A breakdown of the 2009 NBA Draft Western Conference picks.
The 2009 Draft wasn't so eventful as the hours leading up to it. NBA stars, such as Shaquille O'Neal and Vince Carter, changed towns, and rumors swirled about as teams desperately tried to jockey themselves into better draft positions. Here's a look at how teams in the Western Conference fared. Don't forget to check out the Suite101 Feature Writer's final mock draft (which guessed 10 of 30 correct picks, including seven of the first 10).
- Dallas Mavericks: B- -- PG Rodrigue Beaubois (25); PG Nick Calathes (45); PF Ahmad Nivins (56) -- While there's nothing that jumps out about any of these three picks, they are all solid. Beaubois could be a steal in a few years.
- Denver Nuggets: B+ -- Pick: PG Ty Lawson (18) -- Lawson not only gives the Nuggets a veteran-like point guard to back up Chauncey Billups, but it also gives them a point guard who plays a different type of game than Billups.
- Golden State Warriors: B -- Picks: SG Stephen Curry (7) -- If they keep this pick, it should be interesting to see what other deals they make in the offseason. Curry would complement Monta Ellis well on the offensive end, but combining the two would make an already poor defensive lineup that much worse.
- Houston Rockets: B -- Picks: SG Jermaine Taylor (32); PG Sergio Llull (34); SG Chase Budinger (44) -- Budinger is a first-round talent, but slipped to the mid second round because of question marks about his toughness. The best thing about these three picks is that they're all second rounders. In such a weak draft, second round talent isn't necessarily much worse than mid-to-late first round talent.
- LA Clippers: A+ -- Picks: PF Blake Griffin (1) -- Obviously, it wasn't too tough a decision for the Clippers with the first overall pick. Griffin is the surest thing in the draft of becoming a star in the NBA. Still, they get kudos for trading Zach Randolph for Quentin Richardson not long after the draft, thereby giving themselves a bigger shooting guard to hit perimeter shots, as well as creating more playing time for Griffin.
- LA Lakers: D -- Picks: F Chinemelu Enolu (59) -- There's nothing really wrong with this pick, except that it doesn't do anything for them.
- Memphis Grizzlies: A -- Picks: C Hasheem Thabeet (2); SF DeMarre Carroll (27); SF Sam Young (36) -- There's much debate as to whether Thabeet is the next Dikembe Mutombo or Samuel Dalembert. Either way, that was the right move to make at the time. Carroll and Young both have a lot to offer, too.
- Minnesota Timberwolves: B+ -- Picks: PG Ricky Rubio (5); PG Jonny Flynn (6); SG Wayne Ellington (28); FC Henk Norel (47) -- Rubio will likely stay overseas for another couple of years. Even so, selecting him with the fifth pick might prove worth it in the long run. Kudos also for selecting Flynn with the sixth pick and not being scared away with two point guards. Flynn is a tremendous talent whose athleticism should make him a good fit for the NBA game.
- New Orleans Hornets: B -- Picks: PG Darren Collison (21); SG Marcus Thornton (43) -- Collison's an interesting pick. While the Hornets needed a backup point guard, he's a lite version of Chris Paul. Thornton's scoring ability could make him a steal so late in the draft.
- Oklahoma City Thunder: A -- Pick: SG James Harden (3); C B.J. Mullens (24); SG Robert Vaden (54) -- The Thunder nabbed three talented young players, while addressing needs. Harden may be the safest bet in the draft other than Blake Griffin, and should complement Durant and Westbrook well. Mullens is raw, but has tremendous upside that reminds some of Chris Kaman.
- Phoenix Suns: C -- Pick: SF Earl Clark (14); SF Taylor Griffin (48); SF Emir Preldzic (57) -- While Clark is a rare talent, the other two picks are likely not to make the roster at all.
- Portland Trail Blazers: A -- Picks: SF Victor Claver (22); PF Jeff Pendergraph (31); SF Dante Cunningham (33); PG Patrick Mills (55) -- Claver won't require a contract for a few years, which will give Portland time to pay their young stars when they need to be paid. Pendergraph and Cunningham have the potential to develop into solid contributors and many thought Mills was a first round talent.
- Sacramento Kings: C+ -- Picks: SG Tyreke Evans (4); SF Omri Casspi (23); PF Jon Brockman (38) -- Evans is a strange pick. He's a combo guard, but isn't really the distributor they probably needed. Rubio would have made more sense, though contract concerns probably scared them away. Casspi will be a great fit. He really impressed teams in workouts. He's tough and can score. Brockman will be reunited with Spencer Hawes.
- San Antonio Spurs: A -- Pick: PF DeJuan Blair (37); SG Jack McClinton (51); PG Nando DeColo (53) -- There must be a conspiracy going on for the Spurs to have landed Blair so late. Concerns over his knees were a major part of it. Some had Blair flirting with the lottery at one point. McClinton reminds of Eddie House, and could be a nice spark off the bench.
- Utah Jazz: C- -- Picks: PG Eric Maynor (20); PF Goran Suton (50) -- While Maynor will be a solid backup to Deron Williams, with so many point guards in this draft, they may have found a suitable backup with the 50th pick, or they might've easily been able to trade for an early second round pick.
The copyright of the article 2009 NBA Draft Grades (Western Conference) in NBA is owned by Phil Partington. Permission to republish 2009 NBA Draft Grades (Western Conference) in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
