Themes of the 2009 NBA Draft: Upside, Steal and Traded

(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

To try and follow the 2009 NBA Draft, you really needed a chart and maybe a map. Especially if you gutted it out through the second round.

Through the first ten picks, there was very few surprises. Sure, the Wolves were calling upon the spirit of Kevin McHale and selected two point guards in back-to-back picks at Nos. 5 and 6 (Rubio and Johnny Flynn) but you really didn't hit a surprise pick until No. 13 when the Pacers snagged Tyler Hansbrough. Even that wasn't a huge stretch.

But sitting there and listening to the likes of Stuart Scott, Jeff Van Gundy, Marc Jackson. and Jay Bilas talk about these first round picks sounded close to repetitive, with "upside" being the word of the round.

"What do you think Jay?"

"Well, I like this pick. I think {insert name} has the athletic ability and the skills to be a great player someday. There is a lot of upside to taking this guy and while he may not make a huge impact this year, he is someone who, if he can develop {insert skill}, should be a good player in this league for years to come."

I swear, Bilas could have been reading off the same script for every player.

I mean, I understand that it is the NBA draft and few players ever come into the league "star ready" but with the exception of a few players (Griffin, Curry and Hansbrough), every single player has upside but needs to figure out one major facet of the game.

• Haseem Thabeet: Upside, if only he can develop an inside offensive game.
• Tyreke Evans: Upside, if only he can develop an outside shot.
• DeMar DeRozen: Upside, if only he can get bigger and stronger.
  
• Brandon Jenning: Upside, if only he can develop a consistent jumper.
• Terrance Williams: Upside, if only he can focus enough to bring the effort every night.
• Austin Daye: Upside, if only he can gain muscle and develop a "killer instinct."
• Jrue Holiday: Upside, if he can be more consistent and a better decision maker
  
• Jeff Teague: Upside, if only he can make the effort to improve his man to man defense.

...Getting the picture?

And I know this draft was supposed to be weaker than most, but come on. Couldn't at least the brilliant writers for ESPN could have busted out a thesaurus and looked up more words to use other than upside and potential? Humor me here. I mean I tuned in for like five hours of Stuart Scott. I think I deserved a little bit more.

Finally, around the end of the first round and throughout the second, Bilas showed he had two cue cards to read off of and suddenly every player taken became a "steal."

Wayne Ellington, Jermaine Taylor, DaJuan Summers, DaJuan Blair, Sam Young, and Chase Budinger all apparently should have been taken well before they were. Ellington earlier in the first and the rest in the first round period.

It was weird in the sense that a lot of teams were drafting on potential than actual proven abilities, but I suppose that is why they are GM's and I am security guard.

And finally the number of trades involving picks was amazing. There was like a total of 11 (rough count) and that didn't include the Shaq, Vince Carter, or Richard Jefferson. But surprisingly none of these trades happened until the Wolves traded the third point guard they selected at No. 18, Ty Lawson to the Nuggets.

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