Source: http://www.insidebayarea.com/sports/ci_12407610 ********************************************************************* Warriors don't beat odds; Kings big losers in lottery Updated: 05/20/2009 01:11:28 AM PDT / By Marcus Thompson ********************************************************************* OAKLAND — The Warriors lost out on the Blake Griffin Sweepstakes in Secaucus, N.J., on Tuesday. They didn't move up in the NBA draft lottery. Of course, it could've been worse. They could've been the Sacramento Kings. The Warriors' Northern California rivals came away with No. 4 pick despite having the league's worst record and a 25 percent chance of nabbing the top pick. Sacramento is undoubtedly the team most in need of a franchise-changing player. Instead, Griffin, the star power forward from Oklahoma, will presumably go to Los Angeles, as the Clippers came away the winners of the lottery. It's the 21st time in the 25 years of the NBA draft lottery that the team with the worst record hasn't gotten the top pick. The Memphis Grizzlies, who landed No. 2, and the Oklahoma City Thunder, which got No. 3, both leapfrogged the Kings. Sacramento's misfortune brings up questions over whether the lottery system is fair. "The worst team shouldn't always get the best player," TNT analyst and former NBA player Chris Webber, who represented the Kings in Secaucus, told the Associated Press. "It's unfortunate I didn't get what I wanted to get, and the Sacramento fans didn't get what they wanted, but I think the system is fair." The Warriors epitomized fair this time around. They finished with the seventh-worst record in the league and wound up with the No. 7 pick. They had a 15 percent chance of moving into the top 3, a 4.3 percent chance of winning the top pick. With those slim odds, Warriors general manager Larry Riley expected little or no movement. "We kind of assumed seven," Riley, who was announced as the Warriors' new head basketball executive last week, said in a post-lottery phone interview. "We now know we go to work on seven." Riley said trading the pick is always a possibility but seemed resigned to the fact that the Warriors were going to use the pick. It's unlikely teams will be clamoring to move up to the No, 7 pick considering they might get as good of a player later in the draft. With that said, adding another rookie doesn't seem like the answer to the Warriors' need as their average age was the youngest in the NBA last season. "Ideally," Riley said, "you're looking for a player at seven with four years of college experience to put onto our roster. But that won't be the deciding factor. If there is a young player there who can really play, we're going to take him." A point guard is high on the Warriors' priority list, according to league and team insiders. A few notable point guards should be available — Brandon Jennings, Stephen Curry, Tyreke Evans — when the Warriors select. Per the rumor mill, another point guard the Warriors are familiar with almost came available, too. The Clippers, according to insiders, have a crush on Italian point guard Ricky Rubio. If Los Angeles was to draft Rubio, word is it would look to trade current starting point guard Baron Davis, the former Warriors star. (Maybe the new GM, whom the Warriors say has autonomy over the roster, would be inclined to reacquire Davis?) That's perhaps a moot point now as the Clippers almost have to take Griffin or risk possibly making one of the worst decisions in draft history. "I think five years from now, Blake Griffin will be hitting his stride in the NBA, and he will be an impact player wherever he is," Clippers president Andy Roeser told AP. "He is an athletic player. He can do all sorts of things and has a ton of talent, and I think any team will be happy to have him." ********************************************************************* -- Only the strong survive- Iverson ⊕ ═█┘ ⊕ ●╱ 　　　 Ｗ ● ●︵ ● ●)) ３╯ <３\ /３⊕ ／３﹚ ３ \\ />⊕ >/ ⊕ ╲> >> ========= http://www.wretch.cc/blog/AWEI3 ========= --

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