2004 NBA Draft Analysis: Picks 1-10

Orlando Magic

Picks involved in: (1) Drafted Dwight Howard. (20) Traded their #20 pick in 2005 (Julius Hodge) to Denver for the rights to Jameer Nelson. (30) Drafted Anderson Varejao, then traded the rights to Varejao, Drew Gooden, and Steven Hunter to Cleveland for Tony Battie, the #44 pick in 2005 (Martynas Andriuskevicius), and the #54 pick in 2007. (36) Phoenix traded this pick to Orlando for Donnell Harvey. Orlando then drafted Antonio Burks and sold his rights to Memphis for cash.

Players received: Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Tony Battie, Martynas Andriuskevicius, #54 pick in 2007
Players lost: Julius Hodge, Anderson Varejao, Drew Gooden, Steven Hunter, Donnell Harvey, Antonio Burks

Review

Though he's ragged on defense and raw on offense, Howard is a rebounding monster who can score and block shots.  With the competent Stan Van Gundy replacing the inept Brian Hill, Howard's offensive arsenal and basketball IQ should blossom.

Jameer Nelson is a tweener: not quite a point guard, not quite a two-guard. He's probably best suited to be the third guard in a rotation. Still, he's a decent point-maker, especially against opponents' backups...and he's much better than Julius Hodge, who has been plagued by injuries and bad luck in his brief NBA career.

The Varejao trade was an awful one. Battie is a respectable backup, but Andriuskevicius is no longer on the team, and #54 picks don t generally last in the NBA. Gooden has developed into a poor defender and decision-maker, but is a decent scorer from the high post and will battle on the boards. When the refs are letting Varejao flop and hack, he's one of the better defenders in the league, and his energy and rebounding are exceptional. Steven Hunter is a blocks-per-minute machine.

The Antonio Burks trade opened up a roster spot and some cap room for the team.

Orlando was one of the most active teams in the draft. Dwight Howard is the best player in the class, and I have Jameer Nelson pegged as the second-best point guard.  Clearing up roster space and cap room instead of being tied to a scrub (Burks) was also a nice play. The Varejao trade, though, was every bit as bad as the Nelson trade was good.

Grade: B

Charlotte Bobcats

(2) Traded their #4 pick (Shaun Livingston) and #33 pick (Lionel Chalmers) to the L.A. Clippers for the #2 pick (Emeka Okafor). Charlotte also agreed to select Predrag Drobnjak from the Clippers in the Expansion Draft. (45) Milwaukee traded the #45 pick (Bernard Robinson) to Charlotte for Zaza Pachulia.

Players received: Emeka Okafor, Predrag Drobnjak, Bernard Robinson
Players lost: Shaun Livingston, Lionel Chalmers, Zaza Pachulia

Review

Drobnjak and Chalmers have had inconsequential careers. Zaza Pachulia is a decent backup center, while Robinson still hasn't found a niche in the NBA.

The big move was essentially deciding on Okafor over Livingston. While both have suffered injuries, only Livingston s is career-threatening. Even when Livingston was healthy, he never seemed to grasp the nuances of the NBA point guard position. Okafor, however, has shown the ability to be one of the best defensive centers in the league. His raw offensive game has also improved, as he now shoots over 50 percent from the field.

If not for Howard, Okafor would easily be the best player in the draft. That gets the Bobcats an A.

Grade: A

Chicago Bulls

(3) Drafted Ben Gordon. (7) Phoenix traded the #7 pick (Luol Deng) to Chicago for the #31 pick (Jackson Vroman), cash, and a future pick. (38) Toronto traded the #38 pick to Chicago in 2003 for the rights to Matt Bonner. Chicago drafted Chris Duhon with the #38 pick.

Players received: Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, Chris Duhon
Players lost: Jackson Vroman, Matt Bonner

Review

Easily the most successful team in the draft. Ben Gordon and Luol Deng are the third- and fourth-best players in the class. In tandem, they're among the most dynamic wing combinations in the NBA. Matt Bonner is a useful shooter and a fan favorite wherever he goes, but Chris Duhon is one of the better backup point guards in the league. Chicago got the better end of that deal and more or less built the core of their team with the '04 Draft.

Grade: A+

Los Angeles Clippers

(4) Traded the #2 pick (Emeka Okafor) to Charlotte for the #4 pick (Shaun Livingston) and the #33 pick (Lionel Chalmers). Stipulated that Charlotte select Predrag Drobnjak in the expansion draft. (35) Traded the #35 pick (Andre Emmett) to Seattle for Predrag Drobnjak.

Players received: Shaun Livingston, Lionel Chalmers
Players lost: Emeka Okafor, Andre Emmett, Predrag Drobnjak

Review

The Okafor trade looks much worse in hindsight than it did at the time. The Clippers figured that they didn't have room for another big man with Elton Brand, Chris Kaman, and Chris Wilcox already on the roster...and thought they were getting their point guard of the future in Livingston.

Unfortunately, Kaman is unreliable, and the disappointing Wilcox is gone. Livingston, meanwhile, never developed his offensive IQ to a point that would let him pass Sam Cassell on the depth chart. After his gruesome knee injury, he may never regain the speed and agility that many thought would make him a superstar.

Grade: C-

  

Washington Wizards

(5) Drafted Devin Harris. Then traded the rights to Harris, Christian Laettner, and Jerry Stackhouse to Dallas for Antawn Jamison. (32) Drafted Peter John Ramos.

 

 

Players Received: Antawn Jamison, Peter John Ramos
Players Lost: Devin Harris, Christian Laettner, Jerry Stackhouse

Review

The Jamison trade was one of those rare deals that benefit both parties. Despite being all finesse and no defense, Jamison is one of the more explosive scoring forwards in the NBA. Washington had Gilbert Arenas and Larry Hughes in the backcourt, and needed frontcourt scoring punch more than a speedy distributor and an aging, expensive wing scorer.

If the trade hadn't been made, Stackhouse would have spent most of his time on the bench in Washington. The Wizards also figured that Harris wouldn't be strong or consistent enough to be a defensive presence, so they shipped him out and signed Antonio Daniels the following offseason.

Grade: A

Atlanta Hawks

(6) Drafted Josh Childress. (17) Received the #17 pick from Milwaukee (Josh Smith), received Bobby Sura and Zeljko Rebraca from Detroit and Chris Mills from Boston, and sent Rasheed Wallace to Detroit. (34) Drafted Donta Smith. (37) Drafted Royal Ivey. (42) Drafted Viktor Sanikidze.

Players received: Josh Childress, Josh Smith, Bobby Sura, Zeljko Rebraca, Chris Mills, Donta Smith, Royal Ivey, Viktor Sanikidze.
Players lost: Rasheed Wallace

Review

The scrubby players in the Rasheed Wallace deal were simply contract dumps needed to clear space for Joe Johnson. Getting Josh Smith for Wallace isn't a terrible trade. Smith has freakishly long arms and an incredible vertical but his offensive game (to say nothing of his immature ego) is nowhere near as polished as his defensive skills.

Josh Childress is one of the more enigmatic players in the league. He's gifted athletically, but what is his role on a team? As it stands, he's not dynamic enough to be a premier scorer, not intelligent enough to be a premier distributor, and not disciplined enough to be a lock-down defender.

When he finds his niche, he'll be able to maximize his potential.

Chris Duhon is a better player than Royal Ivey, but Ivey has been able to stick around and Duhon has gotten in trouble with Scott Skiles a few times in his career. Immaturity is never something you want on a young team.

Grade: B

Phoenix Suns

(7) Traded this pick (Luol Deng) to Chicago for the #31 pick (Jackson Vroman), cash, and a future pick. (16) New York traded the #16 pick, along with Antonio McDyess, Charlie Ward, Howard Eisley, Maciej Lampe, Milos Vujanic, and a future first-round pick to Phoenix for Stephon Marbury, Penny Hardaway, and Cezary Trybanski. Phoenix then traded the #16 pick (Kirk Snyder), Tom Gugliotta, and a future first-round pick to Utah for Keon Clark, Ben Handlogten, and cash. (36) Traded #36 pick (Antonio Burks) to Orlando for Donell Harvey.

Players received: Jackson Vroman, Antonio McDyess, Charlie Ward, Howard Eisley, Maciej Lampe, Milos Vujanic, Keon Clark, Ben Handlogten, Donnell Harvey
Players lost: Luol Deng, Stephon Marbury, Penny Hardaway, Cezary Trybanski, Kirk Snyder, Tom Gugliotta, Antonio Burks

Review

Forget about all the players gained in the Knicks trade—none of them played for Phoenix after 2005. Forget about Vroman, Clark, Handlogten, and Harvey—they were just bodies. Forget about the discarded picks even Luol Deng.

For Phoenix, the entire 2004 season, including the draft, was all about clearing cap and roster space for Steve Nash.

As the Suns have taken off with Nash at the helm—and as it's unlikely that Deng's game would mesh with Phoenix's run-and-gun pace—the draft gets an A.

Grade: A

Toronto Raptors

(8) Drafted Rafael Araujo. (38) Traded the #38 pick (Chris Duhon) to the Bulls in 2003 for the rights to Matt Bonner. (39) Drafted Albert Miralles. Then traded the rights to Miralles to Miami for the rights to Pape Sow and the #58 pick in 2005 (Uros Slokar).

Players received: Rafael Araujo, Matt Bonner, Pape Sow, Uros Slokar
Players lost: Chris Duhon, Albert Miralles

Review

Chris Duhon is a better player than Matt Bonner, and Toronto flat out blew their pick on Araujo. He was a bust, so they shipped him to Utah—where he's languishing behind Jarron Collins on the depth chart.

Considering Toronto could have picked up Andre Iguodala, there's no way to give the Raptors any grade but an F.

Grade: F

Philadelphia 76ers

(9) Drafted Andre Iguodala.

Review

A simple draft for Philly—and an effective one.

With Allen Iverson out and Andre Miller in, Iguodala blossomed late last year for the Sixers. The other A.I. can run the floor, finish with power, and assault lazy dribbles for steals—and has become a smart enough passer to average almost six assists a game.

Iguodala has a chance to be a superstar, and the Sixers couldn't have done any better at number nine.

Grade: A

Cleveland Cavaliers

(10) Drafted Luke Jackson. (30) Traded Tony Battie, the #44 pick in 2005 (Martynas Andriuskevicius), and the #54 pick in 2007, for the rights to Anderson Varejao, Drew Gooden, and Steven Hunter.

Players received: Luke Jackson, Anderson Varejao, Drew Gooden, Steven Hunter
Players lost: Tony Battie, Martynas Andriuskevicius, #54 pick in 2007

Review

Cleveland stole the two power forwards who helped them reach the 2007 Finals.

While both Varejao and Gooden are flawed, each is a relentless rebounder. Gooden is a poor defensive player who can hit jumpers out to 20 feet and has good face-up and turnaround skills. Varejao is limited offensively but is one of the better post defenders in the league, and plays with all-out intensity.

Both players are better than Tony Battie.

Aside from a random 30-point, five-assist, four-rebound performance for Toronto in their last regular season game in 2007, Luke Jackson has been a complete nobody in the league.

Grade: B

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