Sports Cards Daily

Welcome to something I hope to turn into an annual tradition at Sports Cards Daily, a live blog of the 2009 NBA Draft. While there will no doubt be tons of draft blogs all over the internets tonight, mine will focus on the draft from a hobby perspective, analyzing each pick in terms of the player’s likely collectibility.

And it’s already a big news day for basketball collectors. Two very popular players switched teams earlier today, with Shaquille O’Neal heading to Cleveland to join LeBron James and Vince Carter going south to Orlando to provide some scoring help for Dwight Howard. Of course Shaq and VC are already such big names that it won’t move the needle on their rookie cards much, but there’s always some increased interest when superstars move to new markets.

Here we go with the picks. No drama expected at the top, but just about anything could happen after that!

1. L.A. Clippers - Blake Griffin, PF, Oklahoma: Even the Clips couldn’t mess this one up. Griffin’s cards should be in serious demand right out of the gate after he was all-everything in college. Yes, some collectors will be a bit wary that he’s headed to L.A.’s second class team, but that shouldn’t hurt him too much in the short term. In the long term, we’ll have to hope he doesn’t suffer the same fate as so many Clips before him.

2. Memphis Grizzlies - Hasheem Thabeet, C, Connecticut: As the analysts on ESPN said, Memphis needed help everywhere. Thabeet was pretty much the consensus pick as the best center in the draft, but I’m not sold on him as a hobby superstar. His offensive game will need work, and the Grizzlies aren’t exactly pumping out players for whom collectors are clamoring. He’ll be the ultimate wait and see guy in this year’s draft.

3. Oklahoma City Thunder - James Harden, SG, Arizona State: The first surprise of the night falls at pick number three, where most pundits were zeroing in on Ricky Rubio. OKC is one of the smaller NBA markets but the fans there are pretty rabid, and Harden will be joining one of the hobby’s brightest young stars in Kevin Durant. I don’t think Harden will be atop many collectors’ want lists right away, but he’ll have a chance to grow alongside his young teammates.

4. Sacramento Kings - Tyreke Evans, PG, Memphis: In a draft heavy with point guards, Evans gets the first call. He’s got NBA size for sure and is somewhat of a known quantity having played for a powerful Memphis team in college. It will be interesting to see if he scores enough to capture the imagination of collectors, but he certainly should get plenty of early playing time.

5. Minnesota Timberwolves - Ricky Rubio, PG, Spain - It’s said that Rubio’s people really didn’t want him to go to Minnesota, but the Wolves have to be happy he fell to them. He’s certainly not going to the greatest NBA collecting market - at least since Kevin Garnett left town - but I don’t think it will affect him too much. I expect Rubio has been hyped up enough to be the second most popular rookie once 2009-10 cards start going live.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves - Jonny Flynn, PG, Syracuse: Two point guards in a row for the Wolves? You have to wonder if they have a trade in the works. Otherwise it’s hard to figure this pick out. I like Flynn better as a player than as an object of desire for collectors. If he and Rubio both stay in Minnesota, I think he’ll be overshadowed by his foreign teammate.

7. Golden State Warriors - Stephen Curry, PG, Davidson: The fans at MSG didn’t like this pick, as Knicks fans had their hearts set on having Curry come to New York. He would have been better off from a hobby standpoint if he had ended up in the Big Apple as well, but even casual fans know this guy after his scoring exploits the last couple of college seasons. Curry will be right up there in terms of demand early in the basketball card season.

8. New York Knicks - Jordan Hill, PF, Arizona: This wasn’t the splashy pick the Knicks faithful wanted, but Hill was probably the second best power forward in this draft. He can do a little bit of everything and should be comfortable playing New York’s up-tempo style. Hill doesn’t feel like he’ll be a huge name among collectors immediately, but he’ll enjoy a higher profile automatically just by joining the Knicks.

9. Toronto Raptors - DeMar DeRozan, SG, USC - DeRozan has potential, but the feeling is that he’ll be a bit of a work in progress. That plus heading north of the border means he probably won’t be burning up hot lists during his rookie season in the NBA.

10. Milwaukee Bucks - Brandon Jennings, PG, Italy - Someone was going to roll the dice on Jennings, and surprisingly, it was the normally conservative Bucks. The publicity that he received from his European adventure may be balanced out by fans who don’t know him because he did not play college ball. Add that to going to Milwaukee and you have the player who’s hardest to figure in terms of basketball cards.

11. New Jersey Nets - Terrence Williams, SG, Louisville: This pick was no surprise since the Nets shipped Carter to the Magic. He’s a senior with a lot of talent, but he’ll be joining a rebuilding project in New Jersey. He’s also a bit of a mercurial personality, and that could help him or hurt him with collectors.

12. Charlotte Bobcats - Gerald Henderson, SG, Duke: Being a lottery pick from Duke is always a good thing for your collectible future. Still, the Bobcats haven’t had much success since they’ve been in the NBA, and collectors could still be feeling burnt by some of their past draft mishaps (Adam Morrison, anyone?). Be a little cautious with Henderson.

13. Indiana Pacers - Tyler Hansbrough, PF, UNC: Though there are plenty of differing opinions on how effective Hansbrough will be as a pro, everyone knows who he is. His college resume is as impressive as anyone’s, and he’ll be absorbing wisdom from Larry Bird as well. His rookie cards should be very popular until such time, if any, that he proves he can’t play at the NBA level.

14. Phoenix Suns - Earl Clark, SF, Louisville: With Shaq already gone and Amar’e Stoudemire rumored to be following him out of town, the Suns are in rebuilding mode. Clark is very versatile and may get more playing time than expected if Phoenix commits to going young. Keep an eye on him as a potential sleeper.

15. Detroit Pistons - Austin Daye, PF, Gonzaga - Daye is a tall guy who can shoot, but the ESPN crew thinks he may need to be brought along slowly. He’s going to a team in transition in the Pistons, though they may still be a playoff squad if they don’t blow the whole thing up. If you pull any Daye cards, save them for a few years and see what happens.

16. Chicago Bulls -James Johnson, PF, Wake Forest - This is an interesting pick for a Bulls team that already has plenty of bodies in the frontcourt. There has been talk that Tyrus Thomas may be traded, so that may give Johnson a chance to get on the court. Johnson will benefit from going to Chicago but don’t expect him to make a huge splash as a rookie.

17. Philadelphia 76ers - Jrue Holiday, PG, UCLA - Plenty of mock drafts had Holiday going in the top 10 picks, so this is a nice pick for a team looking for its point guard of the future. Going from UCLA to Philly sounds like a formula for future hobby success, though as with several others in this area of the first round, you may need to wait a few seasons to reap the benefits.

18. Minnesota Timberwolves - Ty Lawson, PG, UNC: Now there almost HAS to be something going on in terms of trade discussions in Minnesota, because there’s no way they can field three rookie point guards, right? I like Lawson more than Flynn in terms of immediate collectibility, but we’ll have to wait until we see how this situation all shakes out.

19. Atlanta Hawks - Jeff Teague, PG, Wake Forest: And the hits just keep coming at point guard. The Hawks are rumored to be parting ways with Mike Bibby, so this could end up being a need pick. Collectors may need to be convinced about Teague because Atlanta’s recent draft history has been spotty, to be kind.

20. Utah Jazz - Eric Maynor, PG, Virginia Commonwealth: Maynor seems like a good fit for the Jazz from a mentality standpoint. Of course Utah already has one of the best young points in the NBA, so don’t look for Maynor to be anything but a reserve.

21. New Orleans Hornets - Darren Collison, PG, UCLA - Here’s a player who may be fast enough to keep pace with Chris Paul, though his role is probably going to be backing up CP3. His upside isn’t as high as Holiday’s, so don’t get overly excited about his rookie cards.

22. Portland Trail Blazers - Victor Claver, F, Spain: Claver won’t be coming to the NBA for at least another year or two, so his rookie cards will be non-factors in 2009-10. Down the road? We’ll see.

23. Sacramento Kings - Omri Casspi, SF, Israel: If Casspi makes it to the NBA, he’d be the first Israeli ever to do so. He has all-around talent, but like most foreign players, you shouldn’t expect him to burst onto the hobby scene as a rookie.

24. Dallas Mavericks -B.J. Mullens, C, Ohio State: Though there were whispers of Mullens going earlier, this seems like a more reasonable spot for him. He’s good huge boom or bust potential, but I’m leaning toward thinking his rookie cards will be in the commons bin in a few seasons.

25. Oklahoma City Thunder - Rodrigue Beaubois, G, Guadeloupe: Amazingly, this guy was actually at MSG to hear his name called. Beaubois played in France last year, and scouts like his game. He’ll be a non-factor in the hobby though.

26. Chicago Bulls - Taj Gibson, F, USC: Not too many mock drafts had Gibson going in the first round. As noted before, going to Chicago is always a good thing from a collectibility standpoint, but it would be an upset if Gibson made a major contribution as a rookie.

27. Memphis Grizzlies - DeMarre Carroll, F, Missouri: Like others in this part of the draft, he was seen by many as a second rounder. Carroll strikes me as an energy/intangibles guy, and they rarely get collectors too hot and bothered.

28. Minnesota Timberwolves - Wayne Ellington, SG, UNC: It seems like the Wolves are constantly on the clock tonight!  No point guard this time, but a guy who can do a bit of everything and unlike some of the other two-guards picked earlier, he can knock down outside shots. Since he played for UNC, he’ll attract much more interest from the hobby world than most players picked this low in the first round.

29. L.A. Lakers - Toney Douglas, G, Florida State: The announce team is saying the Lakers have sold this pick to the Knicks, so the folks on hand at MSG are watching this one. Douglas is kind of an unknown quantity, but he’s a very talented combo guard. He’ll get some love whether he ends up in L.A. or New York just because of the size of those markets.

30. Cleveland Cavaliers - Christian Eyenga, G/F, Congo: I guess every foreign player just shows up at MSG because it’s such a big deal to get drafted. Again, don’t expect much in the way of hobby interest for this guy.

That’s it for the live portion of this blog. I’ll update it a bit later with any notable second round picks that have a chance to make some noise in the world of basketball cards.