GSOM MOCK DRAFT!

We're hours away from the real draft and outside of the top two picks, anything seems to be happening in everyone's mock drafts.  Brook Lopez dropping to 10 or as high as 3?  Russel Westbrook going as low as 12 but as high as 3?  DJ Augustin available at 13 but also going at number 6 to the Knicks?  Donte Green falling all the way to 23? Oddly, the amount of shuffling at the 14th spot isn't nearly as exciting as 3-13, but us here at GSOM provide you with our own ideas of what to expect (or not expect)!  Click on for more mocks but not of the turtleneck variety.

Fantasy Junkie

Who I want the Warriors to Pick:

Brandon Rush - The Warriors need some inside help but they're not going to get it in the draft. It seems that big men who get picked in the late lottery and after more often than not end up as nothing more than a bust to a bench player. This year is no different. The Warriors have a bunch of big men to choose from who are more likely to bust than to be decent. DeAndre Jordan (project), Robin Lopez (doesn't fit the system), Darrell Arthur (doesn't rebound well), Kosta Koufos (soft), Anthony Randolph (too raw), etc. So let's take the best player available, Brandon Rush. I expect Mullin and Nelson to figure out their big man problem through a trade or free agency. Rush has shown he can play at the highest collegiate level and still has room to grow. He's already a good shooter and plays excellent D. I can see him stepping into the Matt Barnes/ Mickael Pietrus role immediately. Remember how much of an impact Barnes and Pietrus had as wing players on this team? In the playoff run they played huge roles and last year their presence was sorely missed. Drafting Rush allows us to let Barnes and/or Pietrus walk and once Jax is gone in a few years, we have our starter at the 3.

Who I think the Warriors will pick:

Donte Green - A 6'9" athletic wing player with a nice jumper? Sounds like a Nellie like player. He'll play the 3 or the 4 and add more firepower to the bench. Nellie said they need a big man and help rebounding. That just means he wants to get smaller, run faster, and shoot with higher accuracy. So they're not going to take a typical big man, they'll be taking a guy who can cause matchup problems.

DJ fuzzylogic:

Who I want the Warriors to Pick:

Donte Green, SF, 6’9 221lbs, Syracuse University

I don’t know much about Donte Green but if he’s Rashard Lewis 2.0 like ESPN and NBADraft.net are calling him, then the Warriors needs to get this guy if he’s still available!  Though most draft analyzers call him pretty raw as far as fundamentals go, they all seem to agree that he’s got the foundation for a great perimeter game already though often settling for long range 3pt shots (Wow! He’s perfect for the Warriors already!).  The Warriors tend to draft one-trick-ponies in the past that have been slow to develop into well rounded let alone remotely fundamentally sound players (guards that can’t dribble or create nor like to pass, forwards that can’t hit jumpers, and centers that lack any post moves or footwork).  In Nellie’s offensive scheme that requires high-offensive skilled players that can dribble, drive, shoot, and play multiple positions, Green seems like the best solution for a team that has been fundamentally challenged for the last decade and has no need, as of now, for a power 4 or 5.

Who I think the Warriors Will Pick:

JaValee McGee, 7’0 237 lbs, Nevada

Move over Patrick O’Bryant, JaValee McGee is here to take your spot…next to Tom Abdenour on the bench for 82 games during the season.  Your fate will probably include several stints with the Bakersfield Jam posing next to grannies and probably some awkward popcorn incident in your new Denali as a form of hazing from your teammates for underachieving rookies that are way to soft for their size.  

The Warriors, like the Seattle/OKC Sonics, are enamored with big men and are horrible at picking them.  The Warriors picks are either too soft, too clumsy, or just not basketball players in any sense of the word, period.  The Warriors need an enforcer of some kind to battle with the 4’s and 5’s of the West Coast but will just end up finding a lanky moderately athletic big man to just grab rebounds and putbacks, since that’s all they’re really used for in the Warriors offense anyway.

Atma Brother #1:

TRADES:

I'm intrigued by Michael Beasley and OJ Mayo, but those guys are most likely unattainable, so I don't see a trade to move up for the Golden State Warriors happening. Kevin McHale does have the #3 pick  so you never know, but last I checked he never played for the Warriors so he won't be hooking them up a la KG (although they did sort of trade him to the Celts).

This team doesn't need to get any more younger, softer, or less talented (which is what the #14 pick typically is). The Warriors need to get older, smarter, bigger, tougher, and more talented.

Nellie's detailed this before on The Don Nelson Show and it seems to be getting clearer after every NBA Finals in recent memory. With the exception of the Detroit Pistons in '04 you either need 2 hall of fame players at their apex or 3 elite level players plus a willing set of role players who defend, rebound, and hit open shots to win it all. Right now the Warriors just have one guy in Baron Davis who's elite. The rest are very good players, but deeply flawed- Stephen Jackson is miscast as a 2nd scoring option and turns the ball over way too much, Monta Ellis doesn't defend at all, and Andris Biedrins doesn't protect the rim or draw double teams.

My two targets via trade are:
* Ron Artest- Swing the #14 pick and the trade exception to the Kings for Artest and the Warriors are back in business. I wish Artest had a better track record for rebounding, but I see him as a great option at the 4 spot for the Warriors. He does a lot of things this team needs- perimeter D, toughness, savvy, and fire.

* Jason Richardson- Remember We Believe 07? Guess who was arguably their best player down the stretch. Yup, the guy the Warriors traded away on the cheap. The BoomRich backcourt was nasty (although it wasn't healthy enough). Baron, Monta, J-Rich, Stephen, and Al were just a delight to watch. Bring back JR and you'll drastically improve the 3pt shooting of this team, as well as its speed, athleticism, and hunger.

I'd love to see this:
PG: Baron Davis
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Jason Richardson
PF: Stephen Jackson
C: Ron Artest

That is the fastest starting 5 ever assembled. Sure they'll get massacred on the boards on most nights, but remember that was happening during We Believe 07 and they were still winning because of their advantages elsewhere. I'm willing to lose the battle on the boards nightly if we're winning elsewhere. Trust me with Nellie it'll be the Greatest Show on Hardwood- BY FAR. It's their best chance of making the Western Conference Finals, short of a miracle trade to net KG or Elton Brand. Artest and J-Rich aren't elite, but I'm willing to bet that Nellie could work miracles with that entire cast of misfits. It's where he's at his best.

(Yes, yes I know it's not happening and nearly impossible to assemble. Purely for entertainment purposes and my imagination. You know the track- "It was just my imaginaaaation...")

Who I want the Warriors to pick:

Robin Lopez: Robin could be exactly what the Warriors need by the end of the 2009 season- a tough defender who rebounds, protects the rim, has a nonstop motor, and can man up the better 4's and 5's. Al Harrington and Andris Biedrins do none of these (except Biedrins' nice work cleaning up the boards) and the Warriors are getting killed nightly because of it. Brook's hermano might be able to really help out the Dubs with very little learning curve or growing pains.

Who I think the Warriors will Pick:

Kosta Koufos: A reportedly soft 7-footer who brings questionable D, slow foot speed, and who "shies away from contact" but has a jumper? Chris Mullin and the rest of the Warriors front office can't resist! Team him up with Kosta Perovic and you can the Warriors version of twin towers. Call them Charmin 2-Ply! Double the zero threat position!

To tell you the truth I'm already dreading the moment when David Stern says "With the 14th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft the Golden State Warriors select... {insert bust}? Hey at least it'll be fun seeing *another* poor (not financially) 20 something kid ride the pine from the GSoM seats. Okay maybe not. Well at least the Warriors didn't jack up ticket prices for the third straight year despite missing the playoffs 12 out of the past 13 years. Oh wait...

Well let's hope our favorite loser organization (seriously just count how many times the Warriors have actually made the playoffs in your lifetime) doesn't lose again on draft night.