Chad Ford of ESPN Insider kisses Chris Pauls Ass

Wondering what 7 teams who passed on Chris Paul are thinking now?

Excuse me it was 4 teams. You can't count trade possibilities. If so throw all teams under the bus


Hindsight is always 20-20 after the NBA draft. That said, the more this season progresses, the harder it is to figure out what NBA GMs were thinking when they passed on Wake Forest sophomore point guard Chris Paul in last year's draft.

Head of the Class
Want more proof Paul is the real deal? Check out John Hollinger's stats:

• PER: 20th overall
• 5th among PGs

By March of his freshman year, NBA scouts were already calling him the best college point-guard prospect since Jason Kidd. He had a stellar sophomore season and looked great in workouts, but somehow a number of teams passed up the chance to draft him or to trade for the opportunity to take him.

Paul ended up going No. 4 to the Hornets, but as many as seven other teams had a shot at him before the draft. Most of them have to be kicking themselves now, as Paul has led the Hornets out of the cellar in the West and could be an All-Star in his rookie season. And he's only 20.

Looking back to last June, let's ask the question GMs don't want their fans to ask: Who could have had Paul, and why didn't they take him?

The breakdown:




Milwaukee Bucks
How they could have picked Paul: Held the No. 1 pick in the draft

The skinny: It looks as though the Bucks never seriously considered Paul. They quickly narrowed their list down to two players: Utah big man Andrew Bogut and North Carolina forward Marvin Williams. Both Bogut and Williams filled needs, while Paul happened to play the same position as two promising young players for the Bucks: T.J. Ford and Mo Williams.

The verdict: While it looks as if neither Ford nor Williams will be as good as Paul, passing on Paul wasn't a major mistake, given the other holes the Bucks had to fill. Bogut appears to be a solid big man, a rare commodity in the draft. You can't really say the Bucks blew it.



Atlanta Hawks
How: Held the No. 2 pick in the draft

The skinny: Amazingly, when draft day rolled around, it looked like the Hawks weren't seriously considering Paul with the No. 2 pick. Sources close to the Hawks told Insider around draft time they were deciding between Marvin Williams and Illinois point guard Deron Williams. That's odd, because of all the players in the draft, Paul best fit the Hawks' biggest hole. The team desperately needed (and still needs) a floor leader who can push the ball up the floor.

The verdict: With a track record that now includes letting Chris Paul slip through his fingers, it's hard to see how Atlanta GM Billy Knight will keep his job much longer. Marvin Williams might turn out to be the best player in the draft someday, but King probably won't be around to take the credit. Williams' skills duplicate almost all the strengths of the other players on the roster. Don't forget, if Knight had decided to draft for need, chances are he would've drafted Deron Williams over Paul. Had the team drafted Paul and added Joe Johnson, it would have one of the best backcourts in the NBA and a much better record than it does now.



Portland Trail Blazers
How: Originally held the No. 3 pick in the draft

The skinny: The Blazers did consider drafting Paul with the No. 3 pick, but ultimately decided they had their point guard of the future in Sebastian Telfair. They eventually traded the pick to the Jazz for the No. 6 and No. 27 picks in the draft. They used the No. 6 pick on high school phenom Martell Webster. GM John Nash said after the draft that had the Blazers kept the pick, they still would've drafted Webster at No. 3.

The verdict: Like Knight in Atlanta, Nash has blundered in Portland and might lose his job by summer over errors like passing on Paul. Nash said in an interview after the draft that he believed Telfair was "ahead of the curve" in comparing him to Paul. That clearly hasn't been the case. There isn't an NBA scout I've talked to who thinks Telfair is in the same league as Paul as a point guard or as a prospect. The Blazers missed badly on this one. Their love affair with high school stars, Telfair and Webster included, has left them in the NBA cellar.



Utah Jazz
How: Acquired the No. 3 pick in the draft from the Blazers

The skinny: The Jazz struggled with the decision between Paul and Deron Williams up until the day of the draft, but ultimately decided Williams was a better fit in their system. He was bigger, scouts saw him as a better shooter and defender, and he seemed a little more comfortable in the half-court game. Paul's style of play -- he gets the ball up and down the court quickly -- and his occasional defensive lapses didn't seem as good a fit in head coach Jerry Sloan's system.

The verdict: The jury's still out. A lot of scouts loved Williams and agreed with Utah's assessment that he was a better fit in their system. Williams is having an inconsistent rookie season, but there's nothing to suggest that he won't become a great player with more time. Still, you have to wonder whether the Jazz overthought this. I have a hard time believing, after watching them both play this year, that Williams will overtake Paul as the best point guard to come out of this draft.



Charlotte Bobcats
How: Could have acquired the No. 2 or No. 3 pick in the draft via trade for the No. 5 and No. 13 picks

The skinny: The Bobcats got unlucky on lottery night, slipping from the prospective No. 2 pick to the No. 5 pick because of some bounces of the ping-pong balls. GM Bernie Bickerstaff had his eye on two franchise-type players all year -- Marvin Williams and Paul. Either would've fit a need, complemented Emeka Okafor and been wildly popular with Charlotte's fans because of their local ties. Both the Hawks and the Blazers were willing to deal their pick to Charlotte, but Bickerstaff felt that, as an expansion team, the Bobcats could not afford to give up two lottery picks for one player.

The verdict: Bickerstaff made his first major blunder for the Bobcats. The two players the Bobcats got, Raymond Felton and Sean May, were also North Carolina favorites, but neither has the star potential or local popularity of Paul. This is an example of when being conservative doesn't pay off. An expansion team needs star players to build around, and Paul would've been the cornerstone. Felton and May? They both have talent, but the chance that either becomes an NBA All-Star is slim.



Toronto Raptors
How: Could have acquired the No. 3 or No. 4 pick in the draft via trade for the No. 7 and No. 15 picks

The skinny: The Raptors, like the Bobcats, overvalued the multiple picks they were getting in the draft. They had a star power forward, Chris Bosh, to build around and desperately needed to add a point guard and center to complete the puzzle.

The verdict: We saw it on Thursday when the Raptors fired GM Rob Babcock. Charlie Villanueva and Joey Graham weren't bad picks. But Villanueva plays the same position as Bosh. The Raptors' point-guard troubles have been temporarily solved by the stellar play of Mike James, but he's an unrestricted free agent this summer and will likely bolt Toronto (or be traded first). Had the Raptors added Paul, it might have been enough to save Babcock's job and convince Bosh that the team is heading in the right direction. Even more important, it would've made them better. Paul would've had the same impact in Toronto that he's having for New Orleans/Oklahoma City. Babcock's blunder may have been the biggest of them all -- Paul could've saved his job and given Raptors fans a reason to care again.



Boston Celtics
How: There was talk around draft time of a trade that would've sent Paul Pierce to Portland for the No. 3 pick in the draft and the nonguaranteed contract of Nick Van Exel.

The skinny: Danny Ainge labeled the rumor of the trade "ludicrous." However, sources from both teams have said it was considered. The Blazers would've done it in a heartbeat, because they had coveted Pierce for some time and felt they already had their point guard of the future in Telfair.

The verdict: The Celtics should've pulled the trigger. The team is clearly rebuilding. While Delonte West has played well for Boston this year at the point, he's no Chris Paul. West would be a stellar sixth man. Paul and Al Jefferson would have given the Celtics a very young inside-outside combo that would've been awesome down the road. As it stands, the Celtics are running to stand still. Eventually players such as Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins and West are going to be good. But by the time they get there, will players such as Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak (who are both 28) still be good enough to help them win a championship? A deal like this could've set the clock back a bit, shored up their talent base and given the Celtics some cap flexibility in the free-agent market.

 

No matter who is there, 5 and 13 is a HIGH fucking price to pay for the 3rd pick in the draft. I wanted Paul as much as anyone, well closer to the draft I wanted to believe that Felton had just as good a shot to be a star. Either way though, to slam us for not drafting Paul isn't fair. When 6 and 27 go for #3 and NO wants 5 and 13 for #4, give me a break. If we were gonna trade up, it would have been with Portland, but 6/27 for 3 is a much fairer trade than 5/13 for 3. Our picks kinda screwed us in trade possibilities, as Paul was likely the only player we considered in a top 3 scenario. 5/13 is good enough to get a top 2 pick, however we only missed on Paul by one spot. I'm still not sure I'd trade Felton/May for Paul, I'd consider it for sure, but long term it's still a little early to call that race.

 

Felton certainly won't be as good as Paul, but I honestly think Felton will be a fine NBA point guard. I liked the pick then, I still like it today.

 

The Felton pick didn't irk me nearly as bad as the Sean May pick.With Danny Granger available at #13 we should have jumped on him.Felton has impressed me when he has gotten a chance to start.Paul will be great but I think Felton could be a solid 15 pt,8 asst,2 stl guy that doesn't make many mistakes.

 

I agree. With Felton's speed and his improved 3 pt shot, I'm willing to take my chances. I don't think you can fault the Bobcats for not trading up, what we had wasn't worth giving up. Whether or not we wasted our second pick with May doesn't matter in this discussion. The point is that the #3 spot went for #6 and #27. How is the #4 or #2 spot worth 5 and 13? It isn't. Other teams wanted to fleece us, and while not getting Paul sucks, at least we didn't get ripped in a trade to get him. He should have been ours anyway, but yeah, teams throwing games 25 years ago fucked us.

 

We fucked ourselves by winning the last game of the year. I'm not for throwing games but, that meaningless game would have been a great time to "evaluate" some of the bench players..... If we don't play our starters that last game and win, then we get Chris Paul and don't have to give up anything to get him.

Worst decision by the team yet, and the same guy gets the blame for both. GM Bickerstaff should have told coach Bernie about how not to fuck up our draft position on the last day of the regular season.

 

Well, to be fair winning the last game only got us into a tie with the Hawks. We were unlucky in the coinflip and the draft. I agree though, as much as I enjoyed that win for personal reasons, it really cost us. Hell didn't we win like 5 out of the last 7 or some shit? I'm pretty sure we finished the season on a decent run to win 17 or whatever we ended up on.

Man, this year SUCKS. Everyone's hurt, and the draft is going to suck. When does football season start again? :banginghe :banginghe :banginghe