Alright, we got the 8th pick, options...

[Bricklayer]

I think Boston's is doing the Love trade and Minnesota will draft Randle at 5 and smart goes to LA at 7

Entirely possible, although who the coach is/what the plan is in L.A. will matter. They are probably trying one of their Lakers instant rebuilds, and aren't going to want to wait on a rookie PG. Whole franchise has been so spoiled by eternal success that don't think hey have any feel for/stomach for a normal draft well/wait for them to develop rebuilding process.

While we must proceed as if we are not, I more than half expect us to do something with our pick on draft night too. remember its encumbered by that lingering JJ Hickson trade, so we can't trade it until after the section is made, so there won't be anything between here and then unless its with Chicago (who controls the pick). But frankly I don't think we're interested in waiting around either if we can find more immediate help.

 

[LPKingsFan]

I'm ok with not being able to trade until the selection is to be made. I'm sure they'll have contingencies ready. I'd be more worried about trading assuming that a guy like Smart won't be there, only to see him fall to 8 after you've already traded down/away.

 

[funkykingston]

I think Boston's is doing the Love trade and Minnesota will draft Randle at 5 and smart goes to LA at 7

That's my guess too though I think Boston is way overpaying for Love if they are giving up #6, #17 and Olynyk and/or Sullinger. I just flat out don't think Kevin Love is a difference maker. And that Celtics team would still be lacking a crunch time scorer because while I think Love does bring a lot to the table, he's not a guy you can dump the ball into and tell him to go get you two points.

And if Minny is making the 6th pick I think Gordon and Randle are likely targets assuming Exum, Wiggins & Parker don't slip.

I like Stauskas as a contributor on a good team. I don't like him as a building block and the Kings are still in need of those. Same can be said of McDermott really. They are the kind of guys you draft when you've already got a core that you can win with and need to surround them with good role players and specialists.

Hard to give up on McLemore after one season. Peja looked equally lost and posted almost the exact same numbers at the same age as Ben in his rookie year. And while Stojakovic had a bigger adjustment as an international player, he'd been playing professionally for four years at that point and Ben came late to basketball as well. McLemore has great form on his jumper, has all the athletic tools he needs and seems to be willing to put in the work. I don't see stardom in his future but I'd be surprised if he's not at least a very good 3&D player soon.

I wouldn't be upset if the Kings drafted Payton, either after a trade down or straight out at #8. Given the way Malone has coached offense I think he's a nice fit and I love his defense.

And if KJ McDaniels ends up falling into the second round I hope the Kings deal for a 2nd rounder and nab him. I think he's going to be an ideal role-player on the wing.

 

[LPKingsFan]

That's my guess too though I think Boston is way overpaying for Love if they are giving up #6, #17 and Olynyk and/or Sullinger.

My guess is that Boston hasn't made that offer yet but all the reports coming out today about Minny being underwhelmed and other teams (Denver?? Golden State, etc) having better changes is likely Minny's (or maybe even Love's agent's) efforts to push them. I wouldn't be surprised if Boston ultimately pulls the trigger.

 

[swisshh]

Just to be on record, of the guys rumored to perhaps be around where the Kings pick or have the interest of the Kings, I'd list my preference as such:

1. Smart
2. Vonleh
3. Tie: Saric/Stauskas/Payton

After that, I'm iffy on most of the other players.

 

[Spike]

Entirely possible, although who the coach is/what the plan is in L.A. will matter. They are probably trying one of their Lakers instant rebuilds, and aren't going to want to wait on a rookie PG. Whole franchise has been so spoiled by eternal success that don't think hey have any feel for/stomach for a normal draft well/wait for them to develop rebuilding process.

While we must proceed as if we are not, I more than half expect us to do something with our pick on draft night too. remember its encumbered by that lingering JJ Hickson trade, so we can't trade it until after the section is made, so there won't be anything between here and then unless its with Chicago (who controls the pick). But frankly I don't think we're interested in waiting around either if we can find more immediate help.

Considering Chicago owns the pick, could it be possible to swing the pick for Chicago's 16th and 19th, removing the conditionality of the pick at the same time? I'm wondering if that's what's on the horizon, considering who the Kings are bringing in to work out. If Chicago is (and they are rumored to be) going all in with Melo, the 8th pick might have some more value, and we might come out quite a bit ahead. I guess it depends on who falls - Smart and/or Vonleh were my hope, but if Randle is still there, I wonder if Chicago would be interested, considering that they would amnesty Boozer anyway.

It's all sausage at this time of the year, but it seems like it could be a win/win for both teams.

 

[Boogie-havoc]

I'm loving Payton the more I see him.

If this kid is a worker and our guys really dig in and verify that as much as they can, then I'm definitely on board with drafting him - even at 8th.

This kid has all the tools. He just need to fine tune some aspects of his game - and ofcourse there's the shooting part where again if he is a willing worker (unlike Tyreke) it'll not be as bad a weakness as it portrays right now.

I really really like that kid. If we could trade back and assure ourselves he's there when we pick while getting rid of a contract and gaining an asset, that's even better.

 

[Nikolizzle]

I'm loving Payton the more I see him.

If this kid is a worker and our guys really dig in and verify that as much as they can, then I'm definitely on board with drafting him - even at 8th.

This kid has all the tools. He just need to fine tune some aspects of his game - and ofcourse there's the shooting part where again if he is a willing worker (unlike Tyreke) it'll not be as bad a weakness as it portrays right now.

I really really like that kid. If we could trade back and assure ourselves he's there when we pick while getting rid of a contract and gaining an asset, that's even better.

I agree, and I read that Chicago is looking to move both of their high picks for a "Proven scorer". Maybe we could move our pick 8 for both of theirs, which they could package to Minny for Love.

Then select both Payton and LaVine.

 

[funkykingston]

I agree, and I read that Chicago is looking to move both of their high picks for a "Proven scorer". Maybe we could move our pick 8 for both of theirs, which they could package to Minny for Love.

Then select both Payton and LaVine.

Honestly my fear with trading back with Chicago is that Payton won't be there at 16. I think he's going to go higher than most mocks are currently projecting.

That said, DX's mock has Payton going at #16 and while they have the Bulls taking James Young at #19 I'd take Clint Capela who they have slotted at #21. Payton and Capela would be a nice haul IMO.

Personally I have no interest in LaVine. He didn't put up good numbers, he looks poor in advanced metrics, doesn't seem to have a great awareness/high BB IQ and I never saw a UCLA game and thought he could be a PG in the NBA so he's really just a raw, athletic prospect at SG and I think we already have a better one in McLemore. At least Ben has textbook form on his jumper.

 

[Mike]

I agree, and I read that Chicago is looking to move both of their high picks for a "Proven scorer". Maybe we could move our pick 8 for both of theirs, which they could package to Minny for Love.

Then select both Payton and LaVine.

Getting the #16 and #19 picks could be useful, but I doubt either of those two guys are still on the board. Payton is a heck of a PG prospect, and if the Magic decide to pass on Exum for Vonleh, or Exum goes top three and the Magic go for whoever falls or Vonleh, then I don't see Payton falling past them at #12. As for LaVine, someone will take a risk on raw, but highly talent kid with elite athleticism.

That said, Chicago's picks can get us two good players. Adreian Payne should be on the board at that stage , and he'd fill a need at PF. Might not be a day one starter, but potentially he could develop into a decent player to pair with Cousins. Napier, Ennis or Clarkson could be available if we want a PG, or we could target someone like Jerami Grant or TJ Warren.

Some nice options. But if I'm being honest I think I'd rather use the #8 pick on one of the top prospects. As we could see Smart, Gordon, or Randle be available at that point. I'd take one of those guys. But I can see the appeal of adding more picks.

Perhaps we trade back slightly with the 76ers for #10 and some second round picks. That would give them the chance to land another 'top' prospect for their rebuild, and would give us the opportunity to select a player like Payton, LaVine, Stauskas, Hood, or McDermott if they desired. All whole holding onto some second round picks that could add some cheap, useful role players.

 

[dude12]

Getting the #16 and #19 picks could be useful, but I doubt either of those two guys are still on the board. Payton is a heck of a PG prospect, and if the Magic decide to pass on Exum for Vonleh, or Exum goes top three and the Magic go for whoever falls or Vonleh, then I don't see Payton falling past them at #12. As for LaVine, someone will take a risk on raw, but highly talent kid with elite athleticism.

That said, Chicago's picks can get us two good players. Adreian Payne should be on the board at that stage , and he'd fill a need at PF. Might not be a day one starter, but potentially he could develop into a decent player to pair with Cousins. Napier, Ennis or Clarkson could be available if we want a PG, or we could target someone like Jerami Grant or TJ Warren.

Some nice options. But if I'm being honest I think I'd rather use the #8 pick on one of the top prospects. As we could see Smart, Gordon, or Randle be available at that point. I'd take one of those guys. But I can see the appeal of adding more picks.

Perhaps we trade back slightly with the 76ers for #10 and some second round picks. That would give them the chance to land another 'top' prospect for their rebuild, and would give us the opportunity to select a player like Payton, LaVine, Stauskas, Hood, or McDermott if they desired. All whole holding onto some second round picks that could add some cheap, useful role players.

I read a tweet that Sac liked Payton more than Smart....whether that's true or not, your idea of trading down to 10 and picking up some 2nd round picks is not a bad idea at all if Sac likes Payton or Stauskus or others as much as who may fall.

In the NBA, you win with stars ( there's more to it but in a nutshell, you need stars), and in the NBA draft the goal is trying to acquire potential stars if there might be one available when you pick....seems to me that trading down to 16 and 19 would be adding 2 role players at best, when we have role players or can acquire them in FA or by trade. At 8 we still got a chance to acquire a potential star.....it's why I would go after Smart, Gordon, Randle, Vonleh, whomever is still there at 8 and if they think Payton fits that mold then him too......I don't see the Stauskus' and McDermott's and Payne's as potential stars, not that they can't be productive.

 

[Albatros]

Embid has done something to his foot.

He is going to slide most probably.

 

[dude12]

It's being reported that Embiid may have broken his foot in the last few days....report is on espn, but I was reading several tweets from different sources.

Talk about potentially throwing the draft into chaos....maybe Embiid falls to us?

 

[Dime Dropper]

Wow... If true, do everything to trade up a few spots for him. I don't even care if he has to sit out the year. Depends on the injury I guess, but take the chance. Even if it is a break, I find it hard to believe that he'll fall as far as 8. Maybe 5 or even 6, but I can't see him falling further.

 

[LPKingsFan]

Considering Chicago owns the pick, could it be possible to swing the pick for Chicago's 16th and 19th, removing the conditionality of the pick at the same time? I'm wondering if that's what's on the horizon, considering who the Kings are bringing in to work out. If Chicago is (and they are rumored to be) going all in with Melo, the 8th pick might have some more value, and we might come out quite a bit ahead. I guess it depends on who falls - Smart and/or Vonleh were my hope, but if Randle is still there, I wonder if Chicago would be interested, considering that they would amnesty Boozer anyway.

It's all sausage at this time of the year, but it seems like it could be a win/win for both teams.

The rumors are that the Bulls have been discussing a swap of 16 and 19 with the Nuggets for 11, so I'm sure they'd be interested if we offered the 8 for that package.

As I said before, though, I wouldn't do that if Smart was available at 8.

 

[LPKingsFan]

Wow... If true, do everything to trade up a few spots for him. I don't even care if he has to sit out the year. Depends on the injury I guess, but take the chance. Even if it is a break, I find it hard to believe that he'll fall as far as 8. Maybe 5 or even 6, but I can't see him falling further.

Yeah, if he falls to five I'm calling the Jazz and offering the ABC ("anything but Cousins") package. I could see Ben and one of the PFs available at 8 actually rounding out their lineup nicely: Burke/Ben/Hayward/rookie/Favors, no?

 

[Tetsujin]

These stories always make me roll my eyes every year. The NBA is generally a more forgiving landscape than the NFL when it comes to draft picks. Whereas an injury suffered in the build-up to the draft may drop an NFL prospect a few rounds, I generally don't see it happening with NBA prospects, especially with big men. Passing on a big man who could possibly give them a piece they've been missing since Big Z was still Little Z is precisely why Cleveland keeps winding up in a position to win the draft lottery every year. And certainly, if they pass on Embiid, he's definitely not going to last past the Bucks (eager to draft any good player with a pulse and grappling with Larry Sanders's implosion) or the Sixers (who have Noel coming back off of his own foot injury and would probably love to have their frontcourt set for the next decade).

Size still wins in the NBA and, though no one wants to be the guy who picked the next Greg Oden, nobody wants to be the dude who passed on the next Hakeem.

 

[LPKingsFan]

These stories always make me roll my eyes every year. The NBA is generally a more forgiving landscape than the NFL when it comes to draft picks. Whereas an injury suffered in the build-up to the draft may drop an NFL prospect a few rounds, I generally don't see it happening with NBA prospects, especially with big men. Passing on a big man who could possibly give them a piece they've been missing since Big Z was still Little Z is precisely why Cleveland keeps winding up in a position to win the draft lottery every year. And certainly, if they pass on Embiid, he's definitely not going to last past the Bucks (eager to draft any good player with a pulse and grappling with Larry Sanders's implosion) or the Sixers (who have Noel coming back off of his own foot injury and would probably love to have their frontcourt set for the next decade).

Size still wins in the NBA and, though no one wants to be the guy who picked the next Greg Oden, nobody wants to be the dude who passed on the next Hakeem.

Sure, some of this is wishful thinking. But it's not like an injured big who was supposed to be a top pick has never slid before (see Noel, Nerlens). And given that many seem to consider Embiid, Wiggins and Parker on the same tier, with Exum and Smart considered close in some circles (including the team with the 4th pick), seeing him slide to 5 isn't that far fetched. If I were the Cavs of course I would still pick him, but the owner seems to have imposed a win-now mandate, so you never know...

 

[Jerichoholic]

Sure, some of this is wishful thinking. But it's not like an injured big who was supposed to be a top pick has never slid before (see Noel, Nerlens). And given that many seem to consider Embiid, Wiggins and Parker on the same tier, with Exum and Smart considered close in some circles (including the team with the 4th pick), seeing him slide to 5 isn't that far fetched. If I were the Cavs of course I would still pick him, but the owner seems to have imposed a win-now mandate, so you never know...

I don't think this will affect the Kings too much. He may slide some, but not down to us. Probably still top 3 with his talent. Definitely a concern though, with the back and potentially the foot you just have to wonder when the knee happens.

 

[Tetsujin]

Sure, some of this is wishful thinking. But it's not like an injured big who was supposed to be a top pick has never slid before (see Noel, Nerlens). And given that many seem to consider Embiid, Wiggins and Parker on the same tier, with Exum and Smart considered close in some circles (including the team with the 4th pick), seeing him slide to 5 isn't that far fetched. If I were the Cavs of course I would still pick him, but the owner seems to have imposed a win-now mandate, so you never know...

A little different in his case though. He never displayed as much potential as Embiid did offensively and knee tendon injuries tend to draw more attention than bone breaks for whatever reason.

 

[Capt. Factorial]

Sure, some of this is wishful thinking. But it's not like an injured big who was supposed to be a top pick has never slid before (see Noel, Nerlens).

The difference between Noel and Embiid is that Noel was the presumed #1 by default in a really weak draft. He had extenuating circumstances as well - an incredibly skinny and not super tall zero-offense shotblocker who relied on athleticism and tore an ACL. Embiid, on the other hand, reached out and seized the #1 ranking in a strong to very strong draft, passing up two very good #1 candidates to do it. He's a two-way player with a chance to be the best big man in the game with legitimate size with a package that includes athleticism and skill.

Noel slid because he really hadn't separated himself and the injury he had already sustained made his future prospects a bit more questionable. A broken foot in and of itself won't ruin Embiid - he'll recover from that fine. The question is whether he's fragile and whether this bodes ill for the future.

Anyway, I don't really think Embiid falls past three even with the worst medical possible on the foot. It's just going to be too hard to pass on him.

 

[Dime Dropper]

I would not at all be surprised if Cleveland took Exum number 1. They're never afraid to take a risk and shock everyone. In fact, it's like they enjoy doing it (maybe their GM is a business hipster). If such an unlikelihood were to arise, you could easily see Parker going 2nd and Wiggins 3rd to Philly. That means Embiid is likely gone at to the Magic unless they really do love Smart as much as rumoured, or 5 to Utah. Not a likely scenario, but wouldn't shock me after the latest news. Don't see Embiid dropping past 5 either way.

 

[randymoss1881]

Embiids injury is a game changer. I really hope we are willing to give Beb up for Embiid.
1. Even if it's a broken foot I would give up Ben/8 to get him.
2. If the Bucks pick him then u think we can get Sanders for the 8 pick.
3. If he falls out the top 3 I think he might fall all the way to Boston at 6 with Exum and Smart passing him.
Hopefully Boston loved Gordon enough to trade there pick back to us for Ben.

 

[Mass]

The big news about Embiid could really change the shape of this draft... draft day will ben fun.

If he's there at 8, I would take him anyways.

 

[Gary]

Nah, I don't think it changes the draft much (if at all). Most certainly I don't think it moves him out of the top 5 and I still believe the top 7 will remain the top 7. I cannot see any one of the top 7 players falling out of the top 7. Embiid, Parker, Wiggins, Randle, Smart, Exum, Vonleh are all going to stay pretty much 1-7 (in no particular order).

 

[hrdboild]

Hmm, apparently it's a stress fracture. You could play off the back issue since it looks like he's fully recovered but stress fractures have been the bane of many a center's career. Yao Ming, Bill Walton, Big Z, Bogut. That's what took down Brook Lopez this season too. It makes it hard to take him #1. The red flags are there and so will be the backlash if the problems persist. Milwaukee has to think twice after losing Bogut's promising early career to injuries. Philly apparently wants Wiggins regardless. Orlando needs a PG badly. I could see Embiid sliding signficantly because of this. Maybe to Utah or Minnesota (by way of Boston).

 

[upinsmoke]

Foot AND back injuries for a big! YEESH

 

[HereWeBoogie]

This Embiid news probably hurts our chances of Vonleh or Smart falling to #8

 

[Bricklayer]

This Embiid news probably hurts our chances of Vonleh or Smart falling to #8

There is so much smoke at this point its pouring out of PDAs ears. I'm increasingly going to be surprised if we are picking for ourself that night.

Thing is, in order for the Embiid news to hurt our chances of drafting those guys, Embiid himself would have to tumble all the way down into our lap. That would be interesting. Forego hope of immediate improvement for the risky home run shot?

 

[Chupacabra]

When Sports Center aired the Embiid news they also showed a top 10 mock draft along with it and for what it's worth they had the Kings taking Payton at #8.