Galinari and the draft

by dmj on Jun 13, 2008 6:44 PM PDT

A bunch of recent reports have Danilo Galinari saying that he will only play for the Knicks or the Nets, and unlike Yi he actually has a contract in Europe to fall back on, making it more likely that he would actually through with the threat. While most of us probably weren't too high on Galinari to begin with, his decision could affect what players are available to us at 12. This becomes even more of an issue when you consider that the Knicks are, by most accounts, not interested in Galinari, effectively leaving only the Nets as a potential destination. Of course, if NJ decides they don't want Galinari, then it would likely cause one of the players we are interested in to get "bumped" up the draft boards, further limiting our choices at #12.

(This is a FanPost from a member of the Sactown Royalty community. The views expressed come from the member, and not Sactown Royalty staff.)

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... and it’s questionable whether the Nets would draft a small forward, though Richard Jefferson is on the trade block.

by Tom Ziller on Jun 14, 2008 7:09 AM PDT reply actions

If you were the Knicks or Nets

would you gamble on him being available in the second after a comment like that?

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by iashwash on Jun 14, 2008 7:57 AM PDT reply actions

Not after Yi.

by Tom Ziller on Jun 14, 2008 8:59 AM PDT up reply actions

Yi's threats were mostly idle because he was either stuck in China

or had to live with the Bucks taking him. That’s why Galinari’s threats won’t work. In fact the Kobe Bryant/Steve Francis threat’s won’t work either.

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by pookeyguru on Jun 15, 2008 12:46 PM PDT up reply actions

I saw those reports

But I also saw a recorded interview with him right after he arrived in the US that said he’d be happy playing anywhere. He seemed like a good kid.

He can speak English but there are times where he may say something different than what he meant to say. I wonder if this is one of those times.

His contract is another story. But I don’t have him in my top 12, and I don’t think Petrie would draft him if he wasn’t certain that he could get him to come over. My bigger concern is that teams in front of us will now pass on him and grab a guy that we want instead.

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by section214 on Jun 14, 2008 8:17 AM PDT reply actions

Right, that’s the concern. It’s worth nothing Gallinari’s the one player we’ve heard Petrie say something publically about—and it wasn’t complimentary.

by Tom Ziller on Jun 14, 2008 9:00 AM PDT up reply actions

Another important factor

is that the Nets have two first round picks: the 10th and 21st. So even if Gallinari is their guy at 10, they must pick the next guy down on their board and hope that the teams from 11-20 take Gallinari at his word, allowing them to pick him up with the 21st. This sort of strategy makes even more sense when you consider that the Nets have much more pressing needs in the frontcourt.

by dmj on Jun 14, 2008 1:32 PM PDT reply actions

I don't think

that he’ll last to 21. Portland at 13 and Phoenix at 15 might even prefer drafting a guy with his talent that won’t come over for a year or two. I just don’t see other NBA teams allowing the Nets to steal him at 21.

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by section214 on Jun 14, 2008 2:33 PM PDT up reply actions

Yeah

I’d say that is more likely than him falling to the Nets at 21.

Still, I’m wondering exactly what it is that NY and NJ have in common that would cause him to say those are the only teams he would be interested in playing for. It’s not like they are the only large market team in the lottery, with the Clippers being at 7. And there is a pretty big disparity between the talent level and management of the Knicks and Nets, with the Nets being in a much better situation. And if going to a quality team is an issue, then you would he would like to play for the Blazers or Warriors. Really, the only common factor between the two team that I can see influencing his decision is the location, which seems like a pretty flimsy reason.

by dmj on Jun 14, 2008 3:58 PM PDT up reply actions