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We got to witness dozens of young men see their NBA dreams come true this week, and now we get to watch them transition into the next step of their career: playing at the highest level of basketball in the world. Let’s talk about the 2024 NBA Draft, shall we?

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Today’s Lineup

Draft Recap

Another draft has come and gone! With surprises up and down the draft board and trades happening every which way, this draft was certainly one to remember. Check out the highlights below!

Risacher, Sarr, Sheppard, Castle, Holland go 1-5

This was the first draft in a couple years where there was no clear consensus first overall pick, but in the hours leading up to the start of the first round it was clear that the Hawks would be selecting Zaccharie Risacher, the 19-year-old wing out of France, at the top spot. Following shortly after Atlanta would be Washington, who drafted yet ANOTHER Frenchman—this time, it was seven-footer Alex Sarr. Oui oui! 😎

Rounding out the top five were the Rockets taking Kentucky sniper Reed Sheppard, the Spurs adding UConn defensive stud Stephon Castle to their young core, and the Pistons taking a chance on the high-flying Ron Holland at number five.

Blazers take Clingan at #7, trade #14 for Deni Avdija

Wednesday was especially busy for the Portland Trail Blazers—just hours before drafting UConn’s Donovan Clingan with the 7th overall pick, they traded Malcolm Brogdon and the 14th overall pick to the Wizards in exchange for Deni Avdija. Avdija’s contract—a four year deal worth just $55 million—makes him a team-friendly piece for the rebuilding Blazers as they continue to reshape themselves post-Damian Lillard.

Minnesota trades for #8 overall pick Rob Dillingham

Who would have thought that a current seventh-grader would be at the center of NBA draft news on Wednesday night? The Timberwolves sent a 2031 first round pick and a protected first round swap in 2030 to the Spurs in exchange for the 8th overall pick, with which they selected Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham. With Mike Conley aging and no clear replacement on the roster, Minnesota shored up the future of their point guard rotation with this savvy draft day move.

Bulls take hometown kid Matas Buzelis at #11

Let’s go, Chicago! After some predicted him to be drafted in the top five, Matas Buzelis slid all the way down to the back end of the lottery on Wednesday night, and his Windy City connection was too strong for the Bulls’ front office to ignore. Buzelis joins Derrick Rose and Ayo Dosunmu as the Bulls only lottery picks from the Chicago area (since the draft lottery started in 1985).

Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht falls out of lottery to Lakers at #17

This might not be the Lakers pick that everyone’s talking about (more on that later…) but it might end up being the one with the most impact on next season! Knecht is one of the best shooters in the draft, and with the Lakers’ wing depth feeling shaky at best, he should plug into new head coach JJ Redick’s rotation well and make an instant impact in LA.

Isaiah Collier slips to Jazz at #29

Once projected to go in the lottery, USC guard Isaiah Collier fell all the way to the bottom of the first round—luckily, genius GM Danny Ainge didn’t let him fall any further. With Collier and tenth-overall pick Cody Williams, the Jazz walked out of the first round with multiple lottery-graded prospects—a win if you ask us.

Bronny James, Johnny Furphy, Tyler Kolek among big names selected in second round

But wait! The first round isn’t the only place star players can come from (duh). Notable names selected in Thursday’s second round include Marquette’s Tyler Kolek to the Knicks at 34 (via the Trail Blazers), Kansas’ Johnny Furphy to the Pacers at 35 (via the Spurs), and UCLA’s Adem Bona to the Philadelphia 76ers at 41. There were some intriguing trades in the second round as well—the Hawks sent AJ Griffin to the Rockets for #44 and used it to draft Pelle Larsson, and the Kings sent Davion Mitchell to the Raptors for #45 and selected Jamal Shead.

And yes. The Lakers did select Bronny James at 55th overall, making LeBron and his son the first father-son duo to be in the NBA at the same time. We don’t know how much Bronny will play or how this will work out in the slightest. What we do know, however, is that it’s the definition of an Enjoyable moment!

You can check out the full draft results here.

In Other News…

Kenny Atkinson hired as Cavaliers head coach

Almost exactly a month after they fired J.B. Bickerstaff, the Cavaliers have hired Kenny Atkinson as the franchise’s newest head coach. Atkinson signed a five-year deal with the Cavs, who are looking to get past the Eastern Conference Semifinals for the first time since 2018. That’s when Lakers rookie Bronny James’ dad was on the team, right?

One thing that Atkinson definitely brings is experience. From spending four years as the Brooklyn Nets’ head coach to serving as an assistant in New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Golden State, Atkinson has spent his fair share of time on NBA coaching staffs and will hopefully bring a veteran coach’s attitude to Cleveland’s locker room. And most importantly, Spida loves it.

Anunoby, Adebayo, Claxton, Murray all secure massive contract extensions

It’s the offseason, and you know what that means—players earning absolutely insane amounts of money. Here’s a recap of the contract extensions that have been signed just THIS WEEK:

• The Knicks and OG Anunoby agreed on a $212.5 million deal to keep him in New York for the next five years

• Bam Adebayo signed a three-year, $166 million extension with the Miami Heat

• In the midst of what seems to be a total blowout of a rebuild, the Nets locked Nic Claxton in for four more years to the tune of $100 million

• Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets are expected to agree on a four-year, $209 million contract extension

Three in the Key

Signing Off

The draft is one of the most exciting parts of the NBA calendar, and we’re so glad we got to experience it with the best community in the hoops world. Take it easy this weekend—we’ll see you on Monday!

-Austin Zeglis