A Trip Back In Time: A Comprehensive Breakdown The 2006 NBA Draft

Minnesota Timberwolves

(6) Drafted Brandon Roy then traded him to Portland for the rights to No. 7 pick Randy Foye. (36) Boston traded Ricky Davis, Marcus Banks, Mark Blount, Justin Reed, the pick and the No. 31 pick in 2008 (Nikola Pekovic) to Minnesota for Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones, and a future first round pick.

Then drafted Craig Smith. (37) Drafted Bobby Jones, then traded him to Philadelphia for the No. 41 pick in 2007 (Chris Richard). (57) Traded Nikoloz Tskitishvilli to Phoenix for the pick. Then drafted Loukas Mavrokefaladis.

Players Received: Randy Foye, Ricky Davis, Marcus Banks, Mark Blount, Justin Reed, Nikola Pekovic, Craig Smith, Chris Richard, Loukas Mavrokefaladis

Players Lost: Brandon Roy, Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones, Bobby Jones, Nikoloz Tskitishvilli

Review: Trading Brandon Roy for Randy Foye is an all-time blunder. There are reasons why Portland is a blossoming contender and Minnesota is a doormat, and most of them stem from that decision.

None of the players acquired in the Wally Szczerbiak deal had the talent to overrule their poor team-basketball skills, though it did absolve Minnesota of their awful decision to pay Szczerbiak a $63 million dollar contract a few seasons prior.

Craig Smith is a hard worker and Chris Richard is a run-of-the-mill banger, but unless they were Gilbert Arenas and Carlos Boozer, they wouldn’t make up for the mistake of giving away Brandon Roy.

Grade: F

Boston Celtics

(7) Drafted Randy Foye, then traded him, Dan Dickau, and Raef LaFrentz to Portland for Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, and the No. 46 pick in 2008 (Trent Plaisted). (21) Phoenix drafted Rajon Rondo then traded him and Brian Grant for the No. 27 pick in 2007 (Rudy Fernandez). (36) Traded the pick (Craig Smith), the No. 31 pick in 2008 (Nikola Pekovic), Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, and Justin Reed to Minnesota for Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones, and a future pick.

(49) Traded the No. 49 pick in 2007 (pick wound up in Chicago as Aaron Gray) to Denver for the rights to No. 49 pick Leon Powe. (56) Acquired the pick, the No. 31 pick in 2008 (Nikola Pekovic), Qyntel Woods, and Albert Mirales from Miami for Antoine Walker. Boston also received Curtis Borchardt from Utah. Boston traded the No. 56 pick to New Orleans for Dan Dickau. The pick wound up in Toronto where the Raptors selected Edin Bavcic.

Players Received: Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, Trent Plaisted, Rajon Rondo, Brian Grant, Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones, Leon Powe, Qyntel Woods, Albert Mirales, Curtis Borchardt

Players Lost: Randy Foye, Raef LaFrentz, Rudy Fernandez, Craig Smith, Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, Justin Reed, Aaron Gray, Antoine Walker

Review: They solved their point guard situation by trading for Rajon Rondo, who is already an elite point guard after three seasons. They also dumped a load of poor character guys onto Minnesota for a trade chip in Wally Szczerbiak, disposed themselves of Antoine Walker’s underwhelming game, and stole Leon Powe from the Nuggets.

A very productive draft in terms of acquiring pieces that made their 2007-2008 title run possible.

Grade: A

Houston Rockets

(8) Drafted Rudy Gay then traded him and Stromile Swift to Memphis for Shane Battier. (32) Drafted Steve Novak. (44) Orlando drafted Lior Eliyahu then sold him to Houston.

Players Received: Shane Battier, Steve Novak, Lior Eliyahu
Players Lost: Rudy Gay

Review: In acquiring Battier, the Rockets picked up the premier wing defender in the NBA, a clutch shooter, and one of the smartest basketball IQ’s in the entire league. Without Battier, the Rockets wouldn’t have had the defense to survive 13 games with the rugged Jazz, and wouldn’t have had a prayer of accounting for Kobe Bryant in Houston’s second-round series last season.

While Rudy Gay struggles to understand any semblance of team basketball with the moribund Grizzlies, Battier’s helped round the Rockets into contenders and is the perfect example of why pure, raw, talent isn’t the only factor in creating a basketball team.

Steve Novak is a floor-stretching power forward, though Paul Millsap or Leon Power would have been better targets.

Grade: A

Golden State Warriors

(9) Drafted Patrick O’ Bryant (38) Drafted Kosta Perovic.

Review: The Warriors have needed size, but they swung and missed with the lanky, unproductive O’ Bryant, who is now on his third team in three years. As mediocre as Hilton Armstrong has been, he would’ve been the better pick.  Kosta Perovic only lasted seven games for Golden State before they waived him.

An irrelevant draft which has helped berth a now-irrelevant team.

Grade: F

Seattle Supersonics

(10) Drafted Mouhamed Sene. (40) Drafted Denham Brown.

Review: Mouhamed Sene was the third straight project center the Sonics selected in the first round, following Robert Swift and Johan Petro. Considering the Sonics had Swift and Petro on board, why exactly did they select Sene? It wasn’t just a bad pick in hindsight, but a terrible selection at the time. Brown is one of the few Americans in the draft who never played a single game in the NBA.

Even though the Sonics only had two swings, they struck out in the 2006 draft.

Grade: F

Orlando Magic

(11) Drafted J.J. Redick. (41) Drafted James Augustine. (44) Drafted Lior Eliyahu then sold him to Houston..

Players Received: J. J. Redick, James Augustine
Players Lost: Lior Eliyahu

Review: The thought was that J.J. Redick was supposed to provide spacing to stretch the floor opposite Dwight Howard, but Redick’s been a disappointing shooter. James Augustine isn’t strong enough to be a valuable player in the NBA. Paul Millsap and Leon Powe were still available.

Grade: D

New Orleans Hornets

(12) Drafted Hilton Armstrong. (15) Traded Jamal Magloire to Milwaukee for Desmond Mason and the #15 pick. Then drafted Cedric Simmons. (43) Drafted Marcus Vinicius. (56) Boston traded the pick (Edin Bavcic) to New Orleans for Dan Dickau. New Orleans then traded the #56 pick (Edin Bavcic) and a 2009 second-round pick to Toronto for Aaron Williams.

Players Received: Hilton Armstrong, Desmond Mason, Cedric Simmons, Marcus Vinicius, Aaron Williams

Players Lost: Jamal Magloire, Dan Dickau

Review: In a terrible draft for centers, Hilton Armstrong was the best selection at the 12 spot. If nothing else, he’s proven to be a center who’ll block a shot or two, grab a few rebounds, and won’t embarrass himself.

He also allowed the Hornets to trade away Jamaal Magloire for the slashing, posting Desmond Mason. Neither Edin Bavcic, Dan Dickau, nor Aaron Williams would have made a significant impact on the Hornets.

Grade: C+

Philadelphia 76ers

(13) Drafted Thabo Sefolosha then traded him to Chicago for the rights to No. 16 pick Rodney Carney and the 38 pick in 2007 (Kyrylo Fesenko). (37) Traded the No. 41 pick in 2007 (Chris Richard) to Minnesota for the rights to #37 pick Bobby Jones. (42) Traded the pick and Lee Nailon to Cleveland for an unexercised second round pick. Cleveland then drafted Daniel Gibson. (56) Toronto drafted Edin Bavcic and sold him to Philadelphia.

Players Received: Rodney Carney, Kyrylo Fesenko, Bobby Jones, Edin Bavcic

Players Lost: Thabo Sefolosha, Chris Richard, Lee Nailon, Daniel Gibson

Review: Neither Thabo Seflosha nor Carney has developed into above-average NBA players. Ditto for Bobby Jones, Kyrylo Fesenko, Edin Bavcic, and Chris Richard. However, the Sixers did trade Lee Nailon and the draft pick that eventually turned into Daniel Gibson for a conditional pick that went unexercised. Considering how Gibson has carved a niche for himself as a decent defender and shooter, the fact that the Sixers got nothing for him is disappointing.

Grade: D+

Utah Jazz

(14) Drafted Ronnie Brewer. (30) In 2005, traded the pick, the No. 6 pick in 2005 (Martell Webster), and the No. 27 pick in 2005 (Wound up in Denver as Linas Kleiza), and the #30  to Portland for the No. 3 pick in 2005 (Deron Williams). Portland drafted Joel Freeland. (46) Drafted Dee Brown. (47) Drafted Paul Millsap.

Players Received: Ronnie Brewer, Deron Williams, Dee Brown, Paul Millsap

Players Lost: Martell Webster, Linas Kleiza, Joel Freeland

Review: Deron Williams counts in this draft because the Jazz gave up a 2006 first round pick in 2005 to get him. Williams has become one of the top-two point guards in the game, while Joel Freeland has never set foot in the NBA.

Of the actual picks the Jazz used in 2006, Ronnie Brewer has turned into a defensive standout and a hyper-athletic finisher whether on the break or snaking along the baseline. If he ever develops a jump shot, he can become an exceptional player. And to top it off, Paul Millsap was easily the steal of the second round. Even without Williams, the draft would have earned the Jazz an “A.” Taking into account their total draft picture, they managed to do even better.

Grade: A+

Indiana Pacers

(17) Drafted Shawne Williams. (31) Traded the rights to No. 45 pick Alexander Johnson, the No. 42 pick in 2007 (Derrick Byars), and the No. 55 pick in 2008 (Mike Taylor) to Portland for the rights to No. 31 pick James White.

Players Received: Shawne Williams, James White

Players Lost: Derrick Byars, Mike Taylor, Alexander Johnson

Review: Shawne Williams has never developed, but Indiana can’t be killed for the pick because there are no clear cut wings they should’ve taken. Still, considering how unsettled their point guard situation has been since they finally opened their eyes to Jamaal Tinsely’s personal flaws, Rajon Rondo could’ve been taken. None of the second round picks have amounted to anything of substance.

Grade: D+

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