Draft Day 2009

Can we also touch on me calling in sick today and my boss not believing it at all? I say "I think I came down with a stomach bug, don't think I'll be able to make it in today." "Silence" "Uhh, I guess I'll see you on Monday?" "You work Sunday" "OK, I'll see you Sunday then I guess?" Click.
Anyway, a couple just guesses on the draft tonight:
Jordan Hill shouldn't be a top-10 pick, he's terrible. Can't believe he's supposedly a lock to do so, I'd like to say I think NBA GMs will prove their worth and we'll see him fall, but I can't claim total confidence there. Injury and height concerns considered, I'd still take Dejuan Blair before Jordan Hill and it's not even close. I'd also take Tyler Hansbrough before Hill (though Blair first). Honestly I like Taj Gibson more than Hill...and Pendergraph, Adrien and Brockman are all equally as intriguing to me.

Will Rubio slide? Such a tough thing to figure, he's just 18, has been playing professionally since 14, has a decent sized-buyout (though he believes he can come up with a good chunk of it) ...can't really shoot yet and athletically isn't all-world. He also supposedly got outplayed by Jennings in their only meeting in Europe...doubtful he gets past the T'Wolves and Sac-Town probably would jump all over him at 4 if he made it there...but it's not completely inconceivable that NBA Execs decide the buyout and risk of a young PG isn't worth it...especially in a draft loaded with PGs. That said, I think it's unlikely and would be a regretful decision.

Francesa said he hears the Knicks love Tyreke Evans but doubt he'll be there, also like Curry a lot but he supposedly won't be there (apparently Steph's workout with the Knicks was all-world and he was draining every three from anywhere)...Francesa then had some very disheartening information that the pecking order then went Jordan Hill, Gerald Henderson. Personally I'm going to make a prediction that the Knicks pull yet another surprising pick and take Ty Lawson. I just have a gut feeling that everything the Knicks have said to date is a big smokescreen and if Rubio and Curry are off the board I think the best option to run a D'Antoni offense is Ty Lawson. A prolific, ultra-efficient college point guard, Lawson gets the ball up the floor as fast as anyone I've ever seen...He's not real tall, but neither is J-Flynn and while he isn't the athlete Flynn is his speed and ability to prevent turnovers while scoring efficiently makes him a strong fit, I think the only thing potentially holding the Knicks back from this would be if they don't think Lawson's 3-point shooting in college will transfer to the pros.

J-Flynn slides: Sorry, I just see it happening. All this talk that he may go as high as four and such. As much as I like Flynn, it's hard to really argue him as having played better than about any of the other PGs talked about. At 5-11, not being a great shooter, his athleticism and passing ability should save him from sliding too far, but I think the top-10 will be Flynn-less.

Brandon Jennings: Where will he go? No clue.

Nick Calathes may be the best PG in the draft for the record.

Honestly I was going to pick 5 guys I thought would be drafted higher than expected and 5 I thought would go lower, but this draft is such a crap shoot, here's a stab at it for the hell of it, with where I'm seeing them often drafted in parenthesis:

Higher:
Ty Lawson (15-17)
Dejuan Blair (15-19)
BJ Mullens (15)

Lower:
J-Flynn (6-9)
Budinger (18-22)
James Johnson (9-11) - Could he be one of those that slip all the way out of the 1st round?

I have a bit of an opinion on a bunch of other guys but most of which are placed at such different spots in various mock drafts that it's hard to really say where they are expected to go. Something tells me we'll probably see more international players drafted earlier than most mock drafts are projecting, and a couple of the guys like Derozan, Holliday, Teague, Maynor, Jennings and Henderson will find themselves waiting a lot longer than anticipated.

Final Note - I think Curtis Jerells goes way higher than anticipated and finds himself in round 1, unexpected by all the analysts as they call him a major reach. Of course many mock drafts have him undrafted so I may just be crazy.