The Whiteboard: Winners and losers from the 2020 NBA Draft

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For all the hype about movement up and down, and potentially landscape-altering trades the 2020 NBA Draft was relatively quiet. The top three picks went as some expected — Anthony Edwards to the Timberwolves, James Wiseman to the Warriors, LaMelo Ball to the Hornets — and we didn’t see a single pick traded inside the lottery.

But there was plenty of wheeling and dealing as things pushed later into the first round and even if it ends up creating advantages more on the margins, there were some clear draft-night winners and losers who separated themselves from the pack.

Who had big wins on NBA Draft night?

Dallas Mavericks: The Mavs were clearly looking for shooting and depth to surround Luka Doncic pick-and-rolls and they found a surplus of it. They didn’t hit any specific home runs, but they just cranked out doubles and singles all evening. When the final pick was announced, Dallas had landed Josh Green at No. 18, Tyrell Terry at No. 31 and Tyler Bey at No. 36, and traded Seth Curry to the 76ers for Josh Richardson. No one in that group projects to be a future star but Green, Terry and Bey are all high-floor guys with well-defined skills. Even if their ceilings are just as high-level role players, they’re giving Luka and Rick Carlisle more shooting and more defensive versatility to work with as the roster tilts younger. Richardson had a down year in Philadelphia and costs a bit more than Curry, but he should plug into the starting lineup immediately and help with his defense. He’s also three years younger, which helps them move their timeline back a bit.

Philadelphia 76ers: Philadelphia was on the other end of that Dallas trade, saving some money and upgrading their shooting with Seth Curry. But it wasn’t their only deal of the day — before the draft officially started, Philadelphia sent Al Horford to the Thunder, paying a price for shedding his contract but getting Danny Green in return. Then, in the actual draft, the 76ers lucked into a lottery talent in Tyrese Maxey at No. 21, one of the best shooters in the class in Isaiah Joe at No. 49 and a uniquely versatile and energetic forward in Paul Reed with the second-to-last pick. The plan is to push forward with the Simmons-Embiid core and they added a ton of outside shooting without hurting their defense, as well as a cadre of interesting young players to develop. Maxey could play a meaningful role this season with energy in transition and swarming defense, and also gives Daryl Morey the freedom to shop Matisse Thybulle and/or Zhaire Smith if he gets the itch. A very solid night.

Charlotte Hornets: The Hornets mostly had their choice made for them, with both Edwards and Wiseman off the board as the first two picks. Okongwu was a possibility but Ball’s talent was too much to pass up and now they’ll get to run out a fascinating up-tempo offense that could make some noise in the East. Ball’s passing and creation ability can help ease the burden on both Terry Rozier and Devonte’ Graham and potentially make both players more efficient on offense. Ball’s size and hopefully better-than-advertised defense should let the three play at least some minutes together, really opening the floor on offense. And while there are question marks with his game, Ball will draw attention and enthusiasm for a team that hasn’t gotten much shine lately. Their first two second-round picks were big bodies (Vernon Carey and Nick Richardson) who may not do more than that but Grant Riller could be the steal of the draft at No. 56. He was a lottery-level prospect on our final Big Board and his three-level scoring and polish are shades of Fred VanVleet.

Who had a questionable return on NBA Draft night?

Houston Rockets: Trading Robert Covington for the No. 16 pick two days ago seemed like a sign that James Harden and Russell Westbrook were both headed out and a full-scale tear-down really was coming. And then they traded the No. 16 pick and Trevor Ariza for a future first-rounder. Tillman, baby, what is you doing?

Phoenix Suns: It seemed that the run of miraculous luck for the Suns was continuing with two high-level point guard prospects still on the board — Kira Lewis and Tyrese Haliburton — when they were called. Instead, the Suns took Jalen Smith, a bouncy, vertical big who was ranked in the 30s on our Big Board. Even if Phoenix know something we don’t know and Smith really is their guy, it’s hard to imagine they couldn’t have moved back in the draft, still selected him and picked up an additional asset.

New York Knicks: They better hope Obi Toppin is the player they think he is. Toppin has an incredibly versatile offensive skill set but he’s also 22 and projects to be a huge problem on defense. Trevor Magnotti compared him to Kyle Kuzma which is … not encouraging and not the kind of return you want at No. 8.

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The Brooklyn Nets pulled off a significant draft night trade, just not the one you’re thinking of. They landed Landry Shamet in a three-team deal that sent Luke Kennard to the Clippers. It’s a win-win-win.

Read more about who won the other three major trades we saw yesterday:

• Al Horford to the Thunder
• Josh Richardson and Seth Curry swapping places
• Ricky Rubio heading back to the Timberwolves

If you need more grades, check out Gerald Bourguet’s assessment of how all 30 teams did on draft night.

Sixty new NBA players were assigned to NBA teams but plenty of talent is still out there. Meet the five best undrafted players, many of whom could still be headed to your favorite team as free agents this week.