Takeaways on draft of few shocks
The NBA draft went mostly according to
MIAMI — form with few surprises.
The Phoenix Suns tipped off Thursday’s draft by selecting the player they have been linked to for several weeks, Arizona’s Deandre Ayton. By the end of the night, 60 players were selected, but none by the Miami Heat, who entered the night without a pick and did not make a move to get into either the first or second round.
The Doncic Dilemma: One of the bizarre moments of the draft was Luka Doncic talking about playing for the Mavericks while wearing a Hawks hat. Atlanta made the selection with the No. 3 pick after agreeing to swap first-rounders with Dallas. The Mavericks then took Trae Young at No. 5 and the deal was completed (the Hawks also received a future protected first-round pick). The 6-foot-7 Doncic has
been a professional since he was 15 and comes into the NBA with stunning credentials for an 18-year-old: In the past year, he teamed with Goran Dragic to help Slovenia win the EuroBasket championship and was named MVP of the EuroLeague and EuroLeague Final 4.
LeBron’s future teammate? One of the biggest question marks entering the draft had to do with the Cavaliers’ first-round pick. Would Cleveland use the No. 8 overall selection in a trade to acquire a star to play next to LeBron James? Nope. The Cavaliers used the pick to select Alabama point guard Collin Sexton, who averaged 18.6 points and 3.3 assists as a freshman last season. Now the question is, will Sexton get to play with LeBron? The Heat were in a similar situation in 2014, when they added a point guard by the name of Shabazz Napier in the first round weeks before LeBron left in free agency to sign with the Cavaliers.
From jubilation to disappointment: The happiest people in the draft room were Villanova’s Mikal Bridges and his mom, Tyneeha Rivers, when Bridges was selected by the hometown Philadelphia 76ers, his mom’s employer, with the 10th overall pick. Rivers is the vice president of human resources for the 76ers and was elated when the pick was announced. But the idea of mom and son carpooling to work lasted about 20 minutes before the Sixers traded Bridges to Phoenix for Zhaire Smith, who was taken 16th, and a 2021 firstround pick. Both of those Phoenix picks were acquired from Miami for Goran Dragic.
The curious case of Michael Porter Jr.: Just months ago, Michael Porter Jr. was considered a viable option to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft. But due to injury concerns regarding his back, Porter slipped all the way to the Nuggets at No. 14. There’s no question that Porter is talented, but his health was a big red flag. He suffered a back injury two minutes into his first game as a fresh- man at Missouri and did not return until the SEC tournament. This is a situation where the one-and-done rule really hurt a prospect. Porter could have been the first pick in last year’s draft had the rule not been in place.
Miami represented in draft: The Miami Heat had a quiet night, making no picks, but the Miami Hurricanes were well represented. San Antonio drafted former Hurricanes guard Lonnie Walker in the first round with the 18th overall pick and Detroit selected ex-UM guard Bruce Brown in the second round with the 42nd pick. Walker left Miami after one season and Brown left after two seasons. No other players from in-state colleges were drafted this year.