Here’s a veteran NBA GM, one day before the draft.
“The bigs have become a little bit like running backs in the NFL,” he said. “The running backs are still important. The drafting process doesn’t respect them as much. But when you don’t have one, you know you need one.”
We see it every time in the playoffs, when the game doesn’t slow down as much as return to its roots. Good teams with switchable defenses, the mental cauldron of postseason basketball and a half-dozen other things tend to be more impactful than the 3-fest that dominates the regular season. Giannis Antetokounmpo, seeing no experienced rim protectors among the Phoenix Suns, ate in the paint throughout the Finals. And the smaller Suns suffered further by not being able to keep the bigger Bucks off the offensive glass at crucial moments. Having impactful big men still matters. And this year’s draft has a few that project to be quite impactful, starting with USC freshman Evan Mobley.
After a strong pre-draft workout earlier this week in Detroit, speculation that the Pistons are seriously considering Mobley with the top-pick overall intensified – though our draft guru Sam Vecenie still believes Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham will go No. 1. Mobley certainly will go no later than No. 3 to Cleveland, which has been connected to him for weeks by those within the NBA.
After Mobley, there are fewer sure things, but a lot of upside.
