[Izulde]

One thing worth noting: Kevin Moore, Andre Moore's little brother, is in this draft class. Andre went to Wake Forest, Kevin to Notre Dame. He's projected to go #27 to the Hawks, which would be a real steal for Atlanta in my opinion. Michael Frey, a year younger than his brother Terrance Frey, a 2nd round pick last year and All-Rookie 2nd Team member with the Heat, is in the class. Terrance attended Oklahoma, Michael Nebraska. The younger Frey is picked #12 to Minnesota in most drafts. Honestly, Michael doesn't strike me as being much better than his brother at first glance and I think 12th overall is just asking for a bust pick.

After reviewing the draft workouts, there's one player we just have to have and there's a chance he could go 1st overall, but the Supersonics refuse to even consider dealing out of the spot, and so we wait with baited breath.

2024 NBA Draft 1st Round
1. SG Vladimir Tupolev - Seattle Supersonics

And off the board he goes. Although the pick's slammed by the analysts, everything about him says franchise type player and I'm not wholly sold on Justin Cherry, given how he flamed out for much of the season after his hot start.

2. SG David Johnson - Indiana Pacers

Johnson had a lukewarm workout, so I wouldn't have taken him even if he'd been available at #3. Chris mentions that he'd heard reports of other bad workouts as well, while J.P. calls Johnson a steal and a turnover machine in the same breath. Typical stupid talking head commentary.

But what J.P. does have right is his remark that he'd heard conflicting reports from sources within our organization, with some saying we'll take the predicted Marcus Reeves, others Tyrone Capel. He also says our trading the pick is a possibility.

Our initial plan was to take Capel, but the more I look at him, the more he looks like a Paulinho Buboltz clone and I'm not a fan of scoring point guards. He also seems like a development project and is famous for being lazy. Reeves graded out well in the workouts, but the coaching staff seems lukewarm on his ceiling and his fit for our team.

I hit the phones, but nobody's offering anything worth talking about and while the Supersonics seem open about a trade for Tupolev, our head of international scouting informs me that the Russian doesn't care who he plays for at all.

I'm trying to listen to my gut instincts about what to do here, but everything's cobbling all together. It's boiling down to a series of questions.

1. Am I comfortable with Waldemar Althusser as the starting PG next year?
2. Do I think Justin Cherry can be the next Mateen Yeaton?
3. Is there a C or PG truly worth trading for that doesn't involve imploding our team?

#1. Not Really. He's just not a scoring threat and he can't play defense much at all.
#2. Maybe. It's hard to get a read on him yet.
#3. There's players worth trading for, yes. But matching salary is a real problem unless I'm willing to part with Tim Butler, which would make sense logically. We don't play as well with Timmy B in as we do with him out. On the other hand, who becomes our future team captain then? And he showed incredible improvement last year in the postseason, so that's not an option. Dealing Andy Sola is a possibility, but the Charlotte Bobcats aren't willing to take the #5 pick and Sola for PG Caleb James and there's no Cs worth acquiring in that price range.

Putting that all together, the choice is clear.

3. PG Tyrone Capel - Denver Nuggets

After all, Sonny Boxler got tagged with a low work ethic and he turned out just fine in Portland.

It's a split decision, with J.P. iffy on the selection, Chris praising it.

4. C Luke Smith - New Orleans Hornets

All the centers graded out with pretty bad workouts, but I was willing to take a flyer on Smith. Unfortunately, he gets taken here and our plans for a new center with the #5 pick just took a huge hit.

The moderator asks J.P. who I said we'll take, as that smarmy bastard was oozing his way around here earlier in the week. J.P. answers that I was extremely tight-lipped, but he's holding to our taking Reeves. I'm not going to deny it as a possibility, but at 6'5, 195 lbs, the Arizona product is more of a 2 than a 3 and he'd take away development time from Cherry.

On the other hand, if I broker a deal to trade away the #5 pick, maybe I can free up enough money to be able to go out and get a new starting C in free agency. The idea appeals to me so much I go shopping again.

But the more I weigh it in my mind, the more I can't be comfortable with trading away Sola, so I flip the #5 pick to the Lakers, who I think will tank again next season.

5. SF Marcus Reeves - Los Angeles Lakers
6. C Ronald Smith - Washington Wizards

Absolutely absurd selection by the Wizards here. Maybe I should've taken their 1st rounder next year instead.

7. SF Dee Dickenman - Indiana Pacers
8. PG Kelley Forbes - Milwaukee Bucks
9. SG Hayletts Dennis - Utah Jazz

Fantastic value pick for Utah here, as I almost thought about keeping the #5 pick and drafting Dennis. It's worth noting that A.J. Dunkley was also a 9th overall Jazz selection. I'm not too happy to see this great drafting by division foes.

10. SF Lamar Hardy - Detroit Pistons
11. SG Carlos Searcy - Houston Rockets

Originally projected as Top 3 pick, but horrid workouts dropped his stock all the way down here. I wouldn't call this a value selection, because he looked awful when we brought him in.

12. C Patrick Weston - Minnesota Timberwolves

So the mocks were right. Too high a selection in my opinion, as I see him more the 20s range, but the T-Wolves apparently liked what they saw in him. We didn't for the 5th overall pick.

13. PG Tony Johnson - Miami Heat

Terrific steal by the Heat here. Johnson's a score-first PG, but at this stage in the draft, he's an excellent acquistion. I could see them going PG Gama/SG Johnson/SF Whoever/PF Vines/C Jackson, which would be a pretty good starting five.

14. C Michael Frey - Philadelphia 76ers

Heh. Chris points out that the Freys are a dedicated family, with two brothers who've made the NBA and both earned their degrees before moving to the pros. That doesn't stop J.P. from wigging out, though and the mention of Frey's family reminds me of a certain Teddy Ginn, Jr, or, as I call him after his botched butterfingers during the 2008 Dolphins/Ravens wildcard game, Fumbleass Ginn, Jr. Either way, it's a pick Philly's gonna regret.

15. PG Brian Floyd - Golden State Warriors
16. PG Kevin Moore - Los Angeles Lakers

He didn't have a very good workout and I think this is a little high for him. Not a terrible pick by the Purple and Gold though, especially with the Moore blood in his veins.

17. SG Tyreck Huge - Memphis Grizzlies
18. PG Lawrence Townes - Cleveland Cavaliers

Smart move by the Cavs here. They need a legit PG and Townes was the best of the remaining players. Not saying he'll step in and start, but anything's better than a second year of Wendel King running the offense.

19. SG Jason Engstrom - Orlando Magic
20. SF Chauncey Harris - New York Knicks
21. PG Tom Hayes - Phoenix Suns
22. PG Joe Gordon - Dallas Mavericks

Desparation pick by the Mavs here. They need a true PG, but Gordon doesn't strike me as good enough to crack the lineup. They'd have been better off scouring free agency.

23. SF Travann Patterson - Los Angeles Clippers
24. SF Nick Simmons - Charlotte Bobcats
25. SF Travis Hart - Sacramento Kings
26. PF Dermek Mociler - Miami Heat

I'm not sure what happened to the Heat front office, but they've suddenly put together a nice plan and are drafting well and will be an intriguing team to watch next year.

27. PF Matt Mitchell - Atlanta Hawks
28. PG Damien Ohl - Utah Jazz
29. PG Henry Dupree - Portland Trailblazers

J.P. almost has a heart attack after this pick, shouting that it's the worst pick he's seen in all his years of covering the draft. I'll have to see what my scouts say afterwards.

30. SF Chris Wright - Chicago Bulls

The first post-draft report on Tyrone Capel is somewhat discouraging. Balanced offensive game, good rebounder for a guard and fairly intelligent, but he doesn't look like an electrifying passer and Waldemar Althusser is, preposterously enough, a better defender. Making matters worse, Luke Smith is raw, but talentwise I think he can be Patrick Riley 2.0, only with a more consistent game. On the other hand, he's a moron on the basketball court and he's so undeveloped, he'd have a hard time cracking our rotation.

We're $6 million over the cap, so we've got a small amount of money to play with to pick up a starting C in free agency... Very small.

Make that $3.6 million over the cap, after we renounce our contracts. Suddenly we've got enough money to offer somebody a mid-level exemption. Even at $5.5 million, we still skate in at $9.1 million under the cap, which is a $700,000 decrease from last year. Hopefully that'll be enough.

Summer League
PG Tyrone Capel
SG Joem Layne
SG Justin Cherry
SG Eric Bass

We beat Dallas 96-83 to open summer league play, but it's a little worrying when our best performers are invitees Damien Yarborough with 15 points and 12 rebounds and Jerry Murphy with 14 bench points.

Justin Cherry wakes up for 20 points in our 106-100 loss to Golden State, benchmen Eric Bass and Darren Davis putting in 13 and 10 points a piece, but it's not enough. Tyrone Capel's scored 14 and 19 points the first two games, so it appears he has some scoring chops.

Despite our 92-85 loss to Golden State, Tyrone Capel is POTG with 15 points, 11 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. Good to see that out of him. Eric Bass scores 10 off the bench and Jerry Murphy nabs 12 reserve rebounds.

We guarantee our first ever losing summer league with a 103-83 blowout defeat at the hands of the Bulls, Darren Davis and Jerry Murphy combining for 15 and 12 bench points as our only highlights. I'm not terribly concerned with our record, because we have no post players to speak of.

A 93-81 win over the Celtics to end the summer season gives a bit of cheering news, Tyrone Capel just missing a double-double with 16 points and 9 assists, Mario Catlett scoring 10 off the bench. It's worth noting that Capel has no turnovers in this game and in the Golden State game, he had just one turnover to his 11 assists.

Free Agency
Weak class this year. Jon Ward is the best young player, though there's a couple great greybeards in Kelvin Moody and Chris Gearheart. Second tier sub-30 free agents include Terry Vinson, Charles Arnold and Patrick Riley. Over 30 notables include Georghios Kairis and Greg Oden, who is without a doubt the best center in this outfit even at 36. Sad group.

I'm pleased to see Kelvin Moody re-sign with the Timberwolves on a 1 year, $11.6 million deal. I like to see career-long players with one team, so that makes me happy.

Philadelphia makes a splash by signing Charles Arnold to a 5 year, $54 mill and change deal on the same day that Greg Oden accepts $8.5 mill. for one year to go back to the Raptors.

So basically, we're screwed in terms of getting a decent C in free agency. I recover by bringing Carlton Goree back to Denver on a 5 year mid-level exemption, $5.5 million a year.

Charlotte falls in love with Brooks Smith's offense, ignoring the fact that he can't play defense worth a damn and is 36 years old, as they ink him to a 5 year $32 million contract. Our old pal Rico Wolfe gets a 2 year min-sal deal from the Clippers, chasing another championship.

Just before training camp, I pull off a trade that improves our C situation significantly.

Denver Nuggets receive
C Marcus McKie
Minnesota Timberwolves 2026 1st round pick

Minnesota Timberwolves receive
PG Waldemar Althusser
San Antonio Spurs 2026 1st round pick

What this means for the Nuggets
The 24 year old McKie will challenge Andrew Bynum for the starting C spot. Still in the process of development, he has a good inside shot and is a respectable rebounder, passer and defender. At the very least, he'll be the 6th man if he doesn't manage to win the starting spot. He also provides Denver a possible heir to the 38 year old Bynum.

What this means for the Timberwolves
They've now got a security blanket passing wizard on the bench in the German Althusser, a wizard with the ball. Won't score a ton or play great defense, but he's the kind of reserve guard every coach dreams of.

Winner: Denver
Carlton Goree came back via free agency, making Althusser expendable. McKie fills Denver's most glaring hole and while he's no giant at 6'10, 265 lbs, he's big enough to hold his own against most centers in the league.

We push up to $9.65 million over the cap with the trade, but it's still $150,000 less than last season. That probably won't be enough for our anal owner, but every little bit helps.

Training Camp

Tyrone Capel improves a little during training camp, but he appears to have no upside to speak of. Mateen Yeaton is looking slower, but I think even at 36, he can still bring it. Tim Butler had a great camp and I'm expecting big things from Timmy B this year. Justin Cherry looked a little better, but Carlton Goree really worked on his game to beat our second year player out for top guard off the bench.

The preseason press has us pegged for 12th in the West, 3rd in the division behind Utah (#5) and Portland (#9). While I believe the Traiblazers are going to take a step back without Charles Arnold around anymore, to say they'll plummet that far is ridiculous.

The Clippers are the pick in the West, which I can see. The Rockets at #2 I call shenanigans on, only because Chris Driver is nobody's idea of a legitimate starting C. Dallas will still win the division and they're probably correctly tabbed as the #3 seed behind the Clippers and I'm not sure who else.

Chicago's picked to repeat as the East's top seed, though I have my doubts about Antonio Sarchet at C and what the hell is Andre Moore doing on the bench? Funniest prediction ever: The Pacers as the #2 seed. If that happens, I'm expecting a hot blonde teen cheerleader in my office the minute the playoff seedings are released. The Wizards at #4 is almost as funny. I can see Charlotte as the #3 seed and winning the Southeast after adding Brooks Smith, though I think he'll hurt more than help. My guess says Toronto and the Knicks will be the class of the East, with the Nets a darkhorse.

Denver Nuggets 2024 Opening Night Lineup
PG Tyrone Capel
SG Mateen Yeaton
SF Andy Sola
PF Tim Butler
C Andrew Bynum
6th Marcus McKie (PF/C)
7th Clifton Snyder (SF/PF/C)
8th Carlton Goree (PG/SG)
9th Justin Cherry (PG/SG/SF)
10th Darrell James (PG/SG)
11th Tzvetan Kishishev (SF/PF/C)
12th Joem Layne (SF/PF)

Inactive
Eric Bass (SG/SF)