Friday 28 June 2013

The 10-man rotation, starring the 2013 NBA draft, broken down 7 ways from Sunday

A look around the league and the Web that covers it. It's also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren't always listed in order of importance. That's for you, dear reader, to figure out.

C: TrueHoop. Henry Abbott tries to figure out exactly why Nerlens Noel didn't go No. 1 after all, and why he fell all the way down to No. 6, and why the team that took him No. 6 sent him out the door so fast he didn't even know he'd been traded. (Rohan Cruyff of Hornets/Pelicans blog At the Hive [which very much needs a new name, now that we think of it] is extraordinarily displeased not only that Noel will not line up alongside Anthony Davis in New Orleans, but also that more value was tendered to bring Jrue Holiday to Louisiana.)

PF: The Basketball Jones, twice. Trey Kerby is my favorite, and every year he offers two of the best nonsense draft breakdowns money can buy, which is EXTRA true because they are free.

SF: Sportsnet.ca. Michael Grange on how the 2013 NBA draft was a remarkable, historic night for Canadian basketball.

SG: SB Nation, CSNNE.com and CelticsBlog. Paul Flannery, Rich Levine and Evans Clinchy on what the Boston Celtics did last night.

PG: SB Nation, Brooklyn's Finest and The Brooklyn Game. David Roth, Jeremy Gordon and Devin Kharpertian on what the Brooklyn Nets did last night.

6th: The New York Times. Harvey Araton on how Barclays Center itself — the building, if not necessarily the brand, but also what it represents — might have been the deciding factor in facilitating the flip from Boston to Brooklyn.

7th: Bullets Forever. The Washington Wizards got exactly who they wanted when they drafted Otto Porter with the third overall pick. But could they have blown it by not taking presumptive (if not actual) No. 1 pick Nerlens Noel when he fell into their laps?

8th: SB Nation. Seth Rosenthal on how Twitter, and the generally-accepted-if–not-beloved practice of draft-pick-tipping "makes draft night strange, and perhaps a bit cruel, too..

9th: The 700 Level. Philadelphia 76ers personnel boss Sam Hinkie couldn't talk about everything that went on Thursday night, pursuant to NBA rules, but he talked about what he could: "Challenging night in many ways … with one gut-wrenching phone call. All in all though, I think the right thing to do. I think the right thing to do." (Also, here's Michael Pina at The Classical on the Sixers' situation: "... what we learned on draft night is that the Sixers are dead serious about remaking this team entirely."

10th: Eye on Basketball. Former colleague Matt Norlander on how Thursday night, whether you're a college or pro fan, was about as good as it gets: "We'll never have another draft anything like what happened at Barclays Center Thursday night."

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