The proceedings were featured for the first three rounds on NBA-TV, including a three-hour lead in of the reality series on the D. More time would have been better spent covering the actual draft, which yielded some interesting picks as the evening wore on.
The draft order was a serpentine format, with the first round as follows, then the order being reversed in the even rounds:
| |
Team
|
|
|
| 1 |
Colorado 14ers
|
8 |
Los Angeles
D-Fenders
|
| 2 |
Dakota Wizards
|
9 |
Anaheim Arsenal
|
| 3 |
Albuquerque Thunderbirds
|
10 |
Utah Flash
|
| 4 |
Idaho Stampede
|
11 |
Tulsa 66ers
|
| 5 |
Rio Grande Valley Vipers
|
12 |
Austin Toros
|
| 6 |
Sioux Falls Skyforce
|
13 |
Bakersfield Jam
|
| 7 |
Fort Wayne Mad Ants
|
14 |
Iowa Energy
|
The Skyforce, Wizards, and the Idaho Stampede jump from the CBA in 2007-2008. The Iowa Energy, Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Rio Grande Valley Vipers, and the Utah Flash are expansion clubs.
Carlos Powell was chosen second overall by the Dakota Wizards. The
6-7, 220 pound forward who attended South Carolina was recently
cut by the Golden State Warriors after a standout international
career.
Darvin Ham, who spent eight seasons in the NBA and won a
championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004 was drafted third by
the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, followed by Jamaal Tatum, a 6’2
guard who went to the Idaho Stampede. C.J. Watson, who spent the
2007-08 preseason with the Charlotte Bobcats was the fifth pick of
the 2007 D-League draft by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
The ten players selected by each team in the draft will combine
with the six to seven players already assigned via allocation,
local tryouts or players returning from the previous season. The
rosters for each of the 14 teams will be cut to 12 players on Nov.
14. Final 10-man rosters must be set by Nov. 21.
The big expansion of the D-League offers more bench space to clubs to place players auditioning for a shot at the NBA level, answering the complaint of GMs like Pat Riley, that their players were not able to get much time on a small, crowded bench with just 8 clubs.
D-League teams now inhabit the Southwest and Midwest, a big move from its original roots as a small, highly Southeastern system. That is a big upside for the Western teams, like the D-Fenders who play right in the L.A. Lakers crib, but puts players well out of eyeball range for most of the Eastern seaboard teams.
Ten percent of the NBA comes from the D-League, so it is rapidly becoming a force to contend with. The league has also contributed 16 coaches and more than twenty referees to the major league.
The broadcast, which brought the power of NBA-TV to bear on minor league hoops, was impressive in that it was there. The coverage was the amateur-hour though. Players were not well researched by NBA-TV. Some they had title cards which showed the player with a photo and their draft pick. Some had none. Some had cards with their school information, history, etc, while many went without. When the Bakersfield Jam jammed up in the first round and did not pick, it threw the broadcast for a loop. NBA scouting execs Marty and Ryan Blake were informative, but someone needed to hand a lifeline to host Rick Campbell, who seems to think that there was nothing out there before the D-League came along. That may go over well with the NBA fans trying to puzzle out the D-League, but for those in the CBA cities joining the D-League, like Idaho or South Dakota, there was definitely a 'hold the phone...' moment there.
The CBA draft last month did not drum up a lot of the top drawer players (See the 2007 CBA Draft to compare) that were waiting for tonight to see if they got their call to the Triple-A of basketball. The next few weeks will determine who makes the NBA's call. Remember that these players are being added to existing benches already filled by NBA clubs with prospects. Some of these draftees may decide that playing in the CBA for more minutes, or staying overseas, might be in their best interests.
We have marketd some of the players in red that have been drafted by both leagues, and we're the only publication providing you with round-by-round cross links to the CBA draft to see how the two stack out against each other.
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