[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

I’m tired of hearing everybody say "If they would have drafted Evans, it would have ruined them as an offense."

 

I highly doubt that would be the case. Look, you trade Russell Westbrook for a player like Kevin Love.

 

You play Evans at the 1, Durant at the 2, Green at the 3, Love at the 4, get a solid defensive 5.

 

And yeah Evans is a ball dominant guard, but so is Westbrook. And let’s face it, Durant doesn’t need the ball to score, he is a VERY good spot up shooter and coming off screens which would have just helped Evans when he was driving because defender would have to remember about Durant.

[TyroberParticipant]

 Durant at the 2 did not work. Just because he shoots like a shooting guard doesnt make him one. He is a small forward and thats what he plays. Also , James Harden was the clear pick to me. Westbrook did not want the thunder drafting a pointguard and thats what Evans was being labeled as. James Harden isnt going to be the superstar Evans is, but he is going to be a very good player. Hardens game compliments Westbrooks and Durants very well and I still agree with the pick.

[TyroberParticipant]

 Durant at the 2 did not work. Just because he shoots like a shooting guard doesnt make him one. He is a small forward and thats what he plays. Also , James Harden was the clear pick to me. Westbrook did not want the thunder drafting a pointguard and thats what Evans was being labeled as. James Harden isnt going to be the superstar Evans is, but he is going to be a very good player. Hardens game compliments Westbrooks and Durants very well and I still agree with the pick.

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Okay, I’m not saying Harden isn’t good whatsoever. But they could have gotten a trade down during the draft for Kevin Love. They can keep Durant at the 3 and Green at the 4, put Love at the 5 or simply trade Green for a player say like, Kirk Hinrich. Now you have Evans, Hinrich, Durant, Love, and a center.

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Okay, I’m not saying Harden isn’t good whatsoever. But they could have gotten a trade down during the draft for Kevin Love. They can keep Durant at the 3 and Green at the 4, put Love at the 5 or simply trade Green for a player say like, Kirk Hinrich. Now you have Evans, Hinrich, Durant, Love, and a center.

[TyroberParticipant]

Why do you think the Wolves would be interested in trading Kevin Love? Kahn had his eyes set on Rubio during that draft anyway. 

[TyroberParticipant]

Why do you think the Wolves would be interested in trading Kevin Love? Kahn had his eyes set on Rubio during that draft anyway. 

[llperez]

are we sure evans is gonna be better then westbrook?

[llperez]

are we sure evans is gonna be better then westbrook?

[mgreener_34Participant]

 I don’t feel like Harden was a bad pick solely on the fact that Curry and Evans are the only players in the draft that are better then him at the moment. Evans doesn’t offer what they needed, but I think if they had traded down a spot and taken Curry then they would have had a even deadlier team with his scoring off the bench, and Thabs defense in the starting 5. 

[mgreener_34Participant]

 I don’t feel like Harden was a bad pick solely on the fact that Curry and Evans are the only players in the draft that are better then him at the moment. Evans doesn’t offer what they needed, but I think if they had traded down a spot and taken Curry then they would have had a even deadlier team with his scoring off the bench, and Thabs defense in the starting 5. 

[The Splash DocParticipant]

Evans was the pick for me if I’m in OKC’s shoes mainly because with Evans and Westbrook you have 2 huge trade assets moving 1 can get you a player that will take over the top. I mean Evans going for 20-5-5 a night and Durant getting 30-8-3. Green could lead the 2nd unit, Sefolosha is the defensive stopper. Ibaka at the 4 and trading Westbrook to maybe Indiana when they needed a PG for Hibbert and putting him at the 5

Evans-Sefolosha-Durant-Ibaka-Hibbert

Green-Maynor-Aldrich-Cook

WOW

[The Splash DocParticipant]

Evans was the pick for me if I’m in OKC’s shoes mainly because with Evans and Westbrook you have 2 huge trade assets moving 1 can get you a player that will take over the top. I mean Evans going for 20-5-5 a night and Durant getting 30-8-3. Green could lead the 2nd unit, Sefolosha is the defensive stopper. Ibaka at the 4 and trading Westbrook to maybe Indiana when they needed a PG for Hibbert and putting him at the 5

Evans-Sefolosha-Durant-Ibaka-Hibbert

Green-Maynor-Aldrich-Cook

WOW

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Yeah the Twolves had Rubio but they drafted Flynn as insurance incase Rubio didn’t come. So why not have Evans instead of Flynn? and plus, Love hadn’t came into his own and Jefferson was still doing work.

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Yeah the Twolves had Rubio but they drafted Flynn as insurance incase Rubio didn’t come. So why not have Evans instead of Flynn? and plus, Love hadn’t came into his own and Jefferson was still doing work.

[nuffsaid_2001Participant]

Please advice what team evans is playing for and the green light option that he has. He is a very ball dominant, to me his statistics are good because his team is in the rebuilding stage and is not that good. Let’s take a moment to look in the past at  a JR Smith who stormed the league with scoring his rookie year. Evans is solid but with a green light I think Harden would average 2 points less and maybe 2 assist less than evans. Also to me westbrook a better prospect because he has more PG skills what you need.

They have a nice team and they are similar to the blazers talent wise, Durant has to push them over the top. I say in 2 years were looking at best a nice western conference champ. run and thats top end.

[nuffsaid_2001Participant]

Please advice what team evans is playing for and the green light option that he has. He is a very ball dominant, to me his statistics are good because his team is in the rebuilding stage and is not that good. Let’s take a moment to look in the past at  a JR Smith who stormed the league with scoring his rookie year. Evans is solid but with a green light I think Harden would average 2 points less and maybe 2 assist less than evans. Also to me westbrook a better prospect because he has more PG skills what you need.

They have a nice team and they are similar to the blazers talent wise, Durant has to push them over the top. I say in 2 years were looking at best a nice western conference champ. run and thats top end.

[Cardinal_FanParticipant]

 Westbrook will only get better an develope more in2 the point guard they need, u have 2 remember this is a new position for him an he is learning it on the fly at the highest level. Also i dont even think sacramento is sold on Evans being the long term answer at the 1. I think if they get a shot at Kyrie Irving or Brandon Knight they will draft them because then you will have a situation like washingtons, meaning John Wall is going to come in an spread the ball around to not only Arenas but make Javale McGee a much better player while also creating there other young talent such as Al Thornton, Nick Young, Andray Blatche, and Trevor Booker. The kings have alot of young talent and bringing in a stud prospect and making Evans your primary scorer which is wut he does best will only make them a better team.

[Cardinal_FanParticipant]

 Westbrook will only get better an develope more in2 the point guard they need, u have 2 remember this is a new position for him an he is learning it on the fly at the highest level. Also i dont even think sacramento is sold on Evans being the long term answer at the 1. I think if they get a shot at Kyrie Irving or Brandon Knight they will draft them because then you will have a situation like washingtons, meaning John Wall is going to come in an spread the ball around to not only Arenas but make Javale McGee a much better player while also creating there other young talent such as Al Thornton, Nick Young, Andray Blatche, and Trevor Booker. The kings have alot of young talent and bringing in a stud prospect and making Evans your primary scorer which is wut he does best will only make them a better team.

[mj23mj23besteverParticipant]

great post about durant not being able to play the 2 is a 3 for sure in the leauge and imo evans wouldnt work with the thunder because how ball dominant he is harden is the perfect 6th man for the thunder coming off the bench to provide instant offense

[mj23mj23besteverParticipant]

great post about durant not being able to play the 2 is a 3 for sure in the leauge and imo evans wouldnt work with the thunder because how ball dominant he is harden is the perfect 6th man for the thunder coming off the bench to provide instant offense

[Zan TabakParticipant]

i think giving Prestis’ early track record it is pretty damn hard to second guess the man, they already had a very solid young pg with westbrook with a need for a do it all SG like harden, suure Tyreke put up big numbers on an awful sac team but OKC looks like a potential future dynsasty with harden being a vital complimentary peice, id want to keep the ball in KDs hands ans much as possible and i dont think drafting Tyrke allows for that

[Zan TabakParticipant]

i think giving Prestis’ early track record it is pretty damn hard to second guess the man, they already had a very solid young pg with westbrook with a need for a do it all SG like harden, suure Tyreke put up big numbers on an awful sac team but OKC looks like a potential future dynsasty with harden being a vital complimentary peice, id want to keep the ball in KDs hands ans much as possible and i dont think drafting Tyrke allows for that

[TC_42Participant]

Bill Simmons wrote an article on this awhile back, and he thought Evans would have been nice for OKC, but the better pick would have been Curry. He kind of convinces me.

 

"I think I want to know what life would have been like if Oklahoma City had taken Stephen Curry or Tyreke Evans over James Harden.

 

 

Sam Presti probably made the right choice. Repeat: probably. When you have someone like Kevin Durant (the best younger-than-25 scorer since Jordan), you borrow the Pippen-Grant-Cartwright recipe, surround that guy with flexible role players, and worry about chemistry and defense before anything else. I get it.

 

 

But just for fun … I mean … don’t you wonder how the Curry/Evans directions would have turned out? I wish we could play them out in an alternate universe "Lost"-style just to see what would happen. My best guesses:

 

 

The Evans Universe: Makes the Zombie Sonics better on paper, screws them up in real life. Russell Westbrook would be threatened as the primary playmaker/distributor; Durant would be threatened as the alpha dog. From a chemistry standpoint, I’m dubious. I just don’t think you need him. Think of it this way: I’m already making you dinner with Durant as my main course. He’s the $200 slab of filet mignon on the bone. We’re at a table with 10 other people. We’re chowing down. We already have a Caesar salad (Westbrook), cream of mushroom soup (Serge Ibaka), potatoes au gratin (Jeff Green), asparagus (Thabo Sefolosha), sweet potatoes (Eric Maynor) and the filet (Durant). Harden is delicious corn bread done southwestern-style; Evans is a $150 rack of lamb. Do I really need the lamb? If I brought that out, wouldn’t you say, "Good God, this is too much food; I’m gonna have a heart attack!" It might be delicious, but I don’t need it. I need the corn bread.

 

The Curry Universe: Much more intriguing. Fits in from a chemistry standpoint. Hurts them defensively, but you can always get away with one squeaky wheel if the other four wheels are humming. (See: Parker, Tony.) Doesn’t totally threaten Westbrook; as we saw with the Curry-Monta Ellis experiment this season, Curry floats between both guard spots effortlessly. And the shooting … I mean … good God. Nobody could ever double Durant with Curry’s guy. Beyond that, alt-OKC would have two younger-than-22 shooters with 28-foot range and two 50-40-90 (field goal-3 point-free throw) percentage threats year after year. Could it find another Harden-like talent through the draft or free agency? Yes. Could it find another Curry-like talent? No. He’s an original prototype. I like this universe more than Harden World. Sorry."

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/part1/100416&sportCat=nba

 

[TC_42Participant]

Bill Simmons wrote an article on this awhile back, and he thought Evans would have been nice for OKC, but the better pick would have been Curry. He kind of convinces me.

 

"I think I want to know what life would have been like if Oklahoma City had taken Stephen Curry or Tyreke Evans over James Harden.

 

 

Sam Presti probably made the right choice. Repeat: probably. When you have someone like Kevin Durant (the best younger-than-25 scorer since Jordan), you borrow the Pippen-Grant-Cartwright recipe, surround that guy with flexible role players, and worry about chemistry and defense before anything else. I get it.

 

 

But just for fun … I mean … don’t you wonder how the Curry/Evans directions would have turned out? I wish we could play them out in an alternate universe "Lost"-style just to see what would happen. My best guesses:

 

 

The Evans Universe: Makes the Zombie Sonics better on paper, screws them up in real life. Russell Westbrook would be threatened as the primary playmaker/distributor; Durant would be threatened as the alpha dog. From a chemistry standpoint, I’m dubious. I just don’t think you need him. Think of it this way: I’m already making you dinner with Durant as my main course. He’s the $200 slab of filet mignon on the bone. We’re at a table with 10 other people. We’re chowing down. We already have a Caesar salad (Westbrook), cream of mushroom soup (Serge Ibaka), potatoes au gratin (Jeff Green), asparagus (Thabo Sefolosha), sweet potatoes (Eric Maynor) and the filet (Durant). Harden is delicious corn bread done southwestern-style; Evans is a $150 rack of lamb. Do I really need the lamb? If I brought that out, wouldn’t you say, "Good God, this is too much food; I’m gonna have a heart attack!" It might be delicious, but I don’t need it. I need the corn bread.

 

The Curry Universe: Much more intriguing. Fits in from a chemistry standpoint. Hurts them defensively, but you can always get away with one squeaky wheel if the other four wheels are humming. (See: Parker, Tony.) Doesn’t totally threaten Westbrook; as we saw with the Curry-Monta Ellis experiment this season, Curry floats between both guard spots effortlessly. And the shooting … I mean … good God. Nobody could ever double Durant with Curry’s guy. Beyond that, alt-OKC would have two younger-than-22 shooters with 28-foot range and two 50-40-90 (field goal-3 point-free throw) percentage threats year after year. Could it find another Harden-like talent through the draft or free agency? Yes. Could it find another Curry-like talent? No. He’s an original prototype. I like this universe more than Harden World. Sorry."

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/part1/100416&sportCat=nba

 

[rtbtParticipant]

I said this before the draft, when you’re in the top five you should never draft by position. Whenever you have an opportunity to get an elite player, go for it. Always remember, the opportunity get one of the top three players in the country doesn’t happen  very often. You have to strike and take advantage of that rare chance.

And in this case, you had Harden, who will probably become a decent or a good player, versus Tyreke Evans who might turn into an All Star very soon.

Drafting by position is almost always a mistake because NBA rosters change so quickly. Within 2-3 years after the draft, you might have a very different starting lineup. Besides, if you get an elite player, you can always engineer trades to build around him.

[rtbtParticipant]

I said this before the draft, when you’re in the top five you should never draft by position. Whenever you have an opportunity to get an elite player, go for it. Always remember, the opportunity get one of the top three players in the country doesn’t happen  very often. You have to strike and take advantage of that rare chance.

And in this case, you had Harden, who will probably become a decent or a good player, versus Tyreke Evans who might turn into an All Star very soon.

Drafting by position is almost always a mistake because NBA rosters change so quickly. Within 2-3 years after the draft, you might have a very different starting lineup. Besides, if you get an elite player, you can always engineer trades to build around him.

[kobyzParticipant]

in retroactively i’m still drafting Harden if i’m the Thunder, Harden will be very good piece for the team, Tyrke Evans is much less than his numbers tell, he has problems in his game that his numbers like came on behalf of wining!

[kobyzParticipant]

in retroactively i’m still drafting Harden if i’m the Thunder, Harden will be very good piece for the team, Tyrke Evans is much less than his numbers tell, he has problems in his game that his numbers like came on behalf of wining!

[rtbtParticipant]

They had  a choice between Harden, who will probably become a decent or a good player, versus Tyreke Evans who might turn into an All Star very soon.

When you’re in the top five of the first round, drafting by position is almost always a mistake. Why? Because NBA rosters change so quickly. Within 2-3 years after the draft, you might have a very different starting lineup. Besides, if you get an elite player, you can always engineer trades to build around him.

Harden will never be an elite player while Tyreke has the potential to become a great one.

[rtbtParticipant]

They had  a choice between Harden, who will probably become a decent or a good player, versus Tyreke Evans who might turn into an All Star very soon.

When you’re in the top five of the first round, drafting by position is almost always a mistake. Why? Because NBA rosters change so quickly. Within 2-3 years after the draft, you might have a very different starting lineup. Besides, if you get an elite player, you can always engineer trades to build around him.

Harden will never be an elite player while Tyreke has the potential to become a great one.

[BasketBalAllanParticipant]

People seem to be forgetting the fact that Tyreke Evans was not thought of as a PG until the Kings decided to make him their primary ball handler and start him at PG. Infact both Harden and Tyreke were considered to be SG’s at the time of the draft; infact there are still people who consider Tyreke a SG.

 

As a person who was paying very close attention to who might be available at the fourth pick I can remember something very well that most others seem to have forgotten; that Harden was thought of as a more talented and more NBA ready player than Tyreke. This whole idea that the Thunder were trying not to take Evans because, even though they might have known he was better, they wanted a SG who would fit better with their team, is completely flawed. I remember people talking about how Harden and Griffin would be competing for ROY because they were NBA ready and going to be good players in their rookie years. If the Thunder would have known that Tyreke was so much better than people thought, I would be willing to put money on them taking him at 3.

 

This was what most thought of Tyreke at the time: http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/omg-who-wants-see-worst-mock-ever-so-called-expert

http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/tyreke-evans-4 

 

A little bit about the Thunders draft right after it happened (do you still think the reactions would be the same if we analyzed it now?): http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/winners-and-losers

[BasketBalAllanParticipant]

People seem to be forgetting the fact that Tyreke Evans was not thought of as a PG until the Kings decided to make him their primary ball handler and start him at PG. Infact both Harden and Tyreke were considered to be SG’s at the time of the draft; infact there are still people who consider Tyreke a SG.

 

As a person who was paying very close attention to who might be available at the fourth pick I can remember something very well that most others seem to have forgotten; that Harden was thought of as a more talented and more NBA ready player than Tyreke. This whole idea that the Thunder were trying not to take Evans because, even though they might have known he was better, they wanted a SG who would fit better with their team, is completely flawed. I remember people talking about how Harden and Griffin would be competing for ROY because they were NBA ready and going to be good players in their rookie years. If the Thunder would have known that Tyreke was so much better than people thought, I would be willing to put money on them taking him at 3.

 

This was what most thought of Tyreke at the time: http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/omg-who-wants-see-worst-mock-ever-so-called-expert

http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/tyreke-evans-4 

 

A little bit about the Thunders draft right after it happened (do you still think the reactions would be the same if we analyzed it now?): http://www.nbadraft.net/forum/winners-and-losers

[rtbtParticipant]

BasketBalAllan, I disagree with your assessment above and stated so several times before the draft. I do agree with your other statement that both Harden and Evans were considered SGs and I still think that’s true.

I watched both guys in college and was never overly impressed with Harden. My assessment of him at AZ State was that he would probably become a significant role player in the NBA. And if he was on the just the right team for his talents, I could envision Harden becoming a starter.

However, Tyreke Evans had what I thought  of as the X factor, star qualities. You could see he was something special and had elite talent that made him stand out. If I’m drafting in the top five, I’m taking advantage of that rare opportunity to go for the elite talent.

As I mentioned above, NBA rosters change dramatically over a 2-3 year period so I would never draft for position early in the first round. However, if I’m drafting in the latter half of the first round, then drafting for a specific need makes more sense because you don’t have to worry about the risk of missing out on a potential star.

Once again, I could easily envision Tyreke Evans becoming  a perennial All Star, but I see Harden’s career as that of an average player. For me this choice was a no brainer.

[onfish2000Participant]

Oviously, the thunders made a big mistake.  If the thunders wanted a role player they should of traded for trevor ariza.  he would of  been a better complimentary piece to durant and westbrook with his defensive skills as well as his ability to hit open shots. there are many  good complimentary players in the league like harden,  however stars like evans are harder to find.  im not sure why this is even a debate.

[onfish2000Participant]

Oviously, the thunders made a big mistake.  If the thunders wanted a role player they should of traded for trevor ariza.  he would of  been a better complimentary piece to durant and westbrook with his defensive skills as well as his ability to hit open shots. there are many  good complimentary players in the league like harden,  however stars like evans are harder to find.  im not sure why this is even a debate.

[rtbtParticipant]

BasketBalAllan, I disagree with your assessment above and stated so several times before the draft. I do agree with your other statement that both Harden and Evans were considered SGs and I still think that’s true.

I watched both guys in college and was never overly impressed with Harden. My assessment of him at AZ State was that he would probably become a significant role player in the NBA. And if he was on the just the right team for his talents, I could envision Harden becoming a starter.

However, Tyreke Evans had what I thought  of as the X factor, star qualities. You could see he was something special and had elite talent that made him stand out. If I’m drafting in the top five, I’m taking advantage of that rare opportunity to go for the elite talent.

As I mentioned above, NBA rosters change dramatically over a 2-3 year period so I would never draft for position early in the first round. However, if I’m drafting in the latter half of the first round, then drafting for a specific need makes more sense because you don’t have to worry about the risk of missing out on a potential star.

Once again, I could easily envision Tyreke Evans becoming  a perennial All Star, but I see Harden’s career as that of an average player. For me this choice was a no brainer.

[SteroidParticipant]

It’s sad to see some of these teams miss out on great prospects because they go for the "safe" or logical pick. Ask Memphis.. In no way did OKC hurt themselves or waste a pick in picking Harden, but they could have gotten much more bang for their buck with that pick, in retrospect.  Harden was a safe pick, but I would rather have a log jam of good, all-star caliber prospects.  That is a good thing in my eyes. You can make moves through trades or keep what you got and create mismatches every night. At the VERY best, I could see Harden becoming a 1-2 time all-star, and KD would be the main reason why he’d become one, not himself… Harden will be a good, solid player in the NBA, but I doubt he will be anything more than that. If Evans keep progressing positively, he will become a superstar.

[SteroidParticipant]

It’s sad to see some of these teams miss out on great prospects because they go for the "safe" or logical pick. Ask Memphis.. In no way did OKC hurt themselves or waste a pick in picking Harden, but they could have gotten much more bang for their buck with that pick, in retrospect.  Harden was a safe pick, but I would rather have a log jam of good, all-star caliber prospects.  That is a good thing in my eyes. You can make moves through trades or keep what you got and create mismatches every night. At the VERY best, I could see Harden becoming a 1-2 time all-star, and KD would be the main reason why he’d become one, not himself… Harden will be a good, solid player in the NBA, but I doubt he will be anything more than that. If Evans keep progressing positively, he will become a superstar.

[The Scare Crow ReturnsParticipant]

and Welcome to the site…they’ll haze you later

[The Scare Crow ReturnsParticipant]

and Welcome to the site…they’ll haze you later

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