Around The World: May 31

05/31/12

Written by: DHawes22 / avg. rating: 4.0

May 31

Trail Blazers: Mock Draft Database

Trailblazers.tv: Video: 2012 Draft Lottery Show

Trailblazers.tv: Video: Fans React To Getting The Sixth Pick

Trail Blazers: Trail Blazers Draw 6th And 11th Overall Picks At 2012 NBA Draft Lottery
"The Portland Trail Blazers hold the 6th and 11th picks of the first round of the 2012 NBA Draft as a result of today’s draft lottery. This year’s draft marks the first time Portland has had two lottery picks since the lottery was introduced in 1985."

Trail Blazers: John Hollinger With An Interesting Proposal
"From Portland's perspective, you get a big man you've liked for a while to pair with LaMarcus Aldridge. If the goal is to get back to being competitive in a hurry, trading a pick and maybe a player for a borderline all-star who, again, fills a position of need seems like a great deal. It would cut into Portland's cap space, but I think you live with it for a player of Millsap's quality."

Trail Blazers: A Solid First Step
"I think the debate at number six, where Portland now sits, is going to be between Harrison Barnes, Bradley Beal, and Jeremy Lamb. But, as always, there are linchpins. One of them, I believe, is Andre Drummond. He could go as high as number two, or he could slide as far as number seven or eight. Of all the guys projected to go in the top 10, his position, at this point, seems the most fluid. He’s been dubbed a project. Or, in other words, some scouts think he’s gamble. Those are always the toughest guys to project going into a draft. "

Trail Blazers: All Goes According To Plan, Trail Blazers Land Two Early Draft Picks
"At the Draft Lottery party, held at the Lloyd Center Buffalo Wild Wings, Trail Blazers broadcasters and fans gathered and anxiously awaited the reveal of the order. It was a tense and exciting atmosphere all the way to pick six, everyone unsure if Brooklyn’s pick would land in Rip City—Portland owned the rights to the pick as long as it wasn’t in the top three. Seeing the Nets’ logo at number six was the best possible outcome for the Trail Blazers."

Trail Blazers: Ford: And Portland Picks...
"The Blazers really need a center or a point guard. But with Lillard off the board, I wouldn't be surprised if they pulled the trigger on Lamb, who could go anywhere from No. 6 to No. 13 on draft night. Portland's scouting staff has been high on him all year and, while he wouldn't fill a primary need, he has the talent to eventually earn a spot as the team's starting 2-guard."

Oregon Live: 2012 NBA draft lottery: Trail Blazers score 2 first-round picks
"Only if we make the right pick," Buchanan said when asked if the lottery results justified the trade. "We've got two lottery picks; we've got to go make the right selections now. We have an opportunity in front of us that we have to capitalize on."

Oregon Live: NBA High-5: After a great outcome in draft lottery, Blazers need to get GM in place quickly
"Based on everything that's been said, the Blazers' No. 1 priority seems to be acquiring a seasoned NBA point guard this off-season, either through free agency or a trade. That means it's likely one -- or even both -- of their first-round picks has a "for sale" sign on it. That's the direction Buchanan and president Larry Miller have been steering the ship. Does the next GM agree? The Oregonian's Jason Quick has reported that there are three known finalists -- former Hornets GM Jeff Bower, Clippers GM Neil Olshey, and Pacers GM David Morway. Yesterday, owner Paul Allen said on Twitter that he has interviewed four candidates, and Canzano reported that he believes the fourth is 76ers senior VP Tony DiLeo, although I supposed it's possible Allen meant Buchanan."

CSNNW: The Blazers' two lottery picks presents immense pressure to get them right
"I'm not sold on many big men (besides Drummond) in this draft. Jones is a 6-11 shot-blocking, athletic stud who I think will be around at this pick and I think he's the best available. Jones can shoot the outside shot and play inside. He's more comfortable on the perimeter and needs to bulk up, but that will come naturally. "

Columbian: Trail Blazers get 6th, 11th picks in NBA draft
"Whether the Blazers actually use those picks is to be determined. Buchanan made very clear that the team was open to fielding trade offers -- potentially relinquishing one or both picks to add a quality player. However, if they do use them, the sixth pick will eat up $2.55 million in salary cap space while the 11th will use $1.77 million."

Portland Tribune: Blazers land No. 6, 11 picks in NBA draft
“When you pick that high, it’s better to go with the best player available,” he said. “Some guys are more (NBA) ready than others, but (at No. 6) there are some options there of guys who are ready to start right away.”

Rip City Project: Kendall Marshall Would Be Ideal Heir to Andre Miller
"Running the show in Portland, Marshall would get the ball to LaMarcus Aldridge in the post, all while finding his shooters on the wing (Batum, Matthews, Luke Babbit, etc.) and, every now and again, getting his own."

Blazersedge via Draft Express: The Type Of Players Portland Needs To Bring In
"We need winners. People who are tough. People who don't like losing. Players who, if they lose a shooting drill, they lose their minds. Guys that play with a lot of heart and are unselfish. Guys that will sacrifice personal stuff for the team.."

Blazersedge: Portland Trail Blazers Get #6 and #11 Picks in 2012 Draft: The Expectations
"At #6 you definitely want a future starter. You hope, crossing fingers and doing the right kind of research, that you might unearth a star. Brandon Roy and Danilo Gallinari aren't bad, eh? But you're not going to be able to choose position or particular skills if you're gunning for a star-level player. You have to grab as much talent as you can and hope it works out. The alternative is drafting for position or skill and hoping the guy manages to crack your starting lineup at some point. Several former #6 selections have spent careers on the bench and some didn't get off it. You're taking a risk trying to draft your star here but you're taking just as big of a risk going for anything but."

Ball Don't Lie: New Orleans Hornets fans celebrate 2012 NBA Draft Lottery win (VIDEO)
"After watching an owner skip town, a generational point guard shipped out and an abandon-all-hope-of-scoring 21-45 season, fans of the New Orleans Hornets do have something better — the chance to watch Kentucky big man Anthony Davis cover five to seven yards of courtspace for the next five to seven years. And, as they showed during a Hornets lottery watch party at Manning's Eat-Drink-Cheer in downtown New Orleans on Wednesday night, they're pretty stoked about it"

Ball Don't Lie: Anthony Davis wants to be able to say, ‘I shut Kobe down’ (VIDEO)
"You know, Kobe, he's a monster," Davis said. "So I want to just go out there and try my hardest. You know, there's a lot of guys who can't stop Kobe. So if I stop him, I'll be one of them guys who can say, 'I shut Kobe down.'"

Ball Don't Lie: Charlotte Bobcats look on the bright side after losing 2012 NBA Draft Lottery
"You'd forgive folks in the Bobcats organization if they spent the hours after losing out on a potentially franchise-shifting centerpiece crying in their beers and waxing wistful for days they'll never have. Instead, though, they appear to have turned into the skid in a pretty hilariously admirable way."

Ball Don't Lie: Wally Szczerbiak calls former teammate Kevin Garnett’s late Game 2 work ‘horrible’ and lacking a ‘clutch gene’ on Twitter
"The idea that Kevin Garnett is somehow not "clutch" is incorrect, tired, and lazy. That's without even getting into the fact that the idea of a "closer" in the NBA sense is an absolute anachronism. No, Kevin Garnett does not have a litany of game-winners alongside the ranks of Michael Jordan or anyone else in NBA playoff history that you would dare look up (check Kobe Bryant's late game stats in the postseason, friends), because Jordan is just about alone in this gold standard. And Garnett is certainly not alone in the broader sense when it comes to big men, who rarely see the rock late in close contests."

Ball Don't Lie: Behind the Box Score, where the Boston Celtics’ best somehow wasn’t enough
"The only problem with this rather intelligent line of thinking is that, on Wednesday night, Rajon Rondo was superhuman. Forty-four points, eight rebounds, 10 assists, three steals, and only three turnovers despite playing the entire game. A game that went into overtime, lest you forgot."

The Basketball Jones: The draft lottery reminds us that we need to settle down about the evils of tanking
"I’m neither for nor against tanking in the NBA, but I feel like the fact that the team with the worst record only has a 25 percent chance of winning the lottery means that the odds of blatant tanking paying off are low enough that we don’t need to get worked up about it. The 2011-12 Charlotte Bobcats may have tanked harder than any NBA team has ever tanked, and what did it get them? Not Anthony Davis, that’s for sure. And it’s not bad luck that they didn’t win the lottery, because there was a 75 percent chance that this would turn out the way it did."

Slam via Yahoo!: Paul Pierce: Celtics’ Game 2 Loss ‘Demoralizing’
"The Celtics were livid with the officials, yes, but mostly they were so, so angry with themselves. All those second and third chances they gave the Heat, when they needed a defensive rebound, a loose ball. “Demoralizing,” Paul Pierce said."

SLAM: Post Up: Rondo Not Enough
"But this one hurts much, much more. When the final buzzer sounded, the still-very-conscious Celtics, just like a decent portion of America, were distraught, demoralized and confused. What? How? Boston shot 49 percent from the field, controlled the first half and led by 5 points with three minutes to play. The Celtics made Dwyane Wade a non-factor for four quarters, held both Wade and LeBron to zero field goals in the fourth quarter and scored 99 points in regulation, the most the Heat have allowed all postseason. And all of this occurred under the umbrella of one of the best performances ever seen, as Rondo became the first player in League history to post 40-10-8 in a playoff game. The Celtics emptied the tank and gave the Heat their best possible game, but still could not win the game. This one hurts."

SLAM via Sports Illustrated: How the New Orleans Hornets Won the NBA Draft Lottery
"A ’7,’ Demps knew, would give the Hornets the top spot. Ten more seconds passed, and a man with his back to the machine raised his hand, indicating that the official in charge of the machine should have it suck up the last ball. ‘I was just thinking, ‘Come on, seven! Come on, seven!’ Demps said after the drawing. The ball surfaced: a ’7,’ only the way it came out, it initially looked like a ’1.’ Demps slumped in his chair for a second. ‘I couldn’t tell,’ he said. He then looked more closely and was sure it was a ’7.’ He was getting excited. ‘But then I just told myself I had to wait for them to announce it.’ That came a few seconds later: The Hornets had won the No. 1 pick. Demps responded with a fist pump underneath the table.”

ESPN: Daily Dime
"The Celtics got 44 points from Rondo, easily a career high, in a wondrous 16-of-24 shooting effort in 53 minutes of pure will. They shot 49 percent as a team. They led by 15 points in the first half and five points with three minutes to play. They held Wade to two points in the first half. Miami missed 16 free throws. Allen rediscovered his shooting stroke despite a bad ankle. Boston got 39 points and 14 rebounds combined from Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. The Celtics scored 99 points in regulation, the most the Heat have allowed all postseason."

ESPN: No night to run the Bobcats
"Everybody wanted the number one pick," Cho would say later. "Obviously, we wanted the number one pick, too. ... There's good players in the top five. Number one is a really special player. We're going to get a really good player at number two."

Sports Illustrated: Bobcats narrow down coaching candidates; Magic, Blazers eye GMs
"But one source close to the situation said to not dismiss the idea that interim GM Chad Buchanan could remain in charge, especially if Allen loses his preferred replacement to Orlando. Buchanan has done good work since taking over for the fired Cho more than a year ago (aside from drafting Nolan Smith at No. 21 last year when Denver's Kenneth Faried was still available), and appears to be in Allen's good graces. I'm hearing this search could conclude next week, if not sooner."