Daily Zoot - 6/24/09 - NBA Draft Prezoot

The Daily Zoot is all the news you needed to know tomorrow, soon

-The NBA draft is coming and its among the most wonderful times of the year. Every team enters with a litany of gaping holes. And every team leaves with the belief that they have acquired the missing piece they need; when it turns out that only 1, maybe 2 if its a particularly good year, actually have. The draft can last anywhere from 3 hours to 3 weeks, but if you don't want to commit that much time and attention, here are the two best stories to keep an eye on.

-The man in Green above is Ricky Rubio. He's been playing professionally in Spain since he was 14, and has been on the international basketball radar seemingly since he was inutero. Scouts say he is the most gifted passer we've seen in the draft in about 15 years, with a chance to be the next Pistol Pete. Haters say he isn't strong enough or a good enough shooter to hang in the NBA, and that he looks too much like comedian Demetri Martin. He is still under contract with his Spanish team and the potential buyout, one that Rubio would have to pay himself, could be more than the salary he would command on his rookie contract. That and concerns over his willingness to play in Memphis and Oklahoma City (Do you blame him?) make him and what jersey he will wear next season the most compelling story of the entire draft. 

-The other guy in that picture is Brandon Jennings, you already know about him. He could go anywhere from 5/6 to the Wolves to falling out of the lottery all together. With Rubio, the story ends when he is drafted; With Jennings, his selection is just the beginning. Jennings was the first high profile player to skip college and play a year abroad before heading to the pros. While overseas he struggled to earn playing time, and struggled to adapt to living overseas. Where he gets picked, and his level of preparedness when he hits his first training camp will say a lot about how popular his career path ends up becoming.

Other than those two, its going to end up being straight forward. Maybe a surprise pick here and there (spoiler alert; those surprises will be coming from the Knicks) but the draft should be untraditionally chalk. Unless the Celtics end up trading Rajon Rondo, in which case everyone can enjoy the incredible hissy fit I will be throwing; but short of that, it will be a pretty tame evening.