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Live 2014 NBA Draft Grades: Round 1 – Picks 1-15 | Grades for Round 2
2014 NBA Mock Draft | 2015 NBA Mock Draft
Updated: June 26, 2014.
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Denver Nuggets: Jusuf Nurkic, C, Bosnia – B Grade
Denver could use a big man inside to eat some space and at 280 pounds, that’s exactly Nurkic brings to the floor. Unlike most Euro players, Nurkic is likely to come to the NBA right away. -
Boston Celtics: James Young, G/F, Kentucky – A+ Grade
Love Love LOVE this pick. I think Young is a top ten talent and a terrific get at 17. He brings some outside shooting to the Celtics and could be a great compliment alongside Rondo or their 6th overall pick, Smart. -
Phoenix Suns: Tyler Ennis, G, Syracuse – D Grade
The Suns have Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe, though Bledsoe is a restricted free agent, so I don’t see the fit here. Ennis can be a solid NBA point guard but how does he fit in Phoenix? -
Denver Nuggets: Gary Harris, G, Michigan State – A+ Grade
Harris slipped a bit in this draft but is a tremendous value for Denver. Yes, they did just trade for Aaron Afflalo but Harris should be a steady rotation player for years to come since he gets it done on both ends of the floor. That’s all you can ask for from a 19th overall pick. -
Toronto Raptors: Bruno Caboclo, F, Brazil – F Grade
I’ll be honest. I’m a huge NBA Draft nerd. I study this crap all the time… like an unhealthy amount. And I’ve NEVER had this dude on my mock draft for any team. Maybe he’s the next Giannis… Maybe we never hear of him again? Why take this dude when Shabbaz Napier is on the clock and Toronto could be losing Kyle Lowry. This floors me more than Anthony Bennett going #1 last year. -
Oklahoma City Thunder: Mitch McGary, C, Michigan – C Grade
Oklahoma City definitely needed to add an aggressive, physical, rebounding type player and McGary fits that need. He could be a Nick Collison replacement. Obviously the back injury is a concern and I think was a bit of a reach of 21 especially when the Thunder had the 29th pick. Still, if healthy, McGary could be a rotation player. -
Memphis Grizzlies: Jordan Adams, G, UCLA – C+ Grade
Adams was apparently high on the analytical GM’s boards but this seems high for a guy whose vertical at the draft was laughable. He can score though and Memphis needs to find some offense on the wing. I liked other guys better than him. -
Utah Jazz: Rodney Hood, F, Duke – A Grade
Outstanding value here for the Jazz as Hood slipped in the draft and I think was being undervalued. The Jazz need options on the wing. Gordon Hayward is a restricted free agent so he provides insurance at the three. At worst, he’s a solid backup small forward in the NBA one day. Hard to argue with that at 23. -
Miami Heat: Shabazz Napier, G, Connecticut – A++++ Grade
Favorite pick of the draft. Heat need a point guard in the worst way and at worst, Napier is a VERY good second unit point guard. He could easily start for the Heat next season too. It baffles me that he fell this low. Shabazz might be one of my new favorite NBA players already. By the way, the whole “we want Shabazz because it will help get LeBron back” talk is hilarious to me. -
Houston Rockets: Clint Capela, F, Switzerland – B Grade
This is a draft and stash pick for Houston which makes sense because they want to save as much cap space as possible. Capela looks the part but needs to develop overseas and could be a factor for the Rockets in a couple years. -
Charlotte Hornets: P.J. Hairston, G, D-League – B+ Grade
The Hornets need to add some wing scoring off the bench and Hairston is NBA ready. He can shoot it from the outside but also has the size that NBA teams look for from a two guard. -
Phoenix Suns: Bogdan Bogdanovich, G/F, Serbia – A- Grade
I got this pick right because you had to figure the Suns were going to take at least one foreign guy with one of their three first rounders. Bogdanovic does a lot of things well on the floor and should one day be a contributor in Phoenix. -
Los Angeles Clippers: C.J. Wilcox, G, Washington – D- Grade
The Clips just drafted Reggie Bullock last year and has J.J. Redick, Jamal Crawford, and Jared Dudley who all play the same position as Wilcox so this just congests the wing even more in L.A. -
Oklahoma City Thunder: Josh Huestis, F, Stanford – F Grade
Wow. Dude wasn’t even in my second round. Guys like K.J. McDaniels, Cleanthony Early, Jerami Grant were all much higher on my rankings. I don’t see how he gets any PT in OKC. A foreign guy would have even made more sense since this is the Thunder’s second first round pick. -
San Antonio Spurs: Kyle Anderson, F, UCLA – B+ Grade
Anderson was slated as a late-teens/early twenties prospect so once again, the Spurs get tremendous value with a late pick. He is a unique prospect since he is a point forward. If anyone can figure out how to utilize his talents, it’ll be Gregg Popovich.
Go to Live 2014 NBA Draft Grades: Round 2
Back to Live 2014 NBA Draft Grades: Round 1 – Picks 1-15
Go to 2014 NBA Mock Draft
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Written by Paul Banks of the Washington Times, and David Kay of the The Sports Bank.
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