Mock Draft For The Top Four

The top of the 2026 NBA Draft looks simple on a graphic and complicated everywhere else. We’re in GM mode, walking through what the first four teams should actually do once you factor in roster fit, salary cap limits, and the kind of fan pressure that can push a front office into a safe pick or a swing for the fences. If you’re tracking draft rumors, private workouts, and the nonstop narrative machine, this is a grounded reset built on lineups and incentives, not hype. 

We start with Washington at No. 1, where the timeline shifts fast after adding Trae Young and Anthony Davis. We lay out why AJ Dybansta feels like the cleanest fit, why Darryn Peterson’s two-way guard profile changes the defense, and why Cameron Boozer’s “winning player” floor matters when you’re tired of losing. We even sketch a bold trade idea that would flip Anthony Davis for Jaylen Brown and draft Boozer to build a new core without punting the present. 

Then we hit Utah at No. 2 with a blunt question: after years of tanking, why would you ever trade back now? We break down the Jazz cap sheet, the roster logjam, the Lauri Markkanen rumors, and why best player available is the only move that makes sense. From there it’s Memphis at No. 3 with the Ja Morant dilemma, cap space that shrinks once rookie contracts hit, and how a big trade exception could open doors. We close with Chicago at No. 4, a team with real cap room and draft ammo but a lingering identity problem, plus a realistic trade-down path that could dump salary and still land a top-tier prospect like Caleb Wilson. 

If you love NBA Draft scouting, mock drafts, and front office strategy, hit play, subscribe, and share this with the friend who always argues “fit vs upside.” After you listen, leave a review and tell us who you’d take in the top four and why.

Transcript

GM Mode And Draft Buzz

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to the Draft and Stash Podcast. I'm your host, Andrew. It is May 20th, 2026. On today's episode, we're putting on our general manager's hat as we try to figure out what the top four teams in this draft are going to be doing. We're talking roster breakdowns, salary cap, and potential trades. But until then, we gotta hit that injury.

SPEAKER_01 0:39

One of the most exciting brands that I can remember. And in the years I've been doing this, I think this brand is the best.

SPEAKER_00 0:46

Man, things are beginning to heat up. Players are starting to do private workouts. We're hearing all types of rumors and buzz, and the media is trying to create narratives that aren't really real. It's gonna be really exciting. You've got these four players at the top, and pretty much any of them have a chance to be, you know, like a three to five time all-star, maybe Hall of Fame, you know, just like all NBA caliber. So they're all exciting, but we kind of got to figure out maybe which teams might be leaning certain

Wizards At No. 1 Options

SPEAKER_00 1:15

ways. Let's start with the Washington Wizards. Obviously, they have the first pick in the draft. The timeline has changed. Washington is no longer a pure tank team with Trey Young, Anthony Davis now on the roster alongside Alex Zar, Palaw Kulabali, Trey Johnson. The Wizards are trying to try to bridge rebuilding and competitiveness simultaneously. So currently they they you know they they were an egregious tanking team. We're not gonna say that they weren't, uh, you know, trading for Trey and Anthony Davis, and pretty by low, if if you ask me, you know, they didn't really, you know, spend a lot to get either of those guys, and they're they're pretty solid veterans in their own ways. You know, I mean Anthony was a little bit older, but he still has good juice left. Trey Young, you know, is you know, while you know he's not perfect, he still does a lot on the offensive end, you know. Couple that with, you know, that they found, you know, Will Riley looked really good last year, and Alex Saarr in year two looked really good. Trey Johnson, I think, still has a lot of promise. You know, he just you know just didn't really hit his stride in his rookie year. And now you get to add on to that, right? And there is a lot of obvious ways to go here. You know, the the mainstream consensus is AJ DeBonsta. Um, you know, he's the 6'9, you know, wing gets to his own spot, super great at creating, high scoring volume. You know, he's a person that looks like, you know, when you think about what an NBA star is, there is a good amount of people that don't have him number one. I am one of those people, but that does not mean I do not think he's good or has all-star value. I just think other players have shown more polish in the ways that I think their game needs to scale to a certain degree. You they could also lean Darren Peterson, uh, you know, who at one point was the guy in this draft. Everybody thought he was going to be the obvious number one. And it was really a tumultuous season. We're getting all types of weird medical reports here and there on, you know, taking too much creatine, and then other medical reports just being like, yeah, that doesn't, you know, creatine doesn't cause full body spasms and, you know, things of that nature. But it could be other things that that have the word, you know, like creatine, that maybe Darren Peterson just got a little confused about. And if that's the case, and that's something that it is still very treatable. It's something, you know, think about, you know, when those high school kids are out, you know, you know, playing football and practicing that crazy heat that and they get really exhausted and they don't hydrate, they go into these like full-body, you know, spasms and things of that nature. That's kind of what it seems like his body was going through, which it could be a medical staff thing, maybe at Kansas, of them not, you know, paying the right attention to what he was ingesting in general. And maybe this was caused by that. It could be by you know Darren Peterson not taking care of himself when he needs to be. You know, it could be, you know, if you're doing these many things and you're not, you know, hydrating yourself, if you're just, you know, drinking like Red Bulls and things like that over and over again, it can really mess you up to where these things do happen. There is a story about him in high school having you know really bad spasms on the bench and him having to take you know salt packets and mustard packets, which kind of like you know, trick your brain to a certain degree to for those nerves to kind of you know stop you know spasming so much. So I I hope this is a very fixable thing because Darren Peterson has a lot of potential. And then at number three, you know, Cameron Boozer, who is my you know, current top uh you know, person, is like this do it all you know, Ford, who's the youngest of these four people, even though people continue to say that he has least amount of potential, which makes no sense to me. You know, he just he has a couple of shortcomings, like you know, he's maybe not as long, but I don't think he's a center. I think he's more you know of a four that could slide to the three. And then you have Caleb Wilson, who out of nowhere people are saying has the most potential. And I think that just might be because of he's very likable when you hear him talk. He sounds super competitive. You know, he says all those things that remind you of those Kobe Bryants and things like that, and in terms of just, you know, like his edge. And that's one of the things that I do enjoy about him as well. Unfortunately, I was a little presumptuous with what I thought his measurements would be in the combine. So I had him ranked a little higher early. I think I had him at two. I've dropped him since to four just because my own assumptions were, you know, entirely wrong. You know, he hasn't done anything to make me think that he's less than a player. I just when you're at the top here, those things are so razor thin. So with the Washington, you know, they have a lot of really good directions here. Their team is a little funky when you look at things. You know, you look at so they're their current cap sheet here, right? They've got Anthony Davis is gonna be making $58 million next year, Trey's at 48. And then this number one pick is right around 15 million. Alex Sars a little over 12, then you got Koulibaly at nine, Trey Johnson at eight. So, with all that said, their payroll is gonna be pretty high. It's already gonna be at like 190 almost, which is kind of crazy. Now, they do have a couple of weird cap holds here. It looks like like Ema Heaney's still on here for some reason. I mean, Kendrick Nunn. I don't know. So some of these should fall off. I think it's it's like 25 to 30 of these things will should be renounced. So they should have basically they're gonna be right at it. You know, them adding Trey Young and Anthony Davis, that was their, you know, quote unquote free agency moves, right? So if that's the case, the person that makes most sense, you know, I it would be AJ. You know, he he plays the three. This would allow to have you Trey Young, Trey Johnson, AJ, Anthony Davis, and Alex Sarr as your as your like your basic lineup. Then off the bench, you know, you got you know Will Riley and you know, Koulibaly, and if and like you know, uh George and like a few of those other guys, right? Or you could go with Darren Peterson, who also could do a lot for them on that side of the ball. Trey Young could hide a lot more on the defensive side. You know, Darren Peterson shows really good ability on on the offense and defense, you know, 6'5, 6'6 and shoes. He weighed really well, awesome length. I think he's gonna be a really good two-way player. So that that could be a really smart way as well. Now, some people are saying maybe they could trade. Let's say like they have, let's say, for instance, they their their top guy is Cameron Boozer, and they know that maybe they could make you know some kind of a trade. I was trying to go through it and see what would make sense here, right? And if Washington, you know, let's say that they they really wanted to compete next year and be in it. The only thing that I really found, which might seem kind of weird, I wonder if there is some kind of deal where you could send Anthony Davis to Boston for Jalen Brown, you know, and then you draft Cameron Boozer. Then, you know, you basically have you know Trey Young, Trey Johnson, Jalen Brown, you know, Cameron Boozer and Alex Sarr, which is also like a really good, you know, group as well. Then, of course, you know, you you could do a couple of like pick things here. Like I'm not really great with you know trades in terms of uh like you know pick values and things of that nature, but I basically said you know they they would swap picks next year, and unless they're you know top four protected-ish, you would maybe give Washington this pick from Boston at number 27. So Washington at least gets another, you know, uh at least a shot at a rookie in in this as well. And then Washington would give a 2029 pick to the Celtics that would be top eight protected. So, you know, it would be basically you know, Boston would just be getting a few uh like a like a pick next year that is the better of the two, and they would get a future pick if things maybe don't work out and that pick becomes really valuable. Uh, to me, I mean, I mean, like you let Jalen kind of be your new face, then you've got Kimmer Boozer, who's gonna be an awesome power forward. You get Alex Sarr, who looks like he could be a really good two-way player as well. So your front court looks stacked, and then if Trey Johnson comes along like you thought, he could be easily like a 15 to you know, maybe like a 20-point you know per game scorer as a guard. And Trey Young's still doing still doing trade things, and then you still have all these other guys off of the bench as well. I think that could be a really fun way to do that. But I just at the end of the day, I don't know, man. I think I think the the pressure of fans will be too big for them to not just take AJ because if it doesn't work out, they will just get attacked in the media. So I don't know, but those are just a few options I think could kind of happen here, you know. You know, yeah, so either it's AJ who who has this star wing, you know, like like upside or camera boozer, who's this, you know, culture setter, like is an amazing winning player, or if it's Darren Peterson who is this elite guard talent, which might be a little bit of an awkward fit since Darren was playing on the ball a lot more, but you know, I mean, most guards you know say that. You know, so to me, I think the Wizards are at a point where talent fit matters more than pure upside, especially if you look at their last, you know, just their history in general of man, they just have not been good for a long time. You know, you you look at the last what five years, six years, they haven't made the playoffs. The last time they did was in 2020 when they went one and four in the first round. Then it was two years before that that they didn't make it. You know, it's just been a lot of losing up there. You know, the last three years, man, they haven't even won 60 games combined. It, you know, it's just like, man, like I this was like a really good win from me, even though they they were doing some shady stuff. I think that, you know, that that franchise really, really needs it. So I'm totally cool with them getting you know the top pick and hopefully they make some really good choices here.

Jazz At No. 2 Timeline Squeeze

SPEAKER_00 10:44

Moving on to the Utah Jazz, too good to tank, but not good enough to win. Utah feels like they're trying to force the timeline forward to a certain degree here. Last year they they moved pretty aggressively to get Jerome Jackson Jr. And then you know, subsequently you shut him down with you know a random surgery, and then they shut down another guy with surgery, and then another guy, you know, they just in Utah for the last uh let's look here, the last three years, four years, they they've just been trying to lose for you know four years straight now. And it's it's gotten pretty bad the last two, you know, where they're just not even even trying. They are pulling guys in the fourth quarter, even if they have a chance to win. They're guys are being shut down. And they, you know, so at one point, Utah was this like really storied franchise, you know, John Stockton, Crom Malone in the 90s were just killer. Then you go into when they got, you know, Darren Williams and and like you know, Carlos Boozer, and then into you know, with Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley, you know, Rudy Gobert. And then I guess they just saw the writing the wall and they traded Rudy Gobert at the time for a lot of stuff. People thought that Utah kind of like, you know, really got one over on him. And it's you know, I mean, the Terminal's have been really good since then, and they've made multiple West Finals, and Utah has just been terrible since then. So, I mean, I don't know how good it was because they they haven't been able to do anything with any of the assets that they got, but they they finally move up after egregiously betting the rules for so many years, so much so that you know most of this new tank, this new lottery stuff is is because of them that they were fined pretty heavily this year. And uh, there's rumors that they might trade Lori Marketing. And I'll say this if they trade Lori Marking after all these years, they should lose their franchise. Like, I would be so angry if that happens. If for them to trade for this man and then force him to sit on the bench for the last four years and waste four years of his prime with this idea in mind that at some point they'll be able to like really be good in a couple years and keep keep telling him this thing. And then when they get to a certain point, and now all of a sudden he he might be too old or something, and they'd rather just like cash him out. That would be um, I mean, just so shady. And uh man, I would I would hope that his he would he would hire like a legal team or something like that. I if that happens, we should ride it. Like that that's it that just would be gross. So hopefully that that is not the case, and that does not happen. But if you look at the current cap sheet for everybody here, uh Jaren's gonna be making the most of around 50 million. Lori market ends right around 46, and then there's a giant drop-off, and the number two pick will be the next person kind of like getting paid everything, and that's gonna be around 13 million. Now they're gonna be uh, you know, pretty much up against it as well. They're they're close to that like 160 range in terms of salary. They have a couple people falling off the books, they have a couple cap holds, but so they they they should be, I mean, they should have access to their you know non-payer MLE here. Uh, and then they've got you know most of their picks. That they they have their current pick, and then next year they they get the second favorite of theirs, Cleveland and Minnesota's 2028. It's either uh it's it's the best of their own in Cleveland. Then you know, so they they've got like a good amount of extra stuff. They they gave Memphis a couple of picks here and there to you know get Jaron, and then they they should have most of their second round here as well. So they've got basically nine first-round picks over the next seven drafts, and they've got 11 seconds picks over the next seven drafts, which you know are both has got you know pretty good ammo here for them to be able to, you know, maybe make a couple moves. When you look at the stuff that they could maybe do here, it's they just have such a logjam, right? Because you know, uh, you know, Carlos Boozer works for the Utah Jazz and his son Cameron Boozer is one of the best players. You would think this will be like a perfect, you know, made-in-heaven matchup here. But you know, going to number two, it Darren Peterson, if he's here, it makes a lot of sense. If AJ is here, it makes a lot of sense considering that AJ's been paid millions the last you know couple years to basically play high school ball there, also play, you know, uh college ball there. It's like a lot of this Mormon money has been tied up in in AJ. And you know, him going there would maybe help them create a super big lineup with you know, they would have you know Ace Bailey maybe at the two, then AJ at the three, Jaron in that four or five, and then Laurie. I don't know. They have such a log jam of bigs now, which isn't is not a bad thing. It's just uh trying to maximize that roster is gonna be really, really tricky for you know O'Reilly. But with that's the case, and you know, Darren Peterson, I think makes a lot of sense. He would be a really again, just a really killer guard, 6'6, you know, somebody that that could really just get his own shot whenever he needs to, he could take a lot of pressure off of George. I I think that could be a really, really good move. I was trying to think of moves where like maybe they would trade or something, but I just it just doesn't make any sense to me. You know, it's like why would why would Utah you know make a trade? You know, like like the the entire reason of tanking all these years was to finally get to where we are currently at. And so it just I don't get it. It would make no sense for them to trade back, even if they like somebody else. I mean, just take take your person, you know, you you've been given you know gold, just take the gold, don't don't sell it for beans. You know, I I would say I wouldn't even mess with this. I would just take the person that you have highest on your board. For me, it if if Darren Peterson is is here, that's where I would go. It it just I think he has maybe the highest upside of every player in this draft, including people saying Caleb Wilson. I think Darren Peterson, you know, shows all the traits that that you want in in like a lead guard for you, like another Anthony Epperts type that's just gonna be able to, you know, just get after it on both ends. And I think he could they could really, really use that, you know. But if they don't feel that way, and and they do like Cameron Boozer, which I okay, cool, then you know, take him. You know, I'm I'm very much uh the mindset of best player available, always best player available. You you can you take that person, add that to your talent pool, and then you figure out your roster afterwards, right? Because you can always make you know moves afterwards. You just you you don't give away you know these the these great pieces because it may maybe it's not like a a great you know current piece for you. It just makes you know that that makes very, very little sense. But yeah, I mean you know Keontae looked great last year. I think Cody Williams' time's about done there. He just he just has not been what they hoped it would be. Bryce sensible has been up and down, and Kafka Wowski has kind of you know shown some stuff here and there. I think he can easily be like a backup guy for them and give them maybe you know 15 minutes a night. But yeah, Darren Peterson makes sense here. And you know, I wouldn't even mess with anything. I I would I would just try to do what you got. You know, if a great deal comes along, cool. Otherwise, you know, just try to actually show people that you're done tanking and and actually go for it this year. I think the Jazz have enough assets to make a mistake, and uh we'll see how it goes. Moving

Grizzlies At No. 3 Reset Talk

SPEAKER_00 17:33

on to Memphis Grizzlies, you know, the question is kind of do they rebuild around Ja or do they reset completely? You know, for me, I'm from this area, so I have a very passionate feeling. It was absolutely killer to move up in this draft. It was, you know, they they pivoted around game 30 to 40 after, you know, Zach Edy was not gonna be able to come back because his foot wasn't acting right. John Morant was in and out of the lineup based on attitude and also injuries, you know, it's just just people here and there just getting injured. And at one point, they they literally had no point guards for like a month. It was really tough, you know, and then they only had point guards because they you know so it was another tough year. And uh, you know, it it culminates with you know the the passing of of Clark. You know, it's just been really, really tough here. And to get another chance at a star player, it means a lot to the city and as well to the organization. You know, our our downtown area is always, always super busy when the Grizzlies are good. And when that those teams led by John Morant were popping off, I mean, like it was a madhouse down there. And I'm hoping that, you know, whether it's Cameron Mooser, Darren Peterson, like who whoever it might be, Caleb Wilson, I hope that it just it gets back to where it was. And lending the uh the pick here, I think, is a really great chance at who it it where what what it might be, right? So looking at the cap situation for Memphis, I assume KCP is going to take his player option because there's no way he's gonna make 22 million dollars. Santi Odama is at 17 and he barely played last year. The the pick at three will be around 12 million, and they have another pick at 16 that's around 5 million. So you kind of have to like factor those in, right? Because currently they they're gonna have maybe like six or so million dollars in in cap space. Well, I'm sorry, they like they've got maybe 20 million dollars in cap space, but but after the picks automatically come on, you you have to like add those in, right? So after that, they're they're only gonna have about six million. And then they have a couple of contracts that that they're still kind of paying for a little bit. I think that they stretched uh Cole Anthony that might be on here. And so then you have a cap hold, I believe, for Ryan Repair. So which is around two million. So, like, you know, you don't exactly have to have that. But it's it's it's it's I hate to say this, but with Brandon Clark passing, his contract will come off the books. That's another almost $13 million. So they should have access to their full mid-level plus some if they wanted to go over and do something. Uh, they also have a massive trade exception because of the Jaron Jackson Jr. move of around $30 million. So that you know they could use that as well to help them, you know, take on a larger contract. You know, the the roster is very, very strange to say the least, right? Because things went from a certain way. Now you're like, okay, so who are the people that are actually going to be here? We we assume Cedric Howard and Zach Edy are the two people that we know will be for for sure here. Then you have a couple other players, like you know, Cam Spencer is probably going to be here, you know, Prosper, maybe it's a team option. We'll see. Uh Ty Jerome was great. I would love to see him with you know an actual full uh you know roster. I really like Taylor Hendricks. You know, he came over in the Jaron Jackson Jr. trade. He he seemed to like really found it, you know, like find his footing. I would love to see him playing the actual power four. They they used him at the center a lot because the Grizzlies' front office didn't sign a center for the last you know two and a half months. It was really, really also aggressive tanking that was not fun to watch. But Hendricks looks like somebody that could switch you know one to four, really good hands, and she he just showed a lot. So I think that that that's very worthy of a person to come in. And depending on how this pick goes, maybe being that you know backup four or five guy with Santi Obama. And then you got guys like Walter Clayton Jr. who didn't really look good. Tosh Gibson, I don't would not assume that he comes back. Sky Pittman Jr., you know, was a person that we thought was gonna be pretty good, I but he was hurt the entire year, you know, something in his foot broke, you know, and then you know Gigi Jackson has shown a lot. I assume that that they bring him back because it's only like a two and a half million dollar team option. And Jalen Wells, you know, has looked you know inconsistent, but but you know, good for the most part. Yeah. So and then you know, there is this John Morant thing, you know, hanging over all of us. Where do they go here, right? There's current rumors saying that they the Grizzies will just try to dump him, which I can I get that to a certain degree. You know, maybe just try to get off that salary and then maybe take back a few expirings, maybe get a pick uh of some kind. There are a few teams that I think. Would be interested, you know, but with Giannis also being available, that it kind of makes things a little weird. So you know, we'll kind of see how that goes. Or, you know, there's also maybe they don't get anything and they try to maybe bring John Morant back to be and maybe see if for the the fourth time's the charm to see if he can really get things going this time again. I just I don't think he's worked on his game enough in the last seven years to to be where his contract currently has him slated at. I just I think that there is an hour-long documentary about him that'll come out in like maybe four to five years, just talking about how he he imploded his own career from this, you know, this talks of him being the face of the NBA to talks of him being completely done within like you know two to three years is just is absolutely wild. I think it's easy here. If Booster's there, uh he makes the most sense. Him and Zach ED would be awesome together. Uh, you know, I think he people say save, I don't like the word save. I think he is incredibly polished. Uh, you know, I I look at his floor and I'm like, okay, I see him being at the very least, like a starter type player that that'll give you some really good, you know, knights and help. And just yeah, I you know, he could be like just a really good, you know, like you know, Haslam or like a really good, you know, Chambadier type, just a person that, you know, you'd look at and go, okay, that guy's gonna play 12 to 15 years. Maybe he doesn't hit all-star, you know, at his worst outcome, but he's gonna be starter quality, you know, for a while. And I think that, you know, I pick three, it would suck for him not to be a star, but at the very least, you're you're you're getting a player that that you could rely on for the next decade, especially to work with Zach Edy, would just be awesome. I think it really comes more up more a little bit more interesting in the pick 16 range here, with the Grizzlies having another pick here, you know, based on my own board, you know, is is kind of tough to wonder who might be there because I've got guys a little bit higher than the the average bear here. But let's just say for for argument's sake, that the Grizzlies get either Cameron Boozer or or Caleb Wilson at three, right? Let's just say, you know, for just they they take whoever they like and like it's a power forward. Okay, so let's just assume that that person's gonna be there starting four going forward, right? So maybe they don't want to go that range at 16 again. So you're kind of wondering, like, okay, so who could be some people there that could be pretty valuable? And if that is the case, uh, you know, I, you know, maybe go, I I could see a person going more wing here. I could see, you know, like a Dalen Swain in this range, could could maybe be you know pretty good. You know, Cameron Carr is getting like a lot of buzz. You know, I see like he could be you know a super, you know, you know, high-scoring, you know, you know, capable person on the wings. I don't see somebody like Jaxel or Mike Hell falling, you know, I mean Alan Graves, but I don't I don't really see him as like a wing of of some type, uh, even though I would be fine with you know him going there. You could also maybe go with like a Bennett Sturts here at 16. You know, he if you don't think that Scottie Pippen's gonna be here, and if you don't sign with the other guards, you know, you bring in Bennett, and then maybe you know you you have Pippen for like maybe one more year as like the stopgap, you know, and then Bennett plays off the bench, he is a very meat and potatoes guard, you know. It's it's it's it's very good at meat and potatoes, but you know, he's not gonna give you a lot of that like flashiness. He just is the best version of Cam Spencer. Like, you know, he's he's a little bit bigger, he's longer, he's a little more athletic, he is more of a true point guard. But like, you know, if you look at Cam Spencer and you go, okay, what would be the the very best version of him? That's what Bennett is. And you know, he's also like a like a really good you know competitor. For a while there, like I was not really on his side, but just after like this last month or so of really just you know diving into things, like I can I can totally see him being a part like a player that can come in and kill it from outside. Also, you know, he can basically set the table for everybody, you know, he's he's dangerous in the lane. So I would be okay with that as well. You know, if somebody like I mean, Christian Anderson will also be in this range. I just don't know if that's somewhere where they would want to go. There's people that like you know Kareem Lopez. I'm not a big fan of him, but I if you think that he could be like, you know, a bigger, small four, I mean, I don't see that. I don't think his his on-ball skill is good enough at this current time. If you want to swing for somebody like Amari Allen, I think is also in there, right? So, I mean, all these guys are are gonna be options, you know. And there's also, you know, like Hannes Steinbach, which is a little tricky because I don't know if he's a four or five. You know, he has skills for both, but he's not really a master of either. You know, there's a corey, there's you know, LeBrand Five, there's so many options here at 16, and they could always trade up, right? So I think there's talent there as well. And then you go to 32, then they have another pick there. And you know, I I guess you know you can kind of like figure out what was going on in that range and to kind of see like maybe who who falls here. I think if for whatever reason, if you know a guy like Azubi Egefor fell at 32, you run to the podium and take that. You know, if somebody like you know Isaiah Evans falls to you there, if there's I don't know, like maybe Amari Allen is there at 32, I think that that's not bad. You know, I mean like there's just so many players in that range that are, I think could give you real, real value in year one and going forward. But you know, for Memphis, they don't need another star as much as they just need lineup coherence overall. It's very exciting in general. I'm so thankful for them to have gotten this pick. It's gonna be a really exciting year. The Grizzlies will be right right back in the thick of things as other teams are beginning to fall off. So super

Bulls At No. 4 Identity Test

SPEAKER_00 27:24

cool stuff. Let's move on to the Chicago Bulls. They need to kind of pick a direction at this point. Their their biggest issue is their identity. It's not really talent, it's not their market, obviously, it's not their cap. You know, it's really just who are they? You know, for a while there, they were this, you know, DeMar DeRozan style team with you know Zach Levine and Busevich. And at one point, man, I really thought they were gonna be really good. When they had, you know, Alonzo Ball and all the things were going on, and he just, you know, him getting injured just so so changed everything. And you look back last 10 years, they've been, I think, the playoffs one time, and they've just been just they haven't qualified for anything, you know, for for at least eight of those years. You know, it's just it's just so depressing. And they've been too stubborn to tank, and they haven't been, they haven't, you know, wanted to spend the money to be better. So, you know, they've just been very, very cheap and you know, just wanting to just be average, and that's that's exactly how it looks. You know, we look at their roster here. Josh Giddy, for better or worse. You know, some nights he looks great, some nights, you know, you don't want it on the court. Uh, Patrick Williams is one of the worst contracts in the NBA. Isaac Akoro is just average. You know, the number four pick coming in could be their best player in like year one. It's it's weird, you know, to say that. And maybe I'm gonna be a little like you know, hyperbolic there, but I I don't know, man. I really like Amache's Bizellas. He was one of my favorite players in that draft a few years ago. I just, you know, very likable kid, super, super bouncy. He showed a lot on on the defensive side as like this, really strong, you know, switch defender, weak side guy. And if his jump shot's slowly coming along, if it gets to where you can trust him around like that, you know, 34-35% range consistently, I think it really unlocks him. You know, Esngay, you know, unfortunately had that terrible, you know, he got dunked on of the the worst dunked poster picture you'll ever see in your life. And you know, since then he's kind of been like this meme, but you know, he it wasn't bad. I think more notably, the Bulls will have a lot of money as well. Currently, they should have around like you know 40 million or so in cap room, which is you know just very, very helpful for them. There, there is so some you know, people falling off the books, like Anthony Simons and you know, Zach Collins and like you know, a few other guys. So they're they should have full runway here to to actually go and get players and spend money. I don't know if they will do those things, and we'll we'll see, right? They have nine first-round picks over the next six uh over the next seven drafts, including their own this year, and then next year that they're they're gonna have Portland's, but it's top 14 protected. So, and and with these new rules coming in, like who knows how that's gonna be. And then after that, they have all of their own picks. Second round picks, they have 14 second-round picks in the next seven drafts, which is you know, super, super cool. And in this one, that they should have two, I believe. So they're gonna have a lot of ammo, man. And like, you know, and you look at, you know, and I I guess it's easy to say, like, you know, whoever falls to four is gonna be, you know, the guy to take. It's probably gonna be Caleb Wilson, which I hate to even say it like that because Caleb Wilson's, you know, has a chance to be a really, really good player. He is incredibly competitive, you know, he has really good size and you know, his frame's a little thin. So I I've always viewed him more as like, you know, it's either like a pure four or as like a four-three. His on-ball ability is pretty solid. He is also a pretty good connective player when when he's kind of one of the lead people in terms of usage, his assist ratio really, really goes up. It goes up from like 18% to around 25%. You know, he takes care of the ball. You know, one of his biggest knocks is his jump shots just not quite there yet. There is some really good pauses where it should scale to a certain degree, where you know, he won't become some kind of like, you know, Kevin Durant or anything, but like, you know, he should be usable to a degree within a few years where you can't just leave him out there all the time. And also he is very athletic. He's he's super quick, uh, he's very, very bouncy. His his second jump is great. His length wasn't where we wanted it to be, and he actually weighed less than what he did at the start of the year. So I man, that which kind of concerns me to a little bit of a degree, but he looks to be a person that could, in theory, because he he doesn't show any crazy defensive numbers based on you know his first year here at North Carolina. But in theory, he shows a lot of the traits that you want in a person who could be incredibly switchable, great at the rim, you know, very active hands. He's got really good feel. So I you know he should get to where you want him to be on defense, and he should be uh like an above average to up to a pretty good defender in general. But you know, it's all about is he gonna work too there or not? You know, is it is it more theory than it is real? You know, based on the fact that he he that this man broke both of his hands training, I I think that you know hard work is something that he he enjoys. And I think that the Chicago people or or in Memphis, I think that they would both just love him from day one. I was trying to think about some trades for them as well. And I just like I again, I don't know if trades make sense, right? You know, it's they were at 10, they got really lucky to move, but you know, because they moved from 10 to 4, maybe they're okay to move back a couple spots. So this is what I had in mind. I thought maybe they could trade with the Nets, right? So they would go from four to six, but they would also be getting Patrick Williams off of their books. So they would send Patrick Williams and the four pick to the Nets. The Nets would send Noah Clowney and Egar Demon to the Bulls at six, and then the Bulls could maybe take a guy like a Yaksel Lindabore, right? So maybe they they don't feel comfortable taking him at four, but at six, you know, then I think that that's you know pretty, pretty, you know, I think people would would be totally okay with that publicly. You know, if if I look at my board to a certain degree here, you know, I mean there's a lot of really good players in that range as well. You know, maybe they go with a a Daimara at six if he's still there, and then basic and then their their their five man is is loaded up there. I think a die could be you know really good for them. He he's pretty active for a guy of his size. He's also a really, really great passer. So, you know, you put him in that fast break system. I just imagine him throwing outlet passes, you know, to to like Imantez Bazelis, you know, and like just like hit like him and Josh Kitty playing off each other. I think that could be really cool. Maybe they go in a different direction, you know. I mean, I don't think that they would take a Darius Ake up here, but maybe you know Keaton Wagner falls for them at six. I think that that that's another, you know, pretty cool possibility that that could happen as well. I just I think that there's the Bulls being at four gives them a ton of options now. And I I don't want Bulls fans thinking like, oh, well, we got the the worst of the four. And it's like, no, man, like you like you went from having probably you know no hope at 10, and now you've got nothing but options. Like, like, like, like you, man, like you y'all are now the the bell of the ball, and y'all can dump Patrick Williams. Like, you know, so like you know, y'all can do so many different things here. And it's a brand new front office, they're incredibly creative. I'm very excited to see what the Bulls do here because I don't know. I mean, like to me, the the NBA is always more exciting with when the Bulls are really good. They're you know, with Jordan in the 90s, it just they became this consummate, like just them, the Knicks, the Celtics, you know, Lakers, you know, like those teams, you know, were all these like legendary teams. And so when they're they're they're down for so long, it just I don't know, it puts like a stain on you when you watch them. So, but yeah, I I I'm be excited for them as well. Uh, you know, if the Bulls stay at four, if it's not Caleb Wilson, I don't I don't know where they would go. I mean, I mean, I mean, ooh, man, I just I I feel like Caleb just it has to be. I mean, like, like even if you don't think he's the guy, I would still just take him and then maybe try to work a trade, you know, throughout the night. I I think that that is just that has to be the pick, just from a a financial standpoint to you know a certain degree here. But yeah, so let me know what you guys think. If I'm way off here, if I'm right, if this is sounding good, you know, but yeah, so these are are the first four

Next Week’s Picks And Sign Off

SPEAKER_00 35:25

picks. Next week we will be doing the next four. So that'll be the Clippers at five, the Nets at six, the Kings at seven, and the Atlanta Hawks at eight. And I think that is really when the draft is really gonna be like really start, is at five. Because the first four players we we know in some kind of combination, those are gonna be the guys, but five and beyond, that's where a lot of this really exciting stuff is gonna happen, where you know, it's all about the eye of the beholder. And man, I'm just I'm just so pumped for for all this stuff to just get going and hear about you know, like who might be going where and certain certain trades and things. Because I feel like teams can start making trades in June. So even like during the finals, you know, like teams can like slowly start making moves, you know. So it's just gonna be such a fun offseason, people. Come back next week and we'll be talking about the next four in the lottery. But as always, remember to watch more basketball. I've been doing this for 10 years.

SPEAKER_01 36:23

This is he's two years away from being two years away, and then we'll see.