Jay Williams
Mike Dunleavy Jr.
Drew Gooden
Dajuan Wagner
Caron Butler
Curtis Borchardt
Nickoloz Tskitishvili
Nene Hilario
Qyntel Woods
Jared Jeffries
Chris Wilcox
Amare Stoudamire
Kareem Rush
Bostjan Nachbar
Melvin Ely
Marcus Hailslip
Dan Dickau
Jiri Welsch
Frank Williams
Dan Gadzuric
Roger Mason Jr.
Luis Scola
Smush Parker
Jamal Sampson
Casey Jacobsen
TayShaun Prince
Jason Jennings
Chicago Bulls
Golden State Warriors
Memphis Grizzlies
Denver Nuggets
Cleveland Caveliers
New York Knicks
L.A. Clippers
Phoenix Suns
Miami Heat
Washington Wizards
L.A. Clippers
Milwaukee Bucks
Indiana Pacers
Houston Rockets
Philadelphia 76'ers
Washington Wizards
Orlando Magic
Utah Jazz
Toronto Raptors
Portland Trailblazers
Phoenix Suns
Detroit Pistons
New Jersey Nets
Denver Nuggets
San Antonio Spurs
L.A. Lakers
Sacramento Kings
Jay Williams
Mike Dunleavy Jr.
Drew Gooden
Nickoloz Tskitishvili
Dajuan Wagner
Nene Hilario
Chris Wilcox
Amare Stoudemire
Caron Butler
Jared Jeffries
Melvin Ely
Marcus Haislip
Fred Jones
Bostjon Nachbar
Jiri Welsch
Juan Dixon
Curtis Borchardt
Ryan Humphrey
Kareem Rush
Qyntel Woods
Casey Jacobsen
TayShaun Prince
Nenad Kristic
Frank Williams
John Salmons
Chris Jefferies
Dan Dickau
Players I had in the first round but weren�t picked there.
The first player on that list is Gadzuric, who I had at the 21st pick. He actually went to Milwaukee with the 34th pick so that is a difference of 13 places. Apparently the teams weren�t so high on the Dutch center but I still think he is a steal. Roger Mason Jr. is the next. Chicago picked him with the 31st pick, a difference of 9 places. Not really shocking but it is a little bit sad for him. Many people thought the combo guard would be picked in the first round but he just missed a guaranteed contract. Then Luis Scola who was actually picked with the 56th pick (!). That means he was picked 23 places later than I thought. That must have hurt. Smush Parker is next on the list. Parker wasn�t picked at all! Ouch. Jason Jennings, who I had as the last pick in the first round, went to Portland with the 43rd pick, a difference of 15 places. And then there was Jamal Sampson who I thought would just make it to the first round but was picked with the 47th pick instead. That are 6 players who I had in the first round but weren�t picked in the first round. So who took their place?
Juan Dixon, the small sharp shooting guard, went higher than expected. Many thought he could just make it to the first round but being picked with the 17th pick came as a surprise, although I must say that some people indeed predicted it. But the 14th pick was a complete surprise as the Bucks didn�t pick Dixon, Jacobsen or Rush but Fred Jones, who I didn�t even consider a first round pick but apparently the kid is good but he managed to get absolutely no attention from the media. Ryan Humphrey was also a surprise pick at 19. The power forward, who I again didn�t even consider a first round pick, went as high as 19. The European fever is spreading as Kristic was also a first round pick, but most people already thought he would go late first or early/middle second round. But John Salmons is another complete surprise. The guard was taken by the Spurs and then traded. Chris Jefferies also made it but he really wasn�t a surprise as most mock drafts had him being picked in the first round but I was too stubborn.
Some people were picked a lot lower then everyone expected. Everyone thought that Rush would go to the Bucks for example but instead went to the Raptors with the 20th pick. Dickau being picked with the 28th pick was also a surprise as some people had him going to Orlando with the 18th pick, including myself. But he is probably just happy to have a guaranteed contract and he was immediately shipped to the Hawks were he will get a lot of minutes. Woods was another player who went a lot lower than expected. Woods was considered a lottery pick but got picked with the 21st pick. Another player who could have been in the lottery was Borchardt but he slipped all the way down to the Magic, who traded him to the Jazz.
Who are the steals of the draft? I personally think that Borchardt is one of the steals in the draft, just as Woods and Rush, who was traded to the Lakers who I think got a steal. Some steals in the second round were Clancy, Sampson, Songaila, Gadzuric and Scola. Clancy�s stock only fell because of his height and a knee injury but when he is healthy again I think he will be a reasonable player. Sampson has tons of potential but most teams didn�t draft by potential this year so that is why he slipped this far. But we will see who is laughing in 5 years. Songaila was never considered a first round pick but I still think he is going to be a reasonable player and Boston could have gotten the best 2nd round pick who didn�t slip. I already explained Gadzuric and Scola slipped really far so I think the Spurs did a nice job by picking him up. He will have to spend some more years abroad but after those years he could be very nice.
So as you can see the actual draft was very different from my mock draft. But I did predict 6 picks correctly. The first four were the easiest one and many mock drafts had the fifth right too and almost everyone had Jared Jeffries being picked by the Wizards. But I�m really proud about my correct prediction of the 15th pick, Bostjon Nachbar to the Rockets. And I really think that will help the Rockets tremendously. But as you can see there were a lot of surprises which makes the draft so fun to watch but it also gives some fans grey hairs. It is always great to watch this surprising event and I�m already looking forward to next year. Also because we can see then who was right. The teams that drafted the players or the makers of the mock draft. Is Rush, who the Pacers should have picked according to most mock drafts, going to be better than Fred Jones, who was never even considered going that high? We will see next year and then we will see who was right. The so-called �draft experts�, and then I�m not saying I am one of them, I�m just a fan, or the general managers. Because everyone is always criticising the general managers and now we can see if we actually know things better than they do. So stay tuned and lets all see what happens next year.