NBA Draft 2022: Biggest overall takeaways from draft night

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 23: NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Paolo Banchero pose for photos after Banchero was drafted with the 1st overall pick by the Orlando Magic during the 2022 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2022 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) /

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NBA commissioner Adam Silver (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images) /

The NBA Draft took place on Thursday night, and while no major superstars were traded, it was still an eventful few hours that will certainly shift the tides of a few franchises over the next few years. I also thought there were some major takeaways from a drafting/evaluation perspective and teams showed a change in mindset, as well as an increase in freshman picked.

Here are the biggest things I took away from Thursday night.

Magic stun everyone with the first pick

In the age of information spreading and WojBombs, it’s extremely difficult to keep things under wraps. But the Magic seemed to fool everyone by taking Paolo Banchero first overall instead of Auburn’s Jabari Smith. There was some late Vegas line movement on the first pick odds Wednesday night, with Banchero shifting to the favorite.

But Smith returned as a heavy favorite by Thursday morning with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reporting “As team boards finalize today, the 1-2-3 of the NBA Draft is increasingly firm, per sources: Jabari Smith to Orlando, Chet Holmgren to Oklahoma City, and Paolo Banchero to Houston.” But on the pre-draft show on ESPN, just 30 minutes before the draft started, Wojnarowski went on air saying that the Magic still hadn’t decided. They eventually landed on Banchero.

As far as comparing the prospects, I had Smith No. 1 and Banchero No. 2 on my big board. Smith was the clear one to me, but I understand the Banchero attraction. He’s the more polished offensive player right now and more ready to be a go-to guy on offense. The Magic have some interesting young front-court players in Franz Wagner, Jonathan Isaac, and Wendell Carter Jr. But none of those players thrive on the ball. Banchero can handle a lot of the ball-handling and playmaking responsibilities from day one.

Smith wound up falling to three, with the Thunder not so secretly having their focus set on Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren. I actually like Smith’s fit in Houston better for him too. With Jalen Green already in the fold, Smith won’t need to create a ton from the jump and will have the time to work on and develop his play-making and handle. His shooting will be useful from the jump and I expect the Rockets to put him in a ton of off-ball actions to get him looks.

I still would have taken Smith at No. 1 because when you pick first you should swing for the best prospect. And Orlando likely deemed Banchero as the best prospect so I won’t fault them. But for both players, I prefer both of these respective fits.

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