You were waiting for this moment, weren’t you TZ?

I like the breakdown, and as an unashamed Rubio supporter I love your conclusion. I hope we’re in a position where GP has to make this decision. Or maybe I hope that we get the 2nd pick so GP’s favorite can also be the consensus. I don’t know what I want. I’m as confused and conflicted as a teenager before the prom.

I guess my point is that we’re all just happy that you started using Natt as a curse word.

Interesting points all around.

Because if we get either of those picks, we’re most likely getting Rubio. 3rd or 4th, which is what we will probably get with our luck, would suck reaaaaaaally bad.

dont get me wrong, im a strong advocate of “kings” basketball, but if it comes down to the choice between the two, im going griffin. You said it, you cant scheme for a “beast” like griffin, and I would say hes a lot smarter than folks give him credit for. I also think folks will be surprised at his defense, intensity and athleticism go a long way for that and hes got that in spades – and now he wont have to worry about fouling out and taking away his team’s only scorer (himself) like he had to at OU.

2nd pick, rubio all the way, but for my money, you cant pass on a wrecking ball like griffin.

C29 and I concur. We haven’t seen GP in this situation before. I believe he decides not to outsmart himself in the end.

I’ve been on the Rubio camp from the very beginning and I’m very happy that it looks like he’ll be declaring for sure. I believe he could help this team more than Griffin could and hope that Petrie sees that too. One way or another, him declaring just gives us more options.

I trust GP to make the right decision for this franchise. If he were to pick Blake I would be excited too and welcome him with open arms and look forward to him helping us win more games next season and in the future.

What biegler mentioned couple post above about Oden and Okafor is worth repeasting. There is no sure thing, so this whole Griffin is the number 1 pick PERIOD, is a little silly. Who is truly the best pick won’t be decided for years. Remember, both of these kids have played exactly 0 minutes in this league, so this is all about potential, upside, or whatever the “draft experts” will call it. Anyone saying someone’s better than the other is plain stupid.

I want Rubio and I hope he’s the right pick (if we even get the chance to pick him) but most importantly, I want this team to get better and get back to respectability. We’re always going to disagree on things, but we’ll always agree that we want this team to ultimately win the championship. I would gladly accept being wrong as long as we get that trophy in the end. Go Kings!!!

there has been a lengthy post in the past in assesssing his skills – the guy is good at sniffing out NBA talent and bewildering the conventionists (and us Kings Fans).

I don’t have an inkling of a clue who will be a better pro, in general, or for a specific team or style. I read this Draft stuff from a variety of pundits but it might as well be Car & Driver reviewing Exotic Cars – the Ferrari is slick and looks real fast – bet it has lousy trunk space.

I will support GP’s pick and the guy will either build on that support or I will be scratching my head wondering why we didn’t pick someone, anyone, else. Ricky Rubio is the logical Geoff Petrie, wetdream, choice. But if we all think he will draft RR… then he probably won’t.

1-Griffin but would be happy with Rubio
2-Rubio
3-Jennings
4-Thabeet

All will add value to our line-up. Some more than others. Lets be happy that regardless of our position 1-4, we are going to get some talent this year an probably win 30-35 games.

The team was coming off its worst season in a decade. It needed help. Remember — the draft came before Webber, before even Vlade. And Petrie took Jason Freaking Williams.

I don’t think this really hurts your point, but Webber was already in hand. Sure, he hadn’t agreed to play, but he had already been traded for. Still, your point about Rubio is spot on. He is a showman who will make this team better with his leadership on the court. And, I’m not convinced that Griffin is the type of player that can improve this team without a Rubio type player on the same team. (Now, that would be awesome to get both guys. But what’s the chance of that happening? 1 in a billion? 2 billion? a Trillion?)

Either way, I hope the Kings get Rubio, but that’s no surprise here. The only way we’ll know is that this team needs help everywhere, and it’s possible Rubio has the best UPSIDE too.

are reflections of the same phenomenon among many Kings fans here. Nostalgia, as well as a desire for something, anything, that points to a coherent identity and competitiveness. Yes, J-Will got the fans excited again, but he had to be swapped out for Bibby before the Kings could actually become contenders. Yes, I want the Kings to win again. Yes, I want them to be fun to watch. But is the goal, in the end, to compete for a playoff berth or to contend for a title? I think it could be argued either way.

On one hand, this team is rock bottom right now, and with the economy sagging, ticket sales lagging, and the arena issue looming, something needs to be done to inject some life into this forlon franchise. I can also understand the point that 98 did not solve everything, and it took forther moves by Petire to get the team to contender status. So should we take Rubio, hire EJ, and at least have a fun, offensively-driven, skilled Petrie-style team that may make the playoffs in two years? Sure, I guess I could vibe with that. But more needs must be made. This team still needs an alpha dog that can carry the team in the clutch. Without that, it will never contend. I just worry that we’ve loward our standards to simply winning more games, as opposed to building a title team.

we have a chance at Rubio or Griffin. I know TZ doesn’t believe in the jinx, I don’t either, but damn, I hope we get the #1 or #2 pick.

I’ve agreed that Griffin is the consensus number 1, but only because every mock draft has it so. I also pointed out to another poster (who claimed Griffin is the #1 pick and there is nothing anyone can do about it) that Rubio could perform amazingly well in draft workouts and seize the number spot. While I will wait until I hear more about the players’ performances in said workouts to make a final conclusion, I’m all for Rubio at #1.

Why?

His knocks are mostly based on athleticism and being turnover prone. Yet, he is seemingly always in the passing lanes and coming up with steals. He is out-hustling other guys for loose balls. These qualities seem to dispell much of the apparent lack of athleticism.

Turnovers? Ok, maybe. But he also is averaging about 6 assist in 22 min. in the ACB. His court vision and dribbling are beyond amazing though. Hawes, and especially JT, will become monsters w/ a distributor like Rubio. The guy makes passes that nobody else can. It’s uncanny.

While Griffin will most likely be an All-Star, Rubio will be a phenomenon. Not a phenom (which he already is), but a PHENOMENON. Girls will be wearing “I heart Ricky” t-shirts. He will be the NBA’s equivalent of Ricky Martin, but with staying power. The kid is 18 and has the court vision of Nash at age 25. He’s got Maravich’s passing, J-Will’s flash (minus the tattoos and “white chocolate” mentality), T.I.‘s swagger, and Houdini’s trickery.

All in all, after the draft workouts, I seriously think it’s likely that Rubio picks up steam for becoming the number one pick, regardless of the team selecting.

Livin’ la Vida Loca, baby.

…and by the time the draft rolls around they’re still projected the runaway top 2 picks, do you think OKC would want their hometown kid bad enough to give us something of value for swapping picks? That is currently my dream scenario, having our cake and eating it too. Or having our Paella and eating it too, I guess.

you HAVE to go with Rubio. The influx of cash to Sactown from the hordes of Spanish media alone will cover his salary for his entire rookie contract.

The only draw back is that he won’t be ready to really really play for a few years. He’s just too young where as Blake is more “NBA ready”

Of course, you could just trade your #1 pick and JT for Amare. Come on. You know you want to

That so many people would consider taking little Rubio over Blake Griffin. Did you see the guy in the tournament?? Had he not gotten injured mid-season, he could have had Oklahoma as a #1 seed with that mediocre roster. In their last game against UNC, when the Huskies doubled him at every touch of the ball and nobody else on OK did anything, Blake still managed 23 points, 16 boards, and 9 for 12 shooting! On the season he scored nearly 800 points and grabbed over 500 boards (over 14 per game) and was the consensus national player of the year!

And if we have the chance to get this amazing player on our team we would pass it up for a teenager who hasn’t even played a game in the NCAA? It’s true Blake doesn’t fit the typical King, and that’s what’s great! We finally have a chance to get an amazing force down low. Don’t pass that up!!!

If the Euroleague—well I guess you don’t consider it a league—is better competition than the NCAA, but I still think it would be a giant mistake to pass up Blake Griffin, and yet I could really see it happening. Whether or not we have Shock and Hawes, Griffin is a must take. We need that strength down low, we need that athleticism, we need that rebounding.

The difference between a point at 23 and Rubio is far less than the difference between a scoring post player at 23 and Griffin.

Bring on Rubio! He’s coming

Look at DX’s per 40 stats. (I would prefer per 36 but whatever.)

If the KIngs draft a guy like Griffin or Thabeet early, they have the 23 left to land a point guard, albeit likely a backup one. But if they get Rubio (or Evans or Jennings), they either draft a 2nd PG at 23 or they select a wing player (Ellington, Young, etc.) or an undersized PF (Blair, Patterson, Brooks, etc.). There will really be no truly big guys at 23, unless B.J. Mullens slides.

This is not to say that they should not use the early pick for a PG. My hope is that there is a PG on the board whenever the KIngs pick that they like enough to select. But if the Kings get Rubio (or Evans or Jennings) the dynamic of the 23 pick changes greatly.

The kid is stable. I mean I see him with the ball in his hands and I feel safe. He won’t take bad shots, he won’t risk dangerous passes with no reason and he’ll take care of the ball, he’ll play good defense and he has all the fundamentals that European basketball provides, something that players in NCAA often lack.

These characteristics make a good PG. I can’t see him doing anything spectacular to elevate the team in a tough night. I can’t see him taking a game over. I would love to see Petrie picking him at #10 but at #1-2 ? I leave it to Petrie and no matter what happens, we’ll welcome him.

And even if he sucks, well that gives us a few more top picks.

Didn’t the Webber/Richmond+Thorpe deal happen in late May/Early June BEFORE the June ’98 draft. I love the article, but I think he drafted Williams AFTER acquiring Webber. Just want a fact check there.