First of two drafts was this morning, 8 cat, 12 team. I picked fourth.
1. Chris Paul G
-I anticipated either Paul or Wade, that's how it fell. Guards are deeper than forwards which are deeper than centers, but there are a pool of forwards to be had in rounds 2-5, so this is a good result. I've got LeBron and Durant, in that order, at the top of the board. I've got Rose lower than his ADP; in my next draft I'm picking third, and in the likely event that he's on the board, I'm passing him up for Paul.
2. Danny Granger F
-I'm a GSW fan, and my hope was a fall by either Curry or Ellis. It almost happened, Curry went 20th just one spot ahead of mine. I queue alternatives, so I anticipated going forward here and was ready with Granger or Gay. In the event it falls like this, choose Granger as you might get a chance for Gay with the shortside pick.
3. Jrue Holiday G
-Gay was still on the board and that had been my working plan all along, but two guys I like a lot, Wright and Gallinari, are going to be value picks; I moved off the Gay plan and decided I'd get the best PG on the board (I could have gotten Evans also; this is the 28th pick and that's where they should go) and follow up with forwards.
4. Kevin Garnett F
-Here's where I made the mistake, what I needed to do here was go Wright then Gallinari and I wound up missing them both. I thought I'd be able to get KG then still pick up either of the other forwards in the next spot; this is pick 45.
5. Manu Ginobli G
-I know, helluva fantasy team from 2008. I love Manu, both in real life and fantasy, and decided to roll the die on Gallinari. That was error.
6. Serge Ibaka C
-Have to get a center in round six, there are two required on a 13 man roster, and with Lopez down and Lee not qualifying, center is hurting. I also like Irving as a third PG, but lost out by taking Serge. This is the 69th pick.
7. Darren Collison G
-I got the guys I wanted with the next two picks; I've already offered Collison straight up for Wright (turned down) and Gallinari (we'll see).
8. Nicolas Batum F
-This is the 93rd pick; here, I had Harden higher on my board, but needed the third forward.
9. James Harden G
-As it turned out, I got Harden anyway; here, I had to give up on Frye as my second center, but the value difference was more than I could give away.
10. Anderson Varejao C
-Have to get the second center at this point, Varejao was highest on the board; this is pick 117.
11. Trevor Ariza F
-3 picks left, I need the 4th forward now because he starts; note I picked 5 guards before 4 forwards, demonstrating the depth in the backcourt. If I go Bellinelli and not Manu in that spot I fix that problem.
12. Tony Allen G
-What do you mean defense doesn't count in fantasy? This is pick 141; I was looking at Fields and George (who doesn't have forward eligibility or I would have taken him in the previous round) here also. He'll sit on my bench as the sixth guard; I'm likely to play the other five most of the time, 4 at the guard spot, one at the flex.
13. Matt Barnes F
-Last man on the roster at pick 148. Since the second draft is likely to look similar to this, I'm likely to start with the same three picks, then go Wright/Bellinelli.
