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Who's Got Next: Beyond Point Guards

Who's Got Next is a weekly look at some of the top players widely available on the waiver wires.

Obviously the biggest story this weekend was the injury to Chris Paul. We're now hearing that Paul is going to miss close to a month. That's the worst possible news. There's now way to replace a loss like that, but I already gave you a few tips on which point guards you should look to add in Paul's absence. So take a look at a few of those suggestions.

Now that we're looking at him missing up to a month, though, it might be time to make a move. I'm not sure how long you can live with Darren Collison as your point guard.

This waiver wire post focuses on which players to add, keeping in mind the schedule for the week ahead. It's slime pickings this week, but I can assure you that with the Timberwolves slated as the only team to play twice this week we can go ahead and knock Oleksiy Pecherov off the list.

Ailing Nets Face Deep-Seated Problems

Monday, the Nets faced practice without Devin Harris (groin), Courtney Lee (groin), Chris Douglas-Roberts (swine flu), Jarvis Hayes (hamstring), Tony Battie (knee), and Yi Jianlian (knee).

That's six guys, three of whom are considered vital components of the young and struggling team, leaving the squad eight players available for practice. And practice they did. Fortunately, one of Yi Jianlian's old nemeses was available to fill in and help out.

That's right. The Chairman was replaced by The Chair.

FanHouse Preview: Nets

FanHouse previews all 30 NBA teams in advance of the 2009-10 season.

The Nets finished last season with a 34-48 record, and then went ahead and traded their second-leading scorer, Vince Carter, to Orlando. Yet they head into the 2009-10 season with more optimism than a team in their position should rightfully have.

Hey, that's the wonder of cap space. Virtually all of what New Jersey had done over the past two or three seasons has been leading to the summer of free agency in 2010.
Player to Watch: Yi Jianlian | Fantasy Sleeper: Courtney Lee
Nets Coverage |
Schedule | Roster

FanHouse NCAA Hoops BlogPoll: No. 10, Memphis Tigers

This week, FanHouse is taking an early look at the top teams heading into 2008 with a BlogPoll decided on by our college hoops bloggers. To help with the team capsules, we've brought in some of the top fan bloggers around the internets to give us insights on their teams.

Today, we have enlisted Chris Vernon of Fox Sports Radio 730 AM in Memphis and Verno's Blog
to break down the Memphis Tigers.

The way the season ended for the Memphis Tigers last year was totally devastating. Memphis ended the season 38-2 and many in Memphis still have a hard time thinking about the 38 wins. Rarely has there been such an amazing season that brought upon such intense disappointment.

Now that Derrick Rose, Chris Douglas Roberts, and Joey Dorsey have NBA contracts and Memphis looks to who will replace much of what made the team such a success in the previous few seasons. While Rose was only in Memphis for one year, CDR and Dorsey were key components of a team that went to the Elite 8 twice, and the Final Four (and championship game) once. With Dorsey in the middle, and Douglas Roberts on the wing, Memphis went 104-10 over the last three seasons.

Falling To the Second Round Could Make Chris Douglas-Roberts a Very Rich Man

Chris Douglas-RobertsChris Douglas-Roberts didn't anticipate to freefall all the way to the 40th pick last week, but he plans on making the team who passed him up pay. "Big chip. Big. That's the biggest motivation I have. Getting picked 40, I'm gonna write a book," he said during his introductory press conference.

According to multiple published reports, CDR refused to work out for teams with a low first-round pick, apparently taking for granted that he'd be long gone before they'd have a chance to draft him. Once he slipped a few spots below what he anticipated, he was stuck in no man's land with a bunch of teams he shunned no longer showing any interest in him. Fortunately he had worked out for the Nets before the draft, though at the time he was thinking they'd take him 21st overall instead of 40th.

In any case, a lot of people have chided CDR for his arrogance, citing the fact that it cost him a chance at the guaranteed contract all first-round picks receive. But if CDR is half as good as he thinks he is, this will end up being a blessing in disguise.

You see, second-round picks who blossom into stars end up making the big dollars a lot sooner than their first-round counterparts. Gilbert Arenas, Mehmet Okur and Carlos Boozer are all examples of players who broke the bank after proving themselves their first two years in the league, quickly making up all the money they lost and then some. Had they been first-round picks, they wouldn't have had a chance to test the open market until after their fourth year in the league.

Maybe Chris Douglas-Roberts Shouldn't Have Blown Off Those Workout Invitations

There was an interesting piece from A. Sherrod Blakely yesterday which discussed one of the possible reasons that Chris Douglas-Roberts fell all the way out of the first round to become the 40th overall pick in the NBA Draft. Basically, Blakely thinks that the fact that CDR was in the business of turning down workout requests from teams (like the Pistons) who were drafting in the area that he was projected to go in hurt his draft stock, and ultimately meant that Roberts, like a lot of athletes, just didn't get it.

The thing that disturbs me - and I would imagine, most fans - is how a lot of these soon-to-be-millionaires just don't seem to get it.

Playing in the NBA is more than just a job; it's a VIP pass into a lifestyle that few ever understand and even fewer gain admittance into. So to see draft prospects take all this for granted, before they even get to the league, is disturbing.

Blakely is speaking from the Pistons' perspective here, but given how far CDR fell from his projected first round draft spot (most mocks had him in the 20-25-ish range), it's likely that many other teams shared these feelings. Plus, the few teams that CDR did decide to work out for had less than glowing reviews. The biggest knock on him was that he wore down near the end of the workouts, and that he wouldn't be ready to contribute big minutes in his first NBA season. You would think a player would go through as many workouts as he could to dispel those negative perceptions, but obviously CDR (or his people) didn't feel it was necessary.

And as far as Roberts' thoughts on the Pistons? He supposedly made it clear to people on draft night that he had no interest in playing for Detroit, because he didn't feel that he fit with their style. I'm guessing he might have a difference of opinion if asked today, considering being drafted by the Pistons at 29 would have meant guaranteed first round money for the next three seasons.

First Round Ends, Portland Claims Ownership

The first 30 picks of the 2008 NBA Draft are in the ledger, with first-round type players including DeAndre Jordan, Mario Chalmers, Bill Walker and Chris Douglas-Roberts still on the board. There were not as many trades as we expected based on a crazy, crazy week, but one team made its presence known ... for the third straight year.

Two years ago, Portland turned the #4 pick, Theo Ratliff and Sebastian Telfair into Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. Last year, the Blazers netted Greg Oden, Channing Frye, Rudy Fernandez and the surgical removal of the wart known as Zach Randolph. This year? Portland ended the first round with Jerryd Bayless and Darrell Arthur -- a guy previously slated to go top-4 and a lottery guy who fell to #27. Simply ridiculous. [UPDATE: Apparently, Arthur and a Portland second-rounder are going to Houston for Nicolas Batum, whom Portland can safely stash in France.]

Kevin Pritchard runs this thing, people. I joked a few days ago that Paul Allen could buy a European club and field a second team with all the talent he has the rights to. It's really not out of the realm of possibilities now, though.

Other first round highlights, after the jump.

That For-Sale Spurs Pick Could Grab a Real Fine Player

Earlier, the Spurs reportedly sent an email blast to the other 29 other teams in the league offering up the #26 pick. Houston has just selected Spurs favorite Nicolas Batum with the #25 pick, and guys like Mario Chalmers, Darrell Arthur, DeAndre Jordan and Chris Douglas-Roberts all remain on the board.

Anyone else think the offers are getting a lot better all of a sudden?

Arthur's presence in the "green room" is practically tragic. It's becoming clear his workout process was flubbed in some way; rumors of injuries kept him for working out everywhere, but apparently those injury rumors were overblown. If Arthur really skipped teams he didn't want to get draft by, it's going to be a loooong night of introspection.

We'll update this with whatever we hear about the Spurs' pick.

UPDATE: The Spurs take a point guard, George Hill of IUPUI, which would be a completely anonymous school were it not for the rampant popularity of NCAA brackets. No word on whether this pick was made for the Spurs or not. San Antonio could in fact use another point. Whoever wanted Hill liked him more than Chalmers, apparently.

NBA Draft Crystal Ballin': Orlando Magic

Magic dancersCrystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

After making big moves last summer (handing Rashard Lewis the keys to the bank, hiring Billy Donovan, cutting ties with Donovan, hiring Stan Van Gundy), the Magic have to settle for small tweaks this summer. Fortunately, after winning 52 games, that's all this team really needs to remain a contender.

Picks: #22

Needs:
The Magic essentially start two small forwards in Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu, so getting a legitimate power forward (with more offensive upside than Tony Battie and more physicality than Brian Cook) to help Dwight Howard bang down low should be high on the list. Also, the two-guard spot has been a revolving door between Keith Bogans and Mo Evans, and former lottery pick JJ Redick doesn't appear to be anywhere close to being the long-term solution.

Best case scenario: Finding their shooting guard of the future ... and today. Evans is an unrestricted free agent, Bogans is entering the final year of his contract and Redick looks like trade bait, which means any shooting guard drafted has a better than even chance at opening the season in the starting lineup. A guy like Brandon Rush (who shouldn't be available) would be ideal, but even Courtney Lee and Chris Douglas-Roberts would be a nice fit.

NBA Draft Crystal Ballin': Portland Trailblazers

Crystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

Brandon Roy and his All Star self really transformed this team fast didn't he? Portland was the NBA's biggest surprise early, and despite slowing down, you best believe that everyone is going to be picking them as the "breakout" for 2008-09. So let's get it out of the way -- they're going to be good. No using them to breakout. It's cheating. Especially if Kevin Pritchard does what he normally does and dominates this draft.

Picks: #13, #33, #36, #55

Needs:
Point guard. I know they have Roy and Jarrett Jack and Sergio Rodriguez and Steve Blake ... and there's a reason they have so many point guards on the roster. They need a legit true bal to put them over the top.

Best case scenario: D.J. Augustin drops past the point guard needy Pacers, Kings and Clippers. Not likely to happen.

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