With just two days to go, NBA Draft rumors are flying, including the Hawks trying to move up, Blazers leaning against a trade and more.
NBA Draft rumors: Wizards focusing on selecting Anthony Black
According to Jonathan Givony, the Wizards are focusing in on a single prospect with the eighth overall pick. This is a team that is heading toward a rebuild after trading Bradley Beal. Kyle Kuzma is most likely gone. Kristaps Porzingis is a player that could end up being traded (or sign-and-traded) after he opts into his player option.
With that in mind, the Wizards are looking to make their first pick of this new era. They are reportedly looking to select Anthony Black with the No. 8 overall pick. They are focusing on him after giving a player a second workout with the team.
Anthony Black is a player out of Arkansas who has a lot of play-making ability. He is a combo guard with great size and defensive versatility. According to Givony, the Wizards are also giving some consideration to Kobe Bufkin from Michigan but Black appears to be the clear front-runner.
NBA Draft rumors: Trail Blazers leaning towards not trading the third overall pick
According to Jonathan Givony, the Trail Blazers are looking at keeping the third overall pick. It seems like they want to pick whoever is left after the Hornets — either Scoot Henderson or Brandon Miller. This is a potentially dramatic decision considering Damian Lillard has made subtle threats that he would ask for a trade if the Blazers keep the No. 3 pick instead of trading it for a win-now veteran.
The best situation for the Trail Blazers might be to keep the pick and trade Lillard. There really doesn't seem to be a way to get a player who can be the second option to a Lillard championship team. They may want to start the rebuild before Lillard ages out of prime value. Henderson or Miller could end up being a superstar in this league and the Blazers may be able to have a franchise player going forward right after trading Damian Lillard. They would also be able to get a bunch of picks for the future, including picks that could be way off into the future.
NBA Draft rumors: Hawks trying to make move for Lively
According to Marc Stein, the Atlanta Hawks may be looking to trade up for Dereck Lively. The Hawks have the No. 15 overall pick in this year's draft and will most likely have to trade up to get the player from Duke. It seems like the Hawks are at the very least gonna explore trading John Collins or Clint Capela this offseason. If the Hawks were to trade either, they would need a replacement in the frontcourt.
Lively is a rim-runner that could fit very well, fitting into the Capela mold as a rim-protector, rebounder and vertical spacer. The Hawks are in a very situation where there are trade rumors on basically every key player on the team. Trae Young is seen as a player that could request a trade in the not-too-distant future.
This team also does not want to pay the luxury tax. In addition to all of this, the Hawks are in the middle of a power struggle in the front office. This is a team that thinks that made a trade last offseason with the assumption for the future. After one year, they were unable to keep to that plan.
Check out The Step Back for more news, analysis, opinion and unique basketball coverage. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram and subscribe to our daily email newsletter, The Whiteboard.
