OT: Detroit Pistons selecting 8th

Submitted by BursleysFinest on May 19th, 2015 at 9:06 PM

So the NBA just completed their draft lottery, the Detroit Pistons are drafting 8th. According to sites I've seen, players listed around 8th best are a couple of foreign prospects (Mario Hezonga out of Croatia and Kristaps Porzingis out of Latvia) and Stanley Johnson. Full draft order:

1. Minnesota Timberwolves

2. LA Lakers

3. Philly 76ers

4. New York Knicks

5. Orlanda Magic

6. Sac. Kings

7. Nuggets

8. Pistons

9. Hornets

10. Miami Heat

11. Pacers

12. Utah Jazz

13. Phoenix Suns

14. OKC Thunder

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Kenny Loggins

May 19th, 2015 at 9:38 PM ^

phrasing

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Evil Empire

May 20th, 2015 at 10:08 AM ^

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Greg McMurtry

May 20th, 2015 at 9:10 AM ^

Try Craigslist

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rbgoblue

May 19th, 2015 at 9:21 PM ^

So the T wolves will have 3 straight #1over all draft picks on their roster. They must be pissed the Cavs threw away the '13 pick on Bennett.

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Qmatic

May 20th, 2015 at 1:14 AM ^

I said it at the time and everyone thought I was crazy, but the Cavs should have drafted Noel

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mGrowOld

May 20th, 2015 at 6:53 AM ^

Yah...things havent worked out at ALL here in Cleveland after we picked that fat tub of goo Bennett. Poor us.

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WorldwideTJRob

May 20th, 2015 at 9:26 AM ^

Lol...lucky bastards *shaking fist*

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West German Judge

May 19th, 2015 at 9:21 PM ^

Just happy that we didn't move down in the lottery like we did in three of the last five drafts. Hope we get a SF.

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Bergs

May 19th, 2015 at 9:22 PM ^

Please no foreign prospects. I may just be scarred from Darko, but they seem to be way more boom or bust than the guys fresh out of college.

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carlos spicywiener

May 19th, 2015 at 9:29 PM ^

Mario might be the most exciting foreign prospect in years. but cant say I blame you

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BlueCube

May 19th, 2015 at 10:39 PM ^

Dumars doing the drafting.

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mackbru

May 19th, 2015 at 10:35 PM ^

Yeah. Because one guy didn't work out a zillion years ago, let's avoid foreign players. It's a smaller world now with better scouting.

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East German Judge

May 19th, 2015 at 11:10 PM ^

I agree with you completely as we can't afford another Darko 2.0. I know it is a crapshoot taking one of the "one and dones", but it it seems to be easier to gauge their S&W vs. kids out of Europe as people look good on film, but often hard to gauge their level of competition.

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Leonhall

May 19th, 2015 at 9:29 PM ^

Pistons have become the Milwaukee Bucks. Shitty enough to always get the 8-12 pick. Worthless.

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BornSinner

May 19th, 2015 at 9:36 PM ^

That's the problem with the NBA ... you either have to be really good or really bad. In between is just horrible unless you luck out and hire a great up and coming coach like Budenholzer and the Hawks.

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Ronnie Kaye

May 19th, 2015 at 9:54 PM ^

Unless you're the Cavs. Then you can be so-so and still get the first pick while the league pushes for a "heartwarming return" story with LeBron.

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Evil Empire

May 20th, 2015 at 10:14 AM ^

it's that pro sports leagues do everything they can to ensure Cleveland teams are championship contenders.

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antidaily

May 19th, 2015 at 10:34 PM ^

And which good team has been built around draft picks?

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GRBluefan

May 19th, 2015 at 11:04 PM ^

(Curry, KlaY, green, Barnes), OKC (Durant, Westbrook, ibaka), Portland (lillard, Aldridge, Batum), San Antonio (Duncan, Parker, ginobli, Leonard). All their key players were drafted, at least as far as I can recall. Technically Leonard was a trade, but he only played for the Spurs.

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antidaily

May 20th, 2015 at 11:50 AM ^

Half weren't lottery picks though and the ones that were were selected mid round.

I'm saying tanking doesn't work. You won't get enough in one draft to go from super awful to awesome.

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alum96

May 19th, 2015 at 9:31 PM ^

How the hell did Cleveland not get 1 lottery ball and that 1 lottery ball did not get picked? Damn playoffs.

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1of12MattDamons

May 19th, 2015 at 9:41 PM ^

the Pistons get Johnson or Hazonja.

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LSAClassOf2000

May 19th, 2015 at 9:47 PM ^

SBNation has already done a mock draft now that the lottery order is known - LINK

For Pistons fans like myself, they predict this:

8. Detroit Pistons: Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia

Kristaps Porzingis is the anti-Josh Smith and would fit perfectly next time Andre Drummond. Porzingis is a knockdown three-point shooter and could also develop into an effective scorer from the high post.

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All Day

May 19th, 2015 at 10:55 PM ^

I'd love that draft as a Bulls fan.

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Hotel Putingrad

May 19th, 2015 at 9:47 PM ^

he's the ideal stretch-4 for Van Gundy's offense.

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Ronnie Kaye

May 19th, 2015 at 9:56 PM ^

Meh. Worth a look but I think 8 is a bit too high for Frank. This is a good crop.

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Hotel Putingrad

May 19th, 2015 at 10:10 PM ^

but if Winslow is gone (and assuming Monroe departs), I think Frank brings the most replacement value on defense, and his outside shooting would really help.

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nerv

May 19th, 2015 at 10:23 PM ^

Frank was a liability on defense in college. He is likely to get abused in the NBA defensively. Utah really is a perfect spot for Frank. While Drummond is a beast Gobert is on another level when it comes to protecting the rim.

I feel like the Pistons can find a stretch 4. They need a wing player in the worst way. We have possibly the worst SF rotation in the NBA. If Winslow is still around at 6 or 7 the Pistons really need to find a way to make that happen.

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skegemogpoint

May 19th, 2015 at 10:21 PM ^

Trey Lyles will be WAY better than Kaminsky w/in 2 yrs. If Pistons are smart Lyles is their guy.

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Owosso wolverine

May 19th, 2015 at 10:38 PM ^

Lyles didn't look that good down the stretch

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Ricky from Sunnyvale

May 20th, 2015 at 1:47 AM ^

Stan Van bulids teams different than drafting Lyles. It would be Drummond surrounded by shooters, mainly a stretch 4. Like what Hedo Turkoglu/Rashard Lewis were in Orlando.

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bronxblue

May 19th, 2015 at 10:00 PM ^

I know this is part of their plan, but Philly has to actually start winning basketball games at some point, right? As long as the Knicks are still playing basketball, they'll always be in a dog fight for the #1 pick.

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BornSinner

May 19th, 2015 at 10:59 PM ^

This is the year we start winning.

Russell or Mudiay along with Noel and Embiid

Can't beat that trifecta in a couple years

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Ronnie Kaye

May 19th, 2015 at 11:13 PM ^

I'm going to predict teams will beat that trifecta.

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GRBluefan

May 19th, 2015 at 11:23 PM ^

Yes you can beat that threesome

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BornSinner

May 19th, 2015 at 11:59 PM ^

Right forgot I was on MGoBlog where everything is taken literally -__-

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GRBluefan

May 20th, 2015 at 6:47 AM ^

Take it literally. Take it as my assertion that the threesome you listed does not seem very formidable.

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Padog

May 20th, 2015 at 7:19 AM ^

Yeah I agree. Embiid hasn't done squat and Mudiay seems like a bust to me. Plus, a big three doesn't win you championships. It's a start, but having two lottery picks would have been huge for them. They could have picked up a Booker type player.

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allintime23

May 19th, 2015 at 10:21 PM ^

I'm sure they'll look for the best chance to select a player from overseas.

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West German Judge

May 20th, 2015 at 6:24 AM ^

I'm not.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/executives/bowerje99x.html Jeff Bower's drafting record.

and even if Jeff Bower was named Joe Dumars, the last Euro he took was named Jonas Jerebko, who was definitely a hit at his draft position, and that was in 2009. http://www.detroitbadboys.com/2014/6/4/5779484/joe-dumars-complete-draf…

But ya know.

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Rodriguesqe

May 19th, 2015 at 10:28 PM ^

Seeing Towns and Okefor dog their workouts for Minnesota would be pretty funny.

NBA has lost its luster to me, but I'm curious to see what LA does this offseason. It seems inevitable that whoever Minny doesn't take will be the HOFer. Think they have some cash free too.

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gmgoblue1205

May 19th, 2015 at 10:54 PM ^

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gmgoblue1205

May 19th, 2015 at 10:54 PM ^

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Committed

May 19th, 2015 at 11:36 PM ^

Take Stanley Johnson...easy

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Wolverdog

May 19th, 2015 at 11:38 PM ^

Still do not pick Trey!
F'em

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Ricky from Sunnyvale

May 20th, 2015 at 2:26 AM ^

We all love Trey, but Jennings was awesome last year after Josh left and Jackson played well. They are both better than Trey. That draft was so weak, KCP ended up being a solid player at that spot. I don't think anyone was calling for Giannis or Schroder.

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West German Judge

May 20th, 2015 at 6:17 AM ^

Brandon Knight, the incumbent when Trey was available, is arguably a better player than all of Burke, Jennings, and Jackson. Michael Carter-Williams was probably a better backcourt complement to Knight/Jennings/Jackson than Burke would have been, as well.

Giannis is more than intriguing, though.

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MichiganMAN47

May 20th, 2015 at 12:57 AM ^

I know Frank Kaminsky is projected to be a borderline lottery pick or later, but I think he might be the biggest steal in this draft. A big guy that can shoot and dribble like that- reminds me a lot of Kevin Love, Pau Gasol, and Dirk Nowitzki. He is very well polished in his moves around the rim. I think he will be an NBA star somewhere.

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