Yahoo Sports NBA draft analyst Krysten Peek checks in from Barclays Center with her top reactions to Thursday night’s draft selections — including Orlando’s big surprise at No. 1 and Sacramento’s continuing disappointment.
Video Transcript
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KRYSTEN PEEK: The 2022 NBA draft has come to an end. And it started off with a surprise when the Orlando Magic selected Paolo Banchero over Jabari Smith, who thought he was going number 1 all week. Some teams made some wise picks, and the other ones were a little questionable. Let’s take a look at the winners and losers of the NBA Draft.
Let’s start off with the winners. The Orlando Magic– this is the first number 1 pick since 2004 for the Magic when they drafted Dwight Howard. Paolo Banchero has the most NBA-ready body at 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds and can act as a primary ball handler in transition. Banchero loves the inside-out freedom the NBA’s spacing allows and is thrilled to be joining a young core of Cole Anthony, Franz Wagner, Markelle Fultz, and Wendell Carter Jr.
Another winner of the night was Jaden Ivey and the Detroit Pistons. Ivey was very vocal about not going to Sacramento, and he got his wish when they drafted Iowa forward Keegan Murray at number 4 instead. Ivy is a dream situation, joining Cade Cunningham in the backcourt. And if that wasn’t good enough, eight picks later, they added 6-foot-11 center Jalen Duren to bring some size and rim protection in the lane.
Now we have to talk about a couple of losers. The Sacramento Kings– they drafted on team need and not necessarily best-available, who is Jaden Ivey. And only a few years will tell if they missed out on Ja Morant 2.0. The other loser of the night is the Memphis Grizzlies, who made questionable picks at 19 and 23, taking older projected role players like Jake LaRavia out of Wake Forrest and CSU forward David Roddy. Both players are hard workers and have great work ethics, but the projected ceiling is lower than the other players that were still on the board. Summer League is right around the corner. And for continual coverage on this draft class and all NBA news, keep it right here on Yahoo Sports.