It's a foregone conclusion that the Washington Wizards will select John Wall with the first overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft, but that doesn't mean that all is lost for those teams that missed out on the top spot. The top 5 players likely to be drafted all have star potential, and there is enough depth in the draft that others should at least be able to find solid contributors.
Here is a look at what some of the other teams with top picks may select.
Philadelphia: The Sixers will have a much tougher choice than most teams would have had picking second. Evan Turner is considered to be the best prospect after Wall, but he fits a role already filled by their best player, Andre Iguodala. They are both versatile players that can guard multiple positions. Turner would be a younger and cheaper option, which could make Iguodala expendable. He's overpaid, but still a good player. It would be nearly impossible to pawn off Elton Brand's cap clogging contract, but there would be teams in line to get Iggy. It's also possible that the two could play together, but more likely that the Sixers either shop Iguodala or trade down in the draft. A team like Minnesota would love to have Turner. If the Sixers are targeting another player they feel they could get with the number four pick then the teams may consider swapping picks in exchange for the Sixers also taking back one of the Timberwolves other first round picks (16th or 23rd overall).
New Jersey: New owner Mikhail Prokhorov must be disappointed with falling to the 3rd pick after his team nearly set a league record for most losses in a season. They had the best chance at getting the top pick (25% chance) but mathematically they actually had a better chance of getting the 4th pick than they did at getting the first pick. So looking at it that way... it could have been worse. It's still not good though. While they will still be able to get a good player in this spot, by not getting John Wall they likely have lost any chance of luring Lebron James to NJ. The move to Brooklyn is still two years away, so the best thing they had going for them was the hope of getting Wall to entice Lebron, or another top free agent, to join Brook Lopez to build what could have been a strong young core. Instead they will have to settle for someone like Derrick Favors. He's a talented big man that would be a nice fit next to Lopez. He probably won't be enough of a selling point to draw one of the top free agents, but if they could add someone like Rudy Gay with their cap space then they'd be a much improved team.
Minnesota: Here's the good news - we don't need to worry about if David Khan would draft John Wall. After taking Ricky Rubio (who played in Europe and may never come to Minnesota) and Johnny Flynn (the top three Rookie of the Year candidates were all PGs... Flynn was not one of them) in last year's draft the last thing we need is for them to be drafting another one. It reminds me of the Detroit Lions last decade when they kept drafting Wide Receivers with their first round draft picks. We know how well that worked out. There are some good big men available, but that doesn't fill a need unless they can trade Al Jefferson or Kevin Love. Those two have shown with their lack of defense that they can't be effective together, and Love is too talented to bring off the bench again like they did at the end of last season. If they can get good value for either of them then they may pull the trigger, which could lead to them taking a big man in this spot. Otherwise, a small forward like Wesley Johnson fills more of a need. He may not be the most talented player available at this spot, but he may be the best fit for this team's needs. You never know what will happen with the way they draft though. Once Wall comes off the board they may panic and reach for Eric Bledsoe.
Sacramento: DeMarcus Cousins may be the most talented player in the draft, but teams may shy away from him due to his reputation for having a poor attitude. He may not be Ron Artest level crazy, or even Delonte West crazy (what, too soon?) but he may be on par with Rasheed Wallace. That has thrown up some red flags for some teams. With his talent though, it's hard to see him falling out of the top 5. If he drops this far then I think the Kings will have to take him, and then cross their fingers and hope he doesn't destroy them.
It's likely Washington picks Wall, but I don't think it's a foregone conclusion. Turner is a better fit if there's any chance that Arenas is in their long-term plans (and he's, of course, number one with a bullet). The steal of this draft (from the point of view of five years from now) is going to be Favors. With a year or two of NBA experience he could be a dominant force in the middle.
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