By JUSTIN KENDALL
The Kansas City Star’s David Boyce is the most uninformed NBA writer in the country. Boyce’s incompetence was clear Sunday when he unveiled his first mock draft. Boyce ignored nearly every prognosticator and projected the Chicago Bulls taking Kansas State forward Michael Beasley with the first pick. Sure, Beasley has a chance at being a 20 and 10 beast in the league, but Boyce ignored every sign that the Bulls weren’t digging the immature Beasley and wanted a kid who can become a leader -- Memphis point guard Derrick Rose. Note to Boyce: projecting picks isn’t about what you think a team should do, but what a team will do. Also, check out the heights and weights of the players. Beasley is not 6-foot-10. He measured in at 6-foot-7.
Yesterday, Boyce updated his mock draft. When the draft was over, Boyce had correctly picked five selections out of 30. Five out of 30? That’s less than 17 percent. And three of those picks – Rose to the Bulls, Beasley to the Miami Heat and Mayo to the Minnesota Timberwolves – were painfully obvious.
Boyce’s most embarrassing miss was saying the New York Knicks would take Stanford center Brook Lopez with the sixth pick when the Knicks clearly were eyeing Italian star Danilo Gallinari. Why? In his own draft analysis this morning, Boyce wrote, “The pick almost seemed too obvious, given new Knicks coach Mike DAntoni’s history of playing and coaching in Italy.” So obvious that you didn’t get it right? C’mon. To be fair, Boyce correctly picked Gallinari going to the Knicks in his first mock draft; it was only one of two picks that Boyce got right in that mock draft.
Other embarrassing misses:
No. 15 Phoenix Suns
Boyce: Texas A&M Center DeAndre Jordan, whose stock had reached terminal velocity by Thursday’s draft.
Reality: Jordan fell to the Clippers with the thirty-fifth pick.
No. 19 Cleveland Cavaliers
Boyce: Memphis guard Chris Douglas-Roberts
Reality: CDR goes to the New Jersey Nets at No. 40.
No. 26 San Antonio Spurs
Boyce: USC forward Davon Jefferson
Reality: After 60 picks, Jefferson went undrafted.
No. 28 Memphis Grizzlies
Boyce: Kansas State forward Bill Walker. Boyce ignored Walker’s knee injury and projected him as a first rounder.
Reality: The Washington Wizards drafted Walker in the second round with the forty-seventh pick and later sold his rights to the Boston Celtics.
Also on Sunday, Boyce listed a handful of players whose stock was rising and falling. Boyce was again horribly wrong. One player’s stock who Boyce claimed was rising was Kansas forward Darrell Arthur. On Sunday, Boyce projected Arthur going at the ninth pick. He later dropped Arthur on his board to the thirteenth pick. Many NBA analysts were noting that Arthur’s stock was plummeting thanks to kidney issues. The New Orleans Hornets drafted Arthur at No. 27 (Arthur was later traded to the Memphis Grizzlies).
Boyce also claimed the stock of three players – Indiana guard Eric Gordon, Texas point guard D.J. Augustin and UCLA guard Russell Westbrook – was falling. Fail.
The Los Angeles Clippers were so high on Gordon that they tried to trade up to the No. 4 pick to grab him. Instead, the Clips picked him at No. 7. Hardly falling. The Charlotte Bobcats made a surprise selection and took Augustin with the ninth pick. And Westbrook was another major miss. The Seattle SuperSonics selected Westbrook with the fourth pick. No way in hell was Westbrook ever going to leapfrog Rose, Beasley and Mayo.
Next year, the Star should have Boyce do some research – and maybe talk to some analysts -- before he slops out a joke of a mock draft.
