Nets Are Scorching

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• With the first pick, the Wizards selected John Wall
• With the second pick, the Sixers selected Evan Turner

And now, with the third pick in the 2010 NBA Draft the Nets select Derrick Favors, Power Forward out of Georgia Tech:

With John Wall and Evan Turner off the board, it is up to the Nets to select between the best Power Forwards available, Derrick Favors and DeMarcus Cousins.  I think the Nets think tank are going to select Derrick Favors.  I already did a pretty extensive post on it, but here are a few excerpts:

This way, when Brook is on the outside with the basketball his big-man alongside of him can work in the post, and vice-versa.  Despite being very raw, when watching the tape, you can tell that Derrick Favors has this skill-set, and this is why I want to see the Nets draft Favors with the third overall pick.

…

If you were to think of one word that has been associated with Derrick Favors so far, that word would be “raw.”  That is all you hear from some scouts and draft experts.  While he might be raw when it comes to basketball skills (his shooting ability for example), there are two things that catch your eye when you watch Favors play.

The first is his work ethic on the basketball court.  Georgia Tech’s offense was very helter skelter during this past season, and that is putting it nicely.  There would be series of five to ten straight possessions where Derrick Favors wouldn’t even get a touch.  Despite all of that, every time down the court, Favors would get to his spot on the court and post up, just as hard and strong as the last time (even though he didn’t get the basketball).

The second thing you notice is Favors’ basketball IQ.  Despite being “raw,” Favors seems to know what he is doing with the basketball.  In the four or five games I was able to see, Derrick Favors never looked flustered.  He was comfortable with the basketball and always knew where he wanted to go with it.  He also does the little things.  We already talked about Favors putting his hands up when retreating to his man, but he also runs the floor very well, knows how to properly space out the court, and instinctively chins the basketball when grabbing a rebound, getting those elbows out and preventing defenders from reaching in and stealing it.

Now on the clock is A Wolf Among Wolves, representing the Minnesota Timberwolves.