MOST SHOCKING PICK
Anthony Bennett, Cavaliers (No. 1)
A draft lacking a clear No. 1
pick got off to a shocking start when the Cavaliers, yet to recover from LeBron James taking his talents to Miami, selected UNLV swingman Bennett with the first pick. Bennett’s reaction: “Even I don’t know what to say.” Join the club, Anthony. Join the club. FYI, 10 years ago, the Cavaliers used the No. 1 pick on James. No pressure.
BIGGEST TRADE
Just when all of those tourist-trap shops in the French Quarter were printing up “Twin Tower” T-shirts to celebrate the pairing of Anthony Davis and Nerlens Noel, New Orleans traded the Kentucky center who slid to them at No. 6, and its 2014 pick in 2014, to Philadelphia for the 76ers’ Jrue Holiday and a second-round pick. The Pelicans now have a shooter to complement Davis. The 76ers? They got burned trading for the injured Andrew Bynum. Now they get Noel, who is recovering from reconstructive knee surgery. Maybe they should change the name to the Philadelphia MRIs?
B
IGGEST ROOKIE CONTRIBUTOR
Ben McLemore,
Kings (No. 7)
The Kings need a savior. Well, actually, they need everything. It took an 11th hour deal to keep the franchise from moving to Seattle. Their most productive player, DeMarcus Cousins, also is their most dysfunctional. He was called for 15 technical fouls, ejected from four games and suspended three times. If only by default, McLemore, would have the best chance to contribute immediately. But he might have the most superstar potential of any player in this draft.
FUTURE STAR
Lucas Nogueira,
Celtics/Hawks (No. 16)
Fashion statements and atrocities are often committed at NBA and NFL drafts. But usually the buzz is about a suit or a bow tie. Lucas “Bebe” Nogueira, a wide-smiling, center from Brazil, is still trying to fit his Celtics baseball cap on top of the one greatest Afros since the ’70s. Nogueira, 20, was taken with the 16th pick and then traded to the Hawks. At 7-feet tall (possibly 7-6 with the hair) and 220 pounds, Nogueira has a 9-foot-6 wingspan. First NBA stat: It took him six attempts to get the cap to fit over the Afro.
BEST PICK
Solomon Hill, Pacers (No. 23)
The Knicks and their fans will tell you that playing the Pacers is like walking the passageway that leads from the shuttle to the 1-2-3 lines in Times Square at rush hour — it’s a physical grind. The Pacers beat you by beating on you behind big men Roy Hibbert, David West and Tyler Hansbrough. Enter the physically and emotionally mature Hill, a 6-foot-7, 226-pound swingman. You know Larry Bird loves his workmanlike attitude.