NASHVILLE — The 2017 COMO Rookie Draft was held at league offices near Vanderbilt University on Sunday night. Washington guard Markelle Fultz and UCLA guard Lonzo Ball were the first of 24 picks, going to Kansas City and Manhattan, respectively. Paisley Park selected Duke forward Jayson Tatum No. 3 and Sunnyvale made the first surprise move of the night by taking North Carolina State guard Dennis Smith Jr. at No. 4. Defending league champion St. Louis was the most active of any team, using a trio of first-round picks on Kentucky guard De'Aaron Fox, Louisville forward Donovan Mitchell and Wake Forest post John Collins. The Hornets had stockpiled these assets — and more — during July fire sales that shipped COMO Finals MVP Jimmy Butler and All-COMO players Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and John Wall around the league. Here were some thoughts from the GMs on Sunday: Kansas City's Jack Nowland on the No. 1 selection: "We rated Fultz and Ball very closely on our board, but in the end we had too many question marks on how Lonzo's shot translates to the pro game. There is lots to like about Markelle's game, and he will fit into our roster seamlessly." Manhattan's Alex Krause on Ball: "Lonzo at No. 2 was one of the easier picks to make. He has the great ability to make players around him better. His offensive versatility was too tough to pass up. If Fultz and Ball were both on the board for our pick, though, it would've been pretty tough. Fultz is an exceptional player and has a wide variety of ways to score the basketball. But we would've stuck with Ball. Right after the lottery, we immediately looked into him extensively and loved what he could bring to our team. Because of this, we weren't seriously considering anyone else at the No. 2 spot." Sunnyvale's Matthew Quammen on his surprise pick at No. 4: "In short, he can play basketball and he chooses not to hit girls. Plus, he's a pick-and-roll star playing for the best pick-and-roll coach in the league with huge opportunities to play big minutes early." 2017 COMO Draft results: 1. Kansas City: Markelle Fultz (Washington) 2. Manhattan: Lonzo Ball (UCLA) 3. Paisley Park: Jayson Tatum (Duke) 4. Sunnyvale: Dennis Smith Jr. (N.C. State) 5. St. Louis: De'Aaron Fox (Kentucky) 6. Duval United: Josh Jackson (Kansas) 7. Minneapolis: Malik Monk (Kentucky) 8. Chaska: Jonathan Isaac (Florida State) 9. St. Louis: Donovan Mitchell (Louisville) 10. Sunnyvale: Lauri Markkanen (Arizona) 11. St. Louis: John Collins (Wake Forest) 12. Manhattan: Zach Collins (Gonzaga) SECOND ROUND 13. Kansas City: Justin Jackson (North Carolina) 14. St. Louis: Kyle Kuzma (Utah) 15. Paisley Park: Frank Ntilikina (France) 16. Sunnyvale: Luke Kennard (Duke) 17. Colorado: Edrice "Bam" Adebayo (Kentucky) 18. Duval United: Justin Patton (Creighton) 19. Minneapolis: OG Anunoby (Indiana) 20. Chaska: Harry Giles (Duke) 21. Kansas City: Jarrett Allen (Texas) 22. Sunnyvale: Jonah Bolden (Australia) 23. Newport Beach: Aleksandar Vezenkov (Cyprus) 24. Paisley Park: D.J. Wilson (Michigan)
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SPECIAL FROM THE ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH (July 17, 2017) ST. LOUIS — Trades giveth, and now trades taketh away from St. Louis basketball fans. Hornets general manager Aaron Connolly completed a gut-wrenching series of trades late Sunday night, adding Kawhi Leonard, John Wall and Paul George to the departed list alongside COMO Finals MVP Jimmy Butler. All four players have earned All-COMO honors during their careers. Friday, the Hornets shipped Butler to Sunnyvale in a three-team trade. Sunday, they sent Leonard to Colorado and a Wall/George package to Manhattan. In return, St. Louis continued to rack up "future" pieces. From Colorado: The No. 5 overall pick in this month's draft, plus a conditional 2019 first-round pick and guard Reggie Jackson. From Manhattan: The No. 9 and No. 14 picks in the draft, plus a conditional 2019 first-rounder and guard Zach LaVine. Add that to Friday's haul (No. 11 overall and a conditional 2018 first-rounder from Sunnyvale) and you've got an embarrassment of draft assets. Connolly told the Post-Dispatch his plans are still "up in the air," and that he's trying to avoid carrying around too many big contracts this season (the Hornets had to shed at least $67M entering the offseason; hence, all this deals). He likes what he sees from the current draft class. "Haven't seen this much talent since my Freshman A basketball squad," he said, as if anyone was supposed to know what that meant. St. Louis still owns the rights to All-COMO center Hassan Whiteside, center Nikola Vucevic, power forward Kevin Love and point guard Mike Conley, all of whom averaged at least 22 bones last season. And the Hornets should be able to snare at least one prominent free agent this autumn. Replicating last year's 64-18 record and near-perfect playoff run does not appear to be likely at this point, though. TRADE DETAILS (St. Louis/Colorado) St. Louis receives: No. 5 overall pick, 2019 1st Round pick (conditions: Top-5 protected in '19, unprotected in '20) & Reggie Jackson ($3M) Colorado receives: Kawhi Leonard ($25M) & 2019 2nd Round pick TRADE DETAILS (St. Louis/Manhattan) St. Louis receives: No. 9 overall pick, No. 14 overall pick, 2019 1st Round pick (conditions: Top-3 protected in '19, unprotected in '20) & Zach LaVine ($6M) Manhattan receives: John Wall ($27M) & Paul George ($21M) *NOTE: Teams were allowed to trade 2019 draft picks only after paying their 2017-2018 league fees in advance. SPECIAL FROM THE DARTMOUTH CHRONICLE HERALD (July 14, 2017): DARTMOUTH, Nova Scotia — The Sunnyvale Slayers haven't sniffed the playoffs in their first two seasons, but their roster now features a COMO Finals MVP. That'd be Jimmy Butler, who just three months ago led St. Louis to the city's first basketball title since 1958. The Hornets had a dream season, but are now forced to unload much of their talented roster due to salary cap restrictions. Their loss was the Slayers' gain Friday afternoon, as GM Matthew Quammen approved a three-team deal that brought Butler, Nerlens Noel, Ante Zizic and a second-round pick to Canada. St. Louis received the No. 11 overall pick in this month's draft and a 2018 first-round selection from Sunnyvale (see bottom of story for full details). Shorewood was the third party in the deal; The Show — which already swung a blockbuster deal earlier Friday — nabbed Slayers shooting guard Devin Booker. New Sunnyvale coach Lavar Ball was unsurprisingly opinionated in a press release from the organization. "Sunnyvale is excited to add a few great players," he said. "Jimmy Butler is a stud. This season will be like my 1-on-1 career. Never lost. We're also excited to dump Devin Booker. He ain't no BIG BALLER." St. Louis' press release simply consisted of a sad-face emoji. The Hornets went 64-18 last season and nearly swept their competition in the COMO playoffs en route to a league championship. Butler was the star, and he got plenty of help from John Wall, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Hassan Whiteside and others. Now, the team must find a way to compete again without a few of its biggest pieces. General manager Aaron Connolly was reportedly shopping other players entering the second-to-last weekend before the draft. Shorewood landed a large haul from Colorado earlier in the day, and added to its youthful rotation by securing Booker from the Sunnyvale. The third-year pro is expected to challenge for a starting-lineup spot. TRADE DETAILS Sunnyvale receives: Jimmy Butler ($30M), Nerlens Noel ($7M), Ante Zizic ($1M) and No. 22 overall pick St. Louis receives: No. 11 overall pick and 2018 1st Round pick (Sunnyvale will retain the right to move its own 1st Round pick *or* the 1st Round pick it previously acquired from Minnesnowta) Shorewood receives: Devin Booker ($1M) Shorewood, Colorado complete blockbuster 5-player trade featuring DeMar DeRozan, Ben Simmons7/14/2017 SPECIAL FROM THE GREELEY TRIBUNE (July 14, 2017): Welcome to the 2017-2018 playoff race, Hilltoppers. General manager Collin Atkinson brought his lowly team (9-73 last season) much closer to its first postseason berth with a blockbuster deal on Friday morning. Following a 5-player, 1-pick trade with Shorewood, the 'Toppers will now feature shooting guard DeMar DeRozan, point guard Kemba Walker and small forward Carmelo Anthony (combined salary: $46 million). Colorado is expected to have plenty of space in free agency, too, once it clears out the cobwebs of an ugly roster. Sources say former Colorado guard — and four-time All-COMO selection — James Harden could be headed back to Greeley in September. What did Colorado give up? A hefty portion of its future. Last year's No. 1 pick Ben Simmons, who missed the entire season with a knee injury, is gone. Ditto for second-year player Brandon Ingram (part of the Harden deal with Newport Beach). The kicker: Colorado's first-round draft choice in 2018. It's a high-risk deal for Atkinson, but remember: the 'Toppers still have their current No. 5 overall pick and Newport Beach's first-rounder next year, too. On the other side, Shorewood made what appears to be a "rebuilding" move, but that can't possibly be the Show's strategy. The three-time league champions will bring back All-COMO stars Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo, along with several other key players. Whether Simmons, Ingram and the new pick will remain in GM Alex Smith's possession is unclear; they'd all be strong trade chips once teams clear the $100M cap deadline in early autumn. TRADE DETAILS: Colorado receives: DeMar DeRozan ($13M; 23.88 average), Kemba Walker ($14M; 21.98) and Carmelo Anthony ($19M; 20.56) Shorewood receives: Ben Simmons ($4M; DNP), Brandon Ingram ($3M; 8.43) and 2018 1st-round pick, unprotected |
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