This article is part of our NBA Draft series.
The 2021 NBA Draft is in the books, and with a few days to stew on how things turned out, Nick Whalen and James Anderson are here to answer a six-pack of questions.
Which pick was the most surprising? Who was the biggest steal of the draft? Which player-team combination is the best fit? Nick and James weight in on those questions and more:
Which lottery pick was the most surprising to you: Josh Giddey (6th to OKC), Ziaire Williams (10th to MEM) or Josh Primo (12th to SAN)?
James Anderson: Giddey was probably the most surprising one, as I thought OKC would go after a player with a bit more upside. It does sort of seem like OKC really values youth, passing and length with their recent picks, and Giddey checks those boxes. I would have suggested Jonathan Kuminga, Alperen Sengun or Ziaire Williams with that pick, but if the Thunder are able to drastically improve Giddey's outside shooting, I can see how it would work out well, as they could have 3-4 really good passers on the court at the same time who might be able to do some switching defensively.
Nick Whalen: Primo was probably the biggest what the hell? pick of the night, and Williams at 10 might be a reach, but I applaud Memphis for prioritizing upside at that spot. Giddey to Oklahoma City at No. 6 was the most shocking pick. He has the tools and length to develop into a really good player, but given where OKC is in its rebuild, I'm not sure Giddey is the type of superstar-upside prospect you're hoping to land.
Which players were the biggest steals of Round 1?
James Anderson: Jalen Suggs, Jonathan Kuminga and Alperen Sengun all have a strong case here. I'll go with Suggs, since he's probably the safest and most ready to contribute of the three. If Toronto can fix Scottie Barnes' jump shot, I can see how that could be a great fit for them, but Suggs is so much safer while having a similarly high ceiling, that I wouldn't have hesitated taking him at 4. Orlando would have been an awful fit for Barnes, since none of their good players are great shooters, so having Suggs fall into their laps was fantastic.
Nick Whalen: I'm a huge Jalen Suggs guy, so he's the obvious answer. But I also liked the Hornets getting James Bouknight at 11, Golden State landing Moses Moody at 14, and the Nets getting Cameron Thomas at 27. All three are essentially luxury players for those teams, but Bouknight should step into a consistent role right away with Devonte' Graham and Malik Monk out of the picture. We'll see what happens with Moody as a rookie, but if nothing else he's a high-upside asset who will hold his value, should the Warriors eventually look to trade him. And it's very possible Thomas is just the next MarShon Brooks or Jodie Meeks, but Brooklyn is a great spot for him to develop.
How much of a gamble was it by Toronto to take Scottie Barnes over Jalen Suggs?
James Anderson: It's a massive gamble, because if they can't fix Barnes' jumper, it'll be a huge swing and a miss. Suggs is very safe and I think he would have fit very well in Toronto. Barnes probably has the higher ceiling, but that involves him making massive strides as a shooter. If he does improve drastically in that area, their defense could be lights out, so I get it from that standpoint, but his floor is really low, so it felt like too big of a swing.
Nick Whalen: Again, I'm a Suggs guy, so I probably view this as more of a gamble than others -- mostly because I think Suggs' floor is extremely high. Barnes and Suggs have similar upside if everything breaks right, but Barnes has more hurdles to clear on the road to stardom. Obviously, the Raptors feel like they know something, but bringing in Suggs -- especially knowing Kyle Lowry would be headed out the door a few days later -- would've been such a natural fit.
Excluding the top five picks, which player/team combo do you see as the perfect fit?
James Anderson: Alperen Sengun going to a rebuilding team like Houston that can give him plenty of developmental minutes over the next couple years is a great fit. He's also a good fit next to Christian Wood, as Wood can stretch the floor and provide help defense at the rim while Sengun gives Houston a post presence they previously lacked.
Nick Whalen: Bouknight is a really nice fit for a Hornets team in need of a spark off the bench, but I also like Franz Wagner in Orlando. The Magic went from one of the most depressing rosters in the league to a truly exciting young team in the course of 30 minutes by adding Wagner and Suggs. Orlando already has a handful of rangy bigs, but Wagner's upside is higher than all of them with the exception of Jonathan Isaac, who hasn't been able to stay remotely healthy thus far. Josh Christopher landing in Houston is also an under-the-radar good fit. He's maybe the biggest boom-or-bust guy in the draft, and Houston is one of the few teams that can offer him minutes as a rookie.
Given the Warriors' situation, how would you rate Golden State's haul of Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody with its two lottery picks?
James Anderson: I think they did very well. They should have been drafting with trade value in mind, and Jonathan Kuminga has the highest ceiling of any player taken outside the top 5, so if they hit on that pick, they could use him as a key piece in a trade for a star. It would be foolish to have made either of those picks with a focus on a player who could help them now, as that's just not very realistic. Corey Kispert and Trey Murphy were probably better bets to help them win this year, but if either of those players struggled early, their trade value would evaporate, whereas Kuminga and Moody should hold their trade value longer. Nobody expects Kuminga to be ready right away and Moody has more perceived upside than Kispert or Murphy.
Nick Whalen: The more I think about it, the more I like what the Warriors did at 7 and 14. I do think passing on Kispert may have been a mistake, but adding Otto Porter and Nemanja Bjelica makes me feel better about where their roster stands for next season. If they get anything out of Kuminga or Moody, that's just an added bonus. But both players should hold their trade value if/when the next appealing star hits the trade market, and with the truly elite guys off the board by the seventh pick, Golden State did well to take the guy with the highest perceived upside.
The Lakers gave up some depth pieces to acquire Russell Westbrook from Washington. Was this the right move for the Lakers? Should they have pursued Buddy Hield instead?
James Anderson: This is one of the worst transactions I can recall a championship contender making in the last 20 years. In my mind, they basically ended their contention window with this LeBron James/Anthony Davis core. They don't have the financial ability to add the three-and-D pieces they need to make this roster work, and they don't have the assets to trade Westbrook once this experiment fails.
All they had to do was surround LeBron and Davis with as much shooting and defense as possible and instead they brought in one of the worst high-usage shooters in modern history. And on top of that, Westbrook is a below-average defender. Buddy Hield, or even Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, might add more value to this roster than Westbrook, and when we factor in the contracts, it looks so much worse.
Nick Whalen: I get the argument that Westbrook takes some of the pressure off of LeBron in the regular season, and that's definitely part of this. But I really believe this could be a disastrous deal for the Lakers. Losing the Harrell-KCP-Kuzma trio is fine, but bringing in a player who can't shoot threes or free throws and has been a tremendous negative in the playoffs for most of his career is downright baffling. GM LeBron has had some hits and misses over the years, but signing off on this deal has the potential to be his worst decision yet. Of all the stars in the league right now, is there any player you'd say is a worse fit next to LeBron than Westbrook?
To the Lakers' credit, they've done well in free agency to offset the Westbrook move. Wayne Ellington will go a long way toward helping their spacing, and landing Kendrick Nunn at a discount was a massive boon. But when push comes to shove, Westbrook has to be out there during the waning minutes of a playoff game, and history suggests that's simply not a winning formula.
