Better to be Steph than Sorry

June 24th, 2009

In professional sports drafts, nobody really wants to make the safe pick. Usually, teams should take whomever they think is the best player. Sometimes, though, that is also the safe pick. If Stephen Curry is there for the Warriors at #7, they should take him.

The only argument I hear against Curry in these parts, is that he is too similar of a player to Monta Ellis. That’s a dumb argument to make against a draft prospect because we don’t know if Ellis is going to be here for the long term. Why should we hold Ellis in such high regard and think he’s here for the long haul when he has been upset with the organization before? With or without Curry, Ellis could, at any point, demand a trade and force his way to another organization. Then, not selecting Curry, could really look stupid. Ellis is also a type of “special needs” player. I say this because he’s not a point guard, will never play on a winning team as a point guard, yet he thinks he’s a point guard. The best case for Ellis to play on a winning team is to be a shooting guard, playing next to a big point guard… like Baron Davis. This way, the defensively deficient Ellis can guard point guards, while someone like Davis can guard the twos. Big point guards like Davis, however, are extremely hard to find.

Curry certainly doesn’t fit the big point guard bill, but he is more of a true point guard than Ellis because he is used to being a leader (something Ellis will never be), has a high basketball IQ, and does a lot of the little things well. Curry is team-minded and averaged 5.6 assists last year despite playing with subpar talent at Davidson. Curry also rebounds well for his size, generates a lot of steals, and has the ability to make the clutch shot.

Shooting is obviously Curry’s greatest strength. It’s an asset that too many teams take for granted in the NBA. (Just ask Brandon Morrow.) Curry is a safe pick because he’ll always be a good shooter. The worst case scenario is that he could be a third-guard on a championship team. That’s not too bad considering of a worst-case scenario considering how weak this draft is. And, the Orlando Magic just proved how valuable shooting is in the NBA.

The best thing about Curry, though, is he’s not just a spot shooter. He’s a scorer. He should always be able to score in this league. True Hoop did a great piece on how good of a player that Curry is in isolation plays and how this bodes well for the next level.

I’ve made it known that I think it would be tough to be a championship contending team with Ellis on the roster, particularly at his salary. I do think, however, that Ellis and Curry could still co-exist in a backcourt. Both players would take turns handling the ball, while also setting up each other. They may not ever win a championship together, but they can have some success and create matchup problems, which Nellie obviously loves to have at his disposal.

As with any draft, there are a lot of players with a ton of potential, such as DeMar DeRozan. Guys who probably have higher ceilings than Stephen Curry. Bad teams, however, often draft in the lottery year after year because they’re always hoping and reaching for that star player that, oftentimes, never amounts to much. In this year’s Finals, the best players such as Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis weren’t even top ten picks… and other than Bryant, weren’t close to being top ten picks. Sometimes, in the NBA, it’s better to make the safe, solid pick. In this case, the Warriors can’t go wrong with Curry… if he’s there.

Curry isn’t necessarily the best fit, writes Tim Kawakami.

The Warriors should be thinking point guard, writes Gary Peterson.

Kawakami perfectly illustrates, in the wake of the Richard Jefferson trade, why the Spurs are the anti-Warriors. One thing that TK didn’t mention is that the Spurs will stockpile second round picks, and find good role players with those picks. Tomorrow, they can easily replace the three guys they gave up in the Jefferson trade with their three second round picks. While many bad teams are looking for raw players and diamonds in the rough in the second round, the Spurs will probably find a shooter, a good defensive wing, and a rebounding big man.

In the 3-Dot Blog, Bruce Jenkins has Warrior draft thoughts… and some Wimbledon notes. The Warriors brass can dismiss Kawakami all they want, but when Jenkins also questions their philosophy, don’t they have to take notice?

Thompson asks: What if Jordan Hill and Curry are gone?

A fantastic breakdown of past rookies and their playing time under Don Nelson’s watch, from Adam Lauridsen.

The team’s summer league schedule.

Giants

Tim Lincecum owns the A’s.

For Bruce Bochy and the Giants, it’s good to take the Bay Bridge season series, writes John Shea.

In Henry Schulman’s pregame notes, he thinks the Giants could soon announce the signing of one or more draft picks.

Matt Downs is happy he gave up pitching, writes Andrew Baggarly.

In his postgame notes, Baggs makes a great point that Pablo Sandoval should be an All-Star because he would be such a versatile threat off the bench. In a pivotal situation, needing a base hit, I can’t think of another hitter, outside of Albert Pujols, that the National League will want up there. Baggs also touched on Matt Holliday’s shaky defense. Loyal WCB readers know that I have never been a fan of his fielding.

The bullpen is happy to share the load.

Jeff Fletcher examines whether Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner could be making an appearance soon for the big club. This is a very interesting subject that we may have to discuss further here at WCB. Brian Sabean, in the trade market, may have to deal with other GM’s asking for guys like Bumgarner, Posey, and Alderson, when he inquires about hitters. Instead of giving in to ridiculous demands, Sabean may look at promoting from within to make the Giants a better team. This way the Giants don’t sacrifice the future, while still possibly improving the team.

The deadline passed and Kevin Frandsen is still in Fresno.

More thoughts on second base from McCovey Chronicles. He makes a good point that the Giants shouldn’t read too much into Downs numbers in limited at bats. I just think that Frandsen is the one who deserves this playing time. I don’t think Frandsen will be the long-term answer, but I don’t know… and neither do the Giants. Why not give him the rest of the season to have a better understanding. The organization will have a much easier time deciding on what to do with his pending arbitration in the offseason if they can get him 300 at bats this year.

Last night’s minor league lines include a subpar start for Tim Alderson.

The link is a little late, but a good piece on the late Dusty Rhodes.

A’s

The A’s couldn’t sustain rallies, writes Joe Stiglich.

In Susan Slusser’s game story, Adam Kennedy is trying to get used to more positions.

Dave Stewart was shaken up by the ‘89 earthquake, as Stiglich writes.

Stewart was glad Jose Canseco wasn’t at the 1989 reunion, calling him a bad teammate”, as Fletcher writes.

The area now needs the energy that ‘89 brought, writes Ray Ratto.

Rickey Henderson doesn’t want them to leave Oakland.

It didn’t feel like a bash, writes Mark Purdy. It was a terrible turnout, as Lowell Cohn writes.

Gwen Knapp echoes what we all think: Moneyball wasn’t meant for the big screen.

A prospect report from Athletics Nation.