What Each Team Should Do with the 1st Overall Pick (Part 1)
Commissioner Silver, "And with the 1st overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, the ... select ..."
This statement should only follow up with one of two names: Washington's Markelle Fultz or UCLA's Lonzo Ball. This year's draft should be a great one; headlined by star PGs. Though there are many solid players looking to be picked in the top 5, only the two aforementioned players have proven good enough (so far, wait until tournament time) for a team to use the 1st overall pick on them. NC State's Dennis Smith Jr. is another intriguing PG, but he is surely to be the 3rd PG picked no matter where Ball and Fultz are selected. And though there are some solid wing guys likely to declare (Kansas' Josh Jackson, Duke's Jayson Tatum, Florida State's Jonathan Isaac), along with a few solid big men, none of these guys have to be better prospects.
With that said, here's what each team should do if they were to land the #1 overall pick in this year's draft.
(This list will exclude teams currently in playoff position and more than 3 games ahead of the 9th place spot; every other team will be considered. Draft picks owed considered as well.)
"And with the 1st pick in the 2017 NBA draft, the Boston Celtics select... Markelle Fultz"
The Boston Celtics are in a great position to do just about anything with the 1st overall pick if they land it in the lottery (via the Brooklyn Nets). They can deal the pick or keep it and deal away a few current players to become a true contender. Either way, trades need to be made this off-season (as well as signing Serge Ibaka in Free Agency). The sure-fire deal that would thrust the Celtics into contention would be to deal the pick along with Jae Crowder and possibly another piece to the Indiana Pacers for Paul George. That deal would benefit both teams. Celtics get a lineup of Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, George, Amir Johnson (if re-signed, should sign Ibaka instead to make the team scary), Al Horford. That lineup is a nightmare for opposing teams with the mix of offense and defense at each position. As for the Pacers, Jeff Teague is not a lock to return after the 1-year rental, and the Pacers would be better off building for the future with Myles Turner already in tow. Input a 1st overall pick, Crowder at SF to replace the departing George, and possibly another piece and things are looking good. Another deal that would turn the Celtics into true contenders would be to send the pick along with Crowder, and/or Bradley, and Jonas Jerebko or Kelly Olynyk to the Sacramento Kings for DeMarcus Cousins. Cousins and Horford would be an imposing front court duo (no need to sign Ibaka here), but the big issue with this deal is that they'd be thin at the wing positions (unless Jaylen Brown shows us something incredible or Kevin Durant decides to take his talents to Beantown). As for the Kings, they can finally put the media frenzy to rest by dealing Cousins and working on a clearer future. Of course, they'd have to hope that Rudy Gay declines his player option, allowing them to trout out a 1st overall PG, Bradley and/or Crowder in the backcourt.
That being said, if the Celtics were to skip out on dealing this pick away, they'd have to make a choice between the two PGs. Fultz seems better suited next to Thomas in that backcourt, as his game would be more dynamic next to Thomas'. In this case, Bradley, not Crowder, would be the odd man out. The Celtics would have several options on what to ask for in return, but one thing's for sure... THEY MUST SIGN SERGE IBAKA!
"And with the 1st pick in the 2017 NBA draft, the Phoenix Suns select... Lonzo Ball"
Another team, more trades. The Phoenix Suns aren't in much of a position to trade this pick if they were to land it. They don't have an abundance of enticing pieces to offer teams for a positional upgrade (particularly at SF) as the Celtics do, so they'd be better off taking the best prospect and going from there. Pairing Ball with developing SG Devin Booker would be a great look for the young Suns team. A Ball-Booker backcourt duo would be a remix to what the Warriors have at the top of the West. But things wouldn't just stop there after the selection. Ideally, they'd call up the Chicago Bulls to deal Eric Bledsoe, Marquese Chriss, and a future pick for Jimmy Butler (and possibly Bobby Portis or Nikola Mirotic). That would make the Phoenix Suns a possible playoff team out West. Ball, Booker, and Butler would make things interesting out West in the 4-8 seed range. They'd have to look for some help with the froncourt in FA but they'd have a solid core to build around. The Bulls would likely ask for more out of the deal, but Bledsoe and Chriss are two solid pierces to have on a team that currently lacks direction. Plus, acquiring Bledsoe would allow them to have comfortably have a mutual parting with Rajon Rondo while pitting Bledsoe in the backcourt with Dwyane Wade.
"We have a trade to announce"
The Lakers would arguably have the toughest decision to make if they landed the #1 spot in this year's draft. Do they pair Fultz or Ball with D'Angelo Russell and keep Jordan Clarkson as 6th-man? Do they move on from Russell and build with the new PG? Do they trade the pick for an established star? Do they trade down a few picks to pick a big man? Like the Celtics, the Lakers would have many choices to make if they landed this pick. The draft choice here would be Fultz, but neither him nor Ball seem to be clear fits next to Russell who is still putting together his game. Drafting either PG, however, would open their options and give them a backcourt duo of 6'4" and up guards. What would happen with the rest of the roster would be in question though. Clarkson requires minutes, so do Lou Williams and Nick Young. Young and Williams would be the easier players to part with (Young should be moved to free up bigger minutes for Brandom Ingram, as Luol Deng would be nearly impossible to move with his contract). Williams, though a solid scorer, should be dealt away before Clarkson if the Lakers are focused on their future. Though Clarkson would likely yield better returns in a trade, neither will land the Lakers anything big, so why not keep the younger piece. Another deal the Lakers could look into is trading for Miami Heat's Hassan Whiteside. They'd likely have to include Russell or the 1st pick to land Whiteside, so even that deal wouldn't be a no-brainer for LA. No matter what the Lakers do, they'd be hard-pressed to turn back into contenders immediately.
"And with the 1st pick in the 2017 NBA draft, the Orlando Magic select... Markelle Fultz"
The Orlando Magic are in flux. They have some solid young pieces at several positions, but don't yet have a clear direction or even a clear future lineup to build upon. Do they trust is Elfrid Payton's development into a viable starting PG? Do they move on from guys like Evan Fournier and Nikola Vucevic? Is Aaron Gordon a true starting PF once Ibaka leaves? Is Mario Hezonja a bust? One thing is for sure, they should take Fultz with the 1st overall pick. Regardless of who they end up moving between Payton, Fournier, and Hezonja, Fultz would clearly be the best option. He could fit alongside Payton as a scoring option in the backcourt or headline a score 1st duo pairing him with Fournier. The Magic would simply have to decide who to move on from in that backcourt. Ideally, they'd ship whomever that is possibly alongside Vucevic for a positional upgrade.
"And with the 1st pick in the 2017 NBA draft, the Philadelphia 76ers select... Lonzo Ball"
The 76ers honestly could not go wrong with picking either PG in this year's draft. Ball would position himself as another dynamic playmaker alongside Ben Simmons (believing that he pans out when he gets on the court). Fultz would position himself as a go-to scorer alongside a scoring machine in C Joel Embiid. Either way, the 76ers' future looks bright. One thing for certain though, something needs to be done with big men Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor, specifically Okafor. Noel would fit the lineup better as a defensive big. But his offensive limitations prevent him from becoming a viable with Embiid on the court. Noel is quick enough to deal with most PFs but the 76ers would be asking a lot of him to guard SFs in small-ball lineups. And after early rumblings of him wanting more minutes, using him as a backup big behind Simmons, Embiid, and Dario Saric would be quite difficult. Okafor, on the other hand, just simply no longer fits the roster with the emergence of Embiid. Okafor CANNOT play alongside Embiid and should be a starting C elsewhere. The 76ers could use him to acquire some talent on the wings, particularly a viable starting SG with solid 3-point prowess.
Next up: New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento Kings, Miami Heat
