Draft Predictions

I have no clue who the Bulls are going to pick today, I hope they don’t make a mistake but I think they will be by buying into the hype and not doing their due diligence.

So here it is, on my blog for all to see for posterity what my draft predictions are for the 2008 NBA Draft.

OJ Mayo Will Be A Superstar

All the hype surrounding the next two fellas has overshadowed OJ Mayo. The truth of the matter is Mayo has all the making of a future superstar in the NBA. He slept through college because he didn’t want to go and called yet more attention to the need for a minor league system in the NBA. He mailed it in, he wasn’t enthused about it and his play was, gasp, still far above average.

Mayo has the size, ability and determination to be a superstar in the NBA, something he’s been pegged for since he was in the 6th grade. There is nothing about the kid that indicates otherwise yet he has fallen off a draft radar that can only seem to accommodate two players. It’s too bad, somebody is going to get a superstar, it doesn’t look like it will be the Bulls.

Michael Beasley Will Be A Star

Similar to Mayo, Michael Beasley has been pegged as an NBA star for many years now. Like Mayo he bounced around high schools looking for the best places to play and prepare himself for the NBA. He went to K State, took out Mayo and the Trojans in the first round and did alright for himself in the tournament.

Now various “character” issues including pajama bottoms are being brought up? What a joke. This kid will be a star, he has the size (despite being smaller than advertised, he’s the same size as Scottie Pippen), shear talent and raw power to be a star in the NBA. I see him as a stronger Scottie Pippen and if he can live up to that he will be a special player indeed. The Bulls would do well picking him, he would quickly bring legitimacy to the Bulls front court. They won’t do it though.

Derrick Rose Will Be Decent Player

Don’t get me wrong, I think that Derrick Rose has a boatload of talent. I just don’t get all the waxing poetic about the next Deron Williams or Chris Paul before he or they have done anything. How many rings has Williams won? How many trophies has Paul kissed? That would be none and none.

Tell me quick, how many superstar point guards who won an NBA title can you name? Have fun.

Having a great point guard is a luxury, I don’t care where the league is allegedly going. Having stud shooting guards and forwards are the keys to a championship. I didn’t see the Celtics running out to get a stud PG as their key piece in the puzzle to winning a championship. Their championship was built around a trio of, you guess it — shooting guard, small forward, power forward.

In fact, let’s look at the formula for the last few NBA Champions going back to when the Bulls last had their run.

2007, 2005, 2003, 1999 Spurs — best case for a stud PG with Parker, but it’s Duncan, Finley and Ginobili that were the heart of the latter teams with David Robinson in the earlier ones.

2006 Heat — again, a decent argument at PG with Williams but still again, Dwayne Wade and Shaq were the heart of that team.

2004 Pistons — Defense, defense, defense. Yes, Billups was great but that team lived and died on defense.

2000-2002 Lakers — Umm, Kobe and Shaq? Did they have a point guard? Does someone handle the ball besides Kobe?

1996-1998 Bulls — We all know this one, yes, Steve Kerr was the reason the Bulls won their second three-peat.

So there you have it, did these recent champions have some good point guards? Sure, but it was also done with serviceable point guards. But these championships were won on the backs of shooting guards and dominant forwards. The Bulls have neither. Mayo and Beasley are dangling there to be taken and put one of those pieces in place. Are the Bulls willing to do it? Doesn’t look like it, especially with the last decent Bulls point guard running the team.