Pudge for Farnsworth

ESPN.com is reporting that the Yankees have sent overpaid relief pitcher Kyle Farnsworth to the Detroit Tigers for catcher Ivan Rodriguez. Pudge should be a nice offensive improvement over Jose Molina who is batting .226 with 0 HRs 11 RBIs in 195 ABs. The addition of Damaso Marte made Farnsworth expendable, especially with how well Edwar Ramirez and Jose Veras have been throwing. Now if only the Yanks could find someone to take LaTroy Hawkins off their hands...

10. Share a Guinness...


9. Common - Soul by the Pound [1992]


8. Calorie Compliance
A new ordinance in New York City requires all fast food chains to post the number of calories of each menu item (in that same item size) on menus and menu boards. The full ordinance can be obtained here (www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/cdp/calorie_compliance_guide.pdf). The purpose of such action to address the problem of obesity in NYC. The question is whether such policy will have any effect.

It seems to me that the lawmakers behind this understand obesity to be an informational problem in the sense that consumers are not fully aware of the side effects of their consumption and the associated externalities. I feel that consumers of fast food are aware of its effects, but choose to eat it anyways because of the lack of similarly priced alternatives. The relatively low cost of food at fast-food and other restaurants allows consumers to substitute away from more healthy alternatives (i.e. preparing food at home).

Therefore the problem of obesity has more to do with the relative price of food than an informational problem. I'm sure that some would be quick to point that that smoking rates (an addictive activity comprable to eating fast food) among Americans shrunk by nearly half in the three decades (mid 60's to mid 90's). As consumers become more aware of the risks of eating fast food they may similarly substitute away, but this will still depend more on the relative price of food than any "fear" of eating too much. My solution would be to treat fast food as any other negative externality: a tax. For any tax to work, the government would have to calculate the social costs of eating fast food and consequentially obesity (i.e. higher medicare costs, potentially lower medicare costs in the future due to earlier death, pollution, etc.). Such a tax would help raise the relative price of fast food compared to healthier alternatives and consumers would respond accordingly.

6. Clyde Carson f/ Sean Kingston & The Game - In Da Club


5. The LA Angels trade 1B Casey Kotchman and pitching prospect Stephen Marek to the Atlanta Braves for 1B Mark Teixeira.

Teixeira is a huge pickup for the Angels, adding a bonafide cleanup hitter (.283/20/78) and gold glove defender to an already potent offense. Kotchman is a solid hitter and defender in his own right (.287/12/54) who stuck out only 43 times last year in 443 ABs. Stephen Marek is having a solid year out of the bullpen in AA this year (2-6, 3.66) with a solid K/9 ratio (10.99). He'll need to get his rather high BB per 9 innings (4.05) down if he wants to be effective in the majors.

4. Yankees Draft Update

The Yanks still have not signed their top 3 draft picks, namely flame-thrower RHP Gerrit Cole out of Orange Lutheran HS (CA), craftly LHP Jeremy Bleich out of Stanford, and RHP Scott Bittle from Mississippi.

3. Exact Science

Ya dig?

2. O.C. - Born 2 Live


1. Brett Favre

Looks like even Favre couldn't escape the Madden Curse. Even if Favre ends up sitting this year out, I think it's fair to say that his legacy has been tainted by this year's drama. We'll never know whether Packers GM Ted Thompson in any way "pushed" Farve towards retirement last year or if Favre really convinced himself to retire only to realize this summer that he still has some gas in the tank. It would be a real shame to see Favre walk away from the franchise that made him an American icon. Favre left the Packers as close to the top as any player in recent history and I wouldn't like to see him spend the twilight of his career bogged down in mediocrity, assuming he goes to the Jets or Bucs. Then again, maybe the Packers should just let Favre do as he pleases.

10. Slippery oil prices


9. Francisco Rodriguez

K-Rod already has 44 saves and is on pace for 68, enough to shatter Bobby Thigpen's record of 57.

8. Termanology f/ Bun B [prod. DJ Premier] - How We Rock


7. Thursday, August 28th

College football kicks off with NC State @ South Carolina (8 PM, ESPN) and Oregon State @ Stanford (9 PM, ESPN2).

6. Talib Kweli f/ Marsha Ambrosius - Take it Back


5. Mariano Rivera

Rivera's .669 WHIP (Walks + Hits divided by Innings Pitched) is the lowest in history among 38-year old pitchers with 40+ innings.

4. Xavier Nady & Damaso Marte

The Yanks recently sent top prospect Jose Tabata and pitchers Ross Ohlendorf, Dan McCutchen, Jeff Karstens to Pittsburgh for Nady and Marte. Marte is probably the first effective lefty the Yanks have had in their bullpen since Mike Stanton and Nady will help fill in for the injured Matsui. On the prospect side of the deal, the Yanks really didn't have to give much up. Once heralded as the future CF of the Yanks, Tabata has struggled as of late. He has put on more weight than expected and now profiles more as a RF (think Manny Ramirez). He has also struggled with a wrist injury and has been suspended several times for showing up late. Ohlendorf is a hard throwing righty out of Princeton who has struggled with command and Karstens has bounced up and down between AAA and the Yankees for several years now. McCutchen is probably the only player in this deal that has a shot at having some success in the majors. After serving a 50 game suspension for steroids in 2006, McCutchen hasn't looked back posting a 3.77 ERA in 76+ innings this year in AAA. The most telling indicator of his future success is his consistently low BB/9 innings ratio (1.53).

3. The Pharcyde - Passing Me By


2. Kenny Phillips

After his arrival was delayed due to weather, Phillips finally showed up at Giants training camp and signed a 5 year deal that could be worth $11.15 million. Look for him to have an immediate impact in the NFL.

1. Bullet - Back to the Lyrics [album]

Download Here

10. Dissizit! x NYK


9. Peace Sign Up - Gym Class Heroes f/ Busta Rhymes


8. Alexei Ramirez

... & Paul Konerko.

7. Premonition - Reks


6. Knol by Google
Google's response to wikipedia. Apparently a "knol" is a unit of knowledge.

5. Delonte West

Could be playing for Dynamo Moscow of the Euroleague next year? I hope he is getting paid in Euros, not Rubles.

4. Acrylick x Black Star


3. Austin Jackson

.297, 15 HR, 57 RBIs, 15 SB for AA Trenton Thunder. Can you say Yankee CF of the future?

2. Joba Chamberlain x Josh Beckett

Joba did not disappoint. 7 scoreless innings, 9 Ks, picks up the W.

1. Flo Rida f/ Casely - Emotional Remix

10. NaS


9. Mike Mussina

3 starts, 18 innings, 2 wins, no losses, 16 Ks, 1 BB, 1.50 ERA in the month of July. Interestingly, hitters are batting .310 against him this month.

8. Dr. Edgar Mitchell
We're not alone...

7. Mick Boogie x Nike

Download Here

6. Robinson Cano

Batting .522/2/7 since the All Star Break. Hopefully Cashman doesn't pull the trigger on a rumored trade that would send him to LA for OF Matt Kemp and SP Derek Lowe.

5. Ludacris - Put On Freestyle


4. Winston Harrington, Ian Perry & Margaret Walls
Estimated the monetary of value of all externalities associated with driving, 228 cents per gallon of gas used, which happen to be much higher than the current federal (18.4 cents) and state (21.5) taxes.
Here

3. C.C. Sabathia

4-0, 1.98 ERA, 41 innings, 36 Ks, .189 BA against in July.

2. T.I. - Whatever You Like (Prod. by Jim Jonsin)


1. Your New York Yankees

Sitting pretty at 56-45, only 3.5 games behind the TB Rays in the Al East and riding a 6 game winning streak after sweeping the A's and Twins. Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina are a combined 24-13 this year and Mariano Rivera is 25/25 in save opps, knock on wood.

5 MVPs, 5 Cys (NL)

NL MVP

5. Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies (.236, 29, 87)
The first player in MLB history to lead his league in both HRs and RBIs not selected to participate in the All-Star Game, Howard is putting together another productive season. Having already won an MVP, Howard has the experience and plays in the right park to continue hitting. He'll have to raise his BA a couple points and the Phillies will have to stay hot to hold onto the NL East for him to have a shot.
Odds: 20-1
4. Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers (.288, 24, 71)
Braun hasn't missed a beat from last year's ROY campaign, putting up MVP-caliber numbers. The Brewers have been hot as of late and it'll be interesting to see how they finish up the year. If Braun continues to mash and the Brew Crew keep winning, he will have a good chance
Odds: 10-1
3. Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies (.296, 25, 70)
Utley may very well be the best 2b in history when it's all said and done. His compact swing surprsingly generates tremendous power to all fields while allowing him to hit for a high BA. Playing in Citizen's Bank Ballpark should only help him down the stretch and depending on how well the Phillies do, this may be his award to lose.
Odds: 5-1
2. Carlos Lee, Houston Astros (.306, 22, 80)
"El Caballo." Enough said.
Odds: 5-1
1. Lance Berkman, Houston Astros (.339, 22, 73)
After getting off to a blistering start (.476 BA in May), Berkman has cooled off a bit but is still putting up phenomenal stats. He is the odds on favorite to win the MVP if he can continue to hit for power and average from both sides of the plate (.344 BA as a LHB, .324 as a RHB).
Odds: 2-1

NL Cy Young

5. Kyle Lohse, St. Louis Cardinals (12-2, 3.35)
Odds: 25-1
4. Ben Sheets, Milwaukee Brewers (10-3, 2.88)
Odds: 15-1
3. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants (11-3, 2.79)
Odds: 10-1
2. Edinson Volquez, Cincinnati Reds (12-3, 2.49)
Odds: 5-1
1. Brandon Webb, Arizona Diamondbacks (13-4, 3.11)
Odds: 2-1

5 MVPs, 5 Cys (AL)

AL MVP

5. Kevin Youkilis (.316, 17, 67)

One of the stars of Billy Beane's bestselling Moneyball, Youkilis has finally emerged as one of the premier 1B in the American League. Although he has been tremendous all-around, I expect his power numbers to drop off back to his career averages (he has already set a career high mark for HRs in a season).
Odds: 30-1

4. Carlos Quentin, Chicago White Sox (.277, 23, 71)

In only his third season, first as a full-time starter, Quentin has emerged as a force in the heart of the White Sox lineup. The Chisox have surged to the top of the AL Central with a balanced, potent offense. Quentin should see plenty of good pitches to hit with protection from the likes of Jermaine Dye, Jim Thome, and Joe Crede.
Odds: 15-1

3. Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees (.313, 20, 55)

Even though A-Rod missed 20 games due to strained right quad, he is still in the running for MVP. Although he probably won't match his MVP stat line from last year (.314, 54, 156), his power numbers will pick up as the Yanks gain momentum down the stretch. Unlike most of the candidates this year, A-Rod has the experience and endurance to stay productive as the season winds down.
Odds: 10-1

2. Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins (.325, 15, 73)

Morneau is quietly putting together another productive season and looking to add a second MVP to his mantle. Minnesota has been hot as of late and if they manage to make it to October Morneau will have "winning" edge that voters love (think Miguel Tejada '02 with the A's).
Odds: 5-1

1. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers (.309, 21, 95)

Hands down the best story in baseball this year (sorry Fresno State), Hamilton is on pace for 35 jacks and a mind-boggling 159 RBIs. Durability may be an issue in September seeing as Hamilton has already surpassed his career high in ABs (only 298 last year) but if he continues to drive in runs at a torrid pace he will be your AL MVP.
Odds: 3-1

AL Cy Young

5. Ervin Santana, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (11-3, 3.34)

A highly touted prospect not too long ago, Santana has finally started to put up numbers that match his stuff. Longevity will be an issue, but playing for the best team in the AL should more than make up for that.
Odds: 30-1

4. Mike Mussina, New York Yankees (12-6, 3.49)

One of the biggest surprises this year, this may well be the year that Moose finally wins 20 games. Armed with a mid 80s fastball and a potpourri of breaking pitches, it'll be interesting to see how Mussina holds up down the stretch. Although the odds are stacked against his favor, Moose has the experience and know-how to stay effective.
Odds: 25-1

3. Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays (11-7, 2.89)

One of the more underrated pitchers of our generation, Halladay has been a workhorse for the Jays for quite some time now. He has thrown a staggering 7 compete game this year (4 more than anyone else in either league), 2 of them being shutouts. A series of mysterious injuries have kept Halladay from perenially winning the CY, so it'll be interesting to see how he holds up. If the Jays can get him some run support, he has as good of a chance as anybody at winning.
Odds: 5-1

2. Joe Saunders, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (12-5, 3.05)

Another surprise this year, Saunders has quietly put together a solid season. As with Santana, durability may be a concern but having one of the better closers in the AL should help in the win category.
Odds: 5-1

1. Cliff Lee, Cleveland Indians (12-2, 2.31)

After a virtually unhittable start, Lee has cooled off a little bit but continues to win games for the Indians. If the Tribe bats gave him some more run support he could have had 15 wins at this point in the season. Like Halladay, his problem will be winning games in a tough division but he has the stuff and durability to do it.

NL predictions tomorrow.

Yankees Midseason Review

W-L: 50-45
Pythagorean Record: 50-45
Run Differential: +24



Hitting
Runs Scored: 436 (7th out of 14 teams in AL)
HRs: 90 (9th)
BB: 315 (9th)
SO: 547 (13th)
BA: .266 (5th)
OBP: .338 (3rd)
SLG: .413 (6th)
SB: 60 (6th)

Pitching
Runs Allowed: 412 (7th)
ERA: 4.13 (7th)
IP: 842 (12th)
Hits: 844 (7th)
HRs: 84 (7th)
BB: 292 (7th)
SO: 652 (4th)

It seems fair to say that as of July 18th, 14 games past the official midpoint of the regular season, the Yankees are the 7th best team in the AL. Injuries to some key players (Chien-Ming Wang, Jorge Posada, Johnny Damon, A-Rod) have prevented the Yanks from really gaining any momentum and consistently winning games. As we saw with the Mets this last week and a half, a 10 game winning streak can propel a team from under .500 to division leader in a heartbeat. No team needs that type of streak more than the Yankees.

Offensively, the Yankees have been mediocre at best all year. Unlike the great teams of the late 90s that collectively batted around .280, this team struggles to put the ball in play (.266). They haven't shown the ability to hit for much power (only 3 players with 10+ HRs) and do not run the bases very well as a team (3 players with 10+ SB). The recent acquisition of Richie Sexson should provide some spark to a lineup that is hitting .257 against LHP and .238 overall in the month of July. The biggest problem for the Yankees, however, is their inability to hit with runners in scoring position. The three main run producers for the Yankees (Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, and Bobby Abreu) are batting .238, .192, and .287 with RISP, respectively.

The pitching, much like the hitting, has been plagued by inconsistency and injuries. GM Brian Cashman rolled the dice on his duo of stud prospects (Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy) and lost. It's way to early to label both as failures, but it's hard to see either making much of an impact down the stretch. However nothing hurt the Yankees as much as watching Chien-Ming Wang injure his foot running the bases in Houston. Fortunately for the Yanks, Mike Mussina (11-6, 3.61), Andy Pettitte (10-7, 4.03) and Joba Chamberlain (2-3, 2.62 in 65+ innings) have helped pick up the slack. The bullpen has been shaky outside of Rivera (23/23 in save situations), Edwar Ramirez (21 hits allowed in 33 innings) and Jose Veras (2.87 ERA). LaTroy Hawkins has been a flat-out disaster (5.87 ERA) and moving Joba into the rotation hasn't helped. All in all, however, things have looking up for the staff as a whole. After an rough April (4.56 team ERA), the Yanks have improved every month (4.13 May, 3.86 June, 3.70 July).

The stats don't lie; the Yankees have played as well as their record indicates. The hitting has been lackluster and the Yanks have struggled mightily against quality pitching. The pitching hasn't been the disaster it could have been and if the Yanks manage to sneak into the playoffs they will have enough arms to be dangerous (Mussina, Pettitte, Wang, Joba, Rivera, Ramirez, maybe even Hughes). The problem will be getting there. It would be a disgrace if the Yankee Stadium failed to reach October in it's last year after 13 consecutive playoff appearances.

Verse of the Week

Blu - Just Another Day (Verse 1)



they say rap's like a trap so i'm lookin for the map to the back door
sometimes i sit and wonder what the fuck im rappin for
so many cats more talented and never had a chance at it
not to mention it ni**as tryin to damage it
cold hearted vandalists fuckin up the culture
they actin like its kosher to rap for the advantages
makin the game scandalous
stranded so far from the art
you start to wonder if they ever were a fan of it
i'm diggin in the crates with the candles lit
lookin for a record to describe my anger so i can sample it
condense my feelings into 16 bars
and try to sugar coat my quotes so they wont see raw
and i can tell what all your folks dreams are
cuz all thos videos shows cuz hoes jockin ni**as knockin and cars
now the youngins want a piece of the pie
so the devils lets starvin and starts feedin em lies
now try n digest that
and you wonder why we buy stress sacks
to shit out what ni**as dish out without ex slacks
i'm tryin to get out of the west coast black
its a bad place to raise fam and i'll be damned if i ever get back
where shits at now, it'll make martin luther shake his head and sit back down
like didnt ya'll ni**as had the same dream
and malcolm x will wonder oh ya'll on the same team
the way these fiends keep drownin off in the mainstream
the lame thing about it is the same teams that bought it
probably skippin this song buildin walls around their ignorance
defendin whats wrong instead of fightin for freedom
thats why i only write what i believe in, nothing less

10 thoughts

10. Hands down album of the year.


9. Time to do something about gas prices. That means lifting the restrictions on offshore drilling and opening up Alaska. Environmentalists are quick to blame rising prices on unnaturally high levels of oil speculation, but that simply isn't true. As far as we know, greedy investors are not stashing huge physical quantities of oil, pushing oil prices up. Instead, firms are more active in the market for oil futures. By buying oil for tomorrow today, firms are minimizing their risks and lowering expected costs. Any anti-speculation legislation will negatively affect the market for oil futures, adding risk and costs to firms. This is bad news for our already shaky stock market.

8. Danilo Gallinari went scoreless in the first half of his unofficial Knicks debut in Las Vegas and is currently battling a sore back. Expect a painstakingly slow transition to NBA-pace basketball.


7. It's the all star break and the Yankees are 50-45, 6 games behind Boston in the AL East and 5.5 games behind the WC leader. With some more consistency there is no reason they shouldn't make the playoffs.

6. If Chase Utley wins the NL MVP this year it will be the 2nd time in history that 3 different players from the same team won the MVP in 3 consecutive seasons. Also, Ryan Howard is the first player in history to lead his league in HRs and RBIs and not appear in the ASG.

5. Favre needs to retire. There's a reason EA waited till he retired to put him on the cover of Madden.


4. Barack Obama will be the next president of the USA and his plans to do negotiate with Iran on the "highest level" will solve all of America's problems.

3. Interesting stat: The unemployment rate among people with a bachelor's degree in the US is 2.2%, well below the overall national unemployment rate of 5.5%

2. Kobe Bryant is not MJ. And he never will be.

1. AYO queens get the money.

Untitled Leak

Nas' thoughts..



I think it's great that hiphop is still alive as an art form in that it isn't completely tied down to commercial success. Nas' last album, Hip Hop is Dead, aimed at describing how contemporary hiphop is a "dead" art form driven strictly by the commercial demands of commercial labels. As Nas so eloquently put it:

cause if you're askin, why is hip hop dead?
It's a pretty good chance you're the reason it died, man
It's a pretty good chance your lame ass, corny ass, is the reason it died, man
You don't give a f*** about, you don't know nothing about it
You want this paper, be a hustler
You a hustler, you ain't a rapper

--Nas, Hope, 2006

Regardless of what certain rap critics say, hiphop is art. Hiphop originated as a relatively cheap way to bring inner city communities together through music. Since then it has expanded from a "ghetto secret", as Nas put it, into an international pop culture phenomenon. Teenagers from project complexes to suburban communities freely associate with the style and slang of hiphop. Even through the commercial success of the late 90s, hiphop still lives as an art form. It is still a means of personal expression. For some, notably Biggie and Jay-Z, hiphop was a means by which to express the everyday struggle of life. For others, like Common and Mos Def, hiphop served as a medium of weaving intricate stories of love and hope. For all the beauty of hiphop there is plenty of garbage that critics are quick to point out. For every great poet there are thousands bad ones whose material never reached the public. The problem with hiphop is that it's commercial success has allowed a handful of awful artists to reach the mainstream due to something as simple as a catchy beat or hook. Yet while the music industry is up in arms about copyright law protection and how to milk the most money out of these so-called artists, the real artists have kept rapping, ignoring the $. For example, last year Talib Kweli and MF Doom released a completely free album, Liberation. Albums like theseshow hiphop at it's finest. If only Bill O'Reilly had picked up his free copy..

Having heard Untited in it's entirety, I think it's fair to say this it is the hands down the best hiphop album of 2008. From the start, it was clear that Nas worked to create an album an thought-provoking album. Untitled explores all the different meanings of probably the most offensive word in the English language, also the original title of the album. Ultimately, Nas points to ignorance as the root of modern day evils. In some way, we are all slaves to ignorance and we must do more to turn away from our blind, ignorant mis-perceptions. We need to tear down the walls of ignorance regarding America, people of different ethnicities, races, and socio-economic conditions, hiphop, and life in general. Cop the album.

"Lipstick from Marilyn Monroe blew a death kiss to Fidel Castro"
--Nas, America

"Stop sleeping, start thinking outside of the box and unplug from the matrix doctrine"
--Nas, Sly Fox

"Ignorance, the root of all evil."
--Plato

"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."
--Socrates

"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."
--Martin Luther King, Jr.

NBA Lottery Recap and Grades

#1 Chicago Bulls (Derrick Rose, G)
Hometown high school star and hands down the best player in this year's draft, Rose will be a perennial all star for the Bulls. He has tremendous leadership ability, leading a veteran-laden Memphis team to seconds away from an NCAA championship. Combine that with the ability to score from anywhere on the court and great court vision and you have an elite guard for years to come.
Pick Grade: A

#2 Miami Heat (Michael Beasley, F)
Although they would have preferred Rose, Beasley will fit in nicely with Wade and Marion. He was a scoring machine at Kansas State and his size and skills remind me a lot of Carmelo Anthony. The Heat would have liked to draft a guard here, but managed to pick up Kansas guard Mario Chalmers later on, giving them arguably the best overall draft class.
Pick Grade: B+

#3 Memphis Grizzlies (OJ Mayo, G)
Mayo is a steal at number 3 overall. Memphis needed a true 2 guard to match up with Conley in the backcourt and Mayo may well be the best player of this draft 5 years from now.
Pick Grade: A-

#4 Seattle Sonics (Russell Westbrook, G)
After drafting Durant and Green last year and struggling to find an effective backcourt this season, Westbrook is the point guard the Sonics need. It's hard to say how well his skills will translate into the NBA, but having a potent scorer like KD will help the transition.
Pick Grade: B

#5 Minnesota Timberwolves (Kevin Love, F)
Kevin Love = Luke Walton, which is bad news if you're the Timberwolves. Love isn't big enough to be a dominant player down low and isn't quick enough to play the 3. However, he has all the intangibles to be a solid contributor but I would want more from my top 5 pick.
Pick Grade: F

#6 New York Knicks (Danilo Gallinari, F)
Eric Gordon or Jerryd Bayless would have been great picks here, especially if the Knicks plan on rebuilding. By passing up the chance to rebuild the backcourt and selecting Danilo Gallinari, the Knicks add an athletic swingman to D'Antoni's fast paced offense and give Marbury some job security.
Pick Grade: C+

#7 Los Angeles Clippers (Eric Gordon, G)
One of the most hyped players coming out of high school, Eric Gordon got off to a fast start at Indiana. After an overblown coaching scandal and a minor wrist injury, Gordon's lack of polish and experience started to show and he struggled down the stretch. Talent-wise, Gordon is at the top of this year's class, but it will take some time for him to develop.
Pick Grade: B

#8 Milwaukee Bucks (Joe Alexander, G/F)
Joe Alexander projects as an ideal small forward in the NBA, combing good size (6'8", 220) with freakish athleticism and solid shooting.
Pick Grade: B+

#9 Charlotte Bobcats (DJ Augustin, G)
Although standing only 6'0", DJ Augustin is probably the best true point guard in this draft after Rose. Although it's hard to say where he'll fit in with the Bobcats right away, with the right collection of scorers around him he can develop into a championship caliber PG.
Pick Grade: A-

#10 New Jersey Nets (Brook Lopez, C)
Although Brook Lopez is probably the best center in this year's draft, he lacks the offensive aggressiveness and athleticism necessary to become a dominant center in the NBA. However, he is a defensive beast, setting the all-time Stanford block record in just two seasons. All in all, he is a solid pick for the Nets here.
Pick Grade: B

#11Portland Trailblazers (Jerryd Bayless, G)
I honestly feel that Jerryd Bayless will be the best player from this draft class. He has all the tools of a top 5 pick and I am shocked that he fell this low. Bayless should shine alongside former Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy and last year's #1 overall pick Greg Oden.
Pick Grade: A

#12 Sacramento Kings (Jason Thompson, C/F)
Thompson was a force this year, leading Rider University to the MAAC championship game. He is a great combination of size, athleticism and scoring touch and may very well develop into a better center than fellow lottery pick Brook Lopez.
Pick Grade: B-

#13 Indiana Pacers (Brandon Rush, G/F)
At 6'6", 210 Brandon Rush has the size and skills to play either the 2 or 3 in the NBA. He has great scoring touch, rebounds well for his size, and is an outstanding defender. Great pick for the Pacers.
Pick Grade: B+

#14 Golden State Warriors (Anthony Randolph, F)
One of the sleepers in this years draft, Anthony Randolph is a freakishly athletic SF/PF out of Louisiana State. His NBA success depends on how quickly he can add muscle to his 6'10", 200 frame (yes, 6'10" 200 lbs) and how he matures as a player. Of all the players in this year's draft, Randolph could have benefited the most from another year in college.
Pick Grade: B-

KOBE