the end of the round to Frodo was a great pick as was Rasheed Wallace. Who would have thought either of them would be available so late in the draft? In fact, there really weren’t any picks in this round that I disagreed with.
Round 8
| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Andrew Bogut - MIL [C] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Andris Biedrins - GSW [C] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Stephon Marbury - NYK [PG] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Mehmet Okur - UTA [C] | |
| 5 | TGB | Jason Richardson - CHA [SG, SF] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Corey Maggette - LAC [SF] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | Richard Hamilton - DET [SG] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | Darko Milicic - MEM [PF] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Chris Kaman - LAC [C] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Brad Miller - SAC [C] |
We saw some interesting picks here in the 8th round. Most of the round is full of guys who are looking to get their careers back on track (Kaman, Marbury, Miller, Darko, JRich, Maggette), which means that there are some real talents here who have the ability to play at a high level in the right situation. In particular I really like the Maggette pick here by Mojo. If he hadn’t taken him I certainly would have.
Round 9| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Jameer Nelson - ORL [PG] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Stephen Jackson - GSW [SG, SF, PF] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Richard Jefferson - NJN [SF] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Andrea Bargnani - TOR [SF, PF] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Ben Wallace - CHI [C] | |
| 6 | TGB | Eddy Curry - NYK [C] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Jarrett Jack - POR [PG, SG] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Nene Hilario - DEN [PF] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Zydrunas Ilgauskas - CLE [C] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Peja Stojakovic - NOH [SG |
Quick note: the Eddy Curry pick in this round was a mistake caused by NBA.com’s draft applet. He should not be drafted in 10 team leagues. As for the rest of the picks, I think there were a few reaches. In particular, I just don’t think Jarrett Jack, as much as I like him, is going to get the playing time to make a real impact. There are just too many guards in
| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Jamal Crawford - NYK [SG] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Al Harrington - GSW [SF, PF, C] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Nenad Krstic - NJN [C] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Brevin Knight - LAC [PG] | |
| 5 | TGB | Elton Brand - LAC [PF] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Larry Hughes - CLE [PG, SG] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | Mike Conley Jr. - MEM [PG, SG] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | David Lee - NYK [PF] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Channing Frye - POR [SF, PF] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Boris Diaw - PHX [SF, PF] |
All I can say about this round is that every owner in the league may have just gotten worked by TGB. Right when people had forgotten about him or were waiting on him too long, BAM, TGB busts out the Elton Brand pick. In a keeper league Brand shouldn’t have sat around this long. He will provide a solid boost to finish the season for TGB, as well as a potential top 15 keeper for next year. Great pick.
Round 11
| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Raja Bell - PHX [SG] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Charlie Villanueva - MIL [PF] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Luke Walton - LAL [SF] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Chucky Atkins - DEN [PG] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Kyle Korver - PHI [SF] | |
| 6 | TGB | Jamaal Tinsley - IND [PG] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Shane Battier - HOU [SF] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Andres Nocioni - CHI [SF, PF] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Morris Peterson - NOH [SG] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Troy Murphy - IND [PF, C] |
Now things have really thinned out. Raja
| 1 | Fighting Frodos | Corey Brewer - MIN [SF, PF] | |
| 2 | Team Sillyball | Luis Scola - HOU [SF, PF] | |
| 3 | Team shutton2 | Marvin Williams - ATL [SF] | |
| 4 | papabear22 | Tayshaun Prince - DET [SF] | |
| 5 | TGB | Nick Collison - SEA [C] | |
| 6 | Fareast Mojo | Daniel Gibson - CLE [PG, SG] | |
| 7 | Unpossibilities | Al Thornton - LAC [SF, PF] | |
| 8 | The City Boy$ | Marco Belinelli - GSW [PG, SG] | |
| 9 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Joel Przybilla - POR [C] | |
| 10 | LB DESTROYAZ | Devin Harris - DAL [PG, SG] |
Wow, Sillyball may have gotten another steal here with Luis Scola. As we saw over the summer Scola can really play, and with Rick Adelman running the show in
| 1 | LB DESTROYAZ | Mike Dunleavy - IND [SG] | |
| 2 | We Talkin Bout Practice? | Andrew Bynum - LAL [C] | |
| 3 | The City Boy$ | Al Horford - ATL [PF, C] | |
| 4 | Unpossibilities | Drew Gooden - CLE [PF] | |
| 5 | Fareast Mojo | Shaquille O'Neal - MIA [C] | |
| 6 | TGB | Reggie Evans - PHI [PF] | |
| 7 | papabear22 | Paul Millsap - UTA [SF, PF] | |
| 8 | Team shutton2 | Chris Wilcox - SEA [PF] | |
| 9 | Team Sillyball | Jose Calderon - TOR [PG] | |
| 10 | Fighting Frodos | Sam Cassell - LAC [PG] |
Well, Shaq got drafted. I thought we had finally hit the point where no one would take him after years of people foolishly picking him in roto leagues. I think it was more of a pity pick than anything else, although Mojo swears he is going to deal Shaq to whoever is last in free throw percentage. I will believe it when I see it.
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