FanPost

OKC Model Is a Fluke


Oklahoma City could have easily had to draft bum knees Oden if Portland drafted Durant. Teams thought Westbrook couldnt transition into a point guard. A team like Miami if they knew Westbrook could play the point would have loved to have him. Miami took Beasely #2 overall. Miami later traded him for a 2nd round pick. James Harden for a #3 overall pick isnt that good and is still coming off the bench. They traded Jeff Green and are still talking about trading Westbrook. So if they actually trade Westbrook did the Thunder actually build through the draft. Some will bring up Ibaka and Collison. There are plenty of Ibakas and Collisons in the NBA.

Memphis did not really build through the draft. Outside of Mike Conley Jr. and Darrell Arthur the Grizzlies didnt draft any of their core. Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo were traded for on draft day. They technically were not drafted. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph the Grizzlies best players weren't drafted either. Marc was traded for his brother and Zach Randolph was a free agent singing.

My point being the NBA is not a league where I believe the model of only building though the draft works. Veteran teams win championships. PERIOD. The last 21 NBA champions have all been veteran teams.

Not to mention just because you build through the draft especially in this day in age doesn't mean you can retain the studs you drafted. For every Durant that stays there are 20 Lebrons that leave.

Finally If you are going to build though the draft. The Wizards need to draft better. I am fine with them drafting Booker but, he is too short to play power forward. He is listed at 6'8 but in reality is more like 6'7 or 6'6. It was never more evident when Tyson Chandler dunked on Booker having at least 6 inches on Booker. He really needs to slim down more and play small forward. Wait but then you would have a log jam at Small Forward with Vesely and Singleton. Kevin Seraphin is not very good and I dont see him getting much better. For a 17th overall pick he probably turns into a poor mans Anderson Varejao at best.

Ted does not understand basketball. Building though the draft works in a sport like hockey because just like baseball their are true minor leagues and teams have "farm systems." Teams can groom their players and wait for their development. The D-league is not a true minor league because not every team has its own d- league team. Not the mention the competition in the D-league rivals top level basketball at your local YMCA. In the world today of AAU basketball and 1 and done players coming out of college fundamentals and basketball IQ seems to be missing from the majority of today's pro players. A true minor league would be great for so many players who leave early just to get a payday and aren't ready to play.

I will prove to you just how much the OKC model is a lot of luck and how they are moving away from building though the draft. People want to talk about Memphis building through the draft. They really haven't and I will prove this all to you after the jump

This represents the view of the user who wrote the FanPost, and not the entire Bullets Forever community. We're a place of many opinions, not just one.