NBA Draft Day: Trades, Rumors and More

Good morning, and welcome to draft day. It feels like the NBA season just ended (probably because the Cavaliers' championship parade was literally yesterday), but it's already time to consider next season, and the draft is where all of that begins. Yesterday kicked off what could be a crazy couple of days with two major trades. We recap those and consider rumors as the day begins.

• The lesser of yesterday's two trades was a rotation of starting point guards. Jeff Teague moved from the Hawks to the Pacers, George Hill from the Pacers to the Jazz, and Utah's #12 overall pick in tonight's draft went to Atlanta. Hill is a nice acquisition for a Utah team that struggled with injuries last season, and will make their already-terrifying defense even better. Teague will bring a new element to the Pacers' attack, and his departure opens the door for Dennis Schröder to start for Atlanta next season.

• The bigger of the two trades must be noted as such because it's not every day a former MVP changes teams. The New York Knicks looked to give their established pieces a new point guard by acquiring 2011 MVP Derrick Rose from the Chicago Bulls. Rose, Justin Holliday and a future second round pick were traded for Robin Lopez, Jose Calderon and Jerian Grant. The question now for the Knicks is what else do they put next to Rose, Carmelo Anthony, and Kristaps Porzingis?

• The small rumor around the Wolves yesterday involved their potential interest in the Nuggets' Kenneth Faried, which Eric examined yesterday, as did the good folks over at Denver Stiffs for a different perspective.

• As for the draft itself, the first two picks seem pretty clear: Ben Simmons to the Sixers, and Brandon Ingram to the Lakers. After that, it gets fun. The Celtics, as usual, are trying to move their pick and likely swindle someone out of good assets, as Danny Ainge always seems to. The Suns at 4 may just want Kris Dunn, or they may be trying to prise Gordon Hayward free from Utah. The Wolves at 5 could take Buddy Hield (as requested by Key yesterday), or Jamal Murray (who wants to be here), or Dunn, or someone else entirely. Or they could trade the pick, which the front office said they were open to.

Basically, anything could happen today. Outside of the top two picks, almost any team in the lottery could look to trade up or down. Teams outside the lottery could be looking to move in and snag just the right piece for them. The spot the Wolves hold is valuable, not only because they could get yet another quality prospect from the pick itself, but because other teams could value the ability to select a certain player at 5 even more than the Wolves do. It leaves us ready to sit and wait for the next Woj bomb to hit at any moment today. It should be a fun one. Contemplate it here with us.