Say It Ain't Lopez

Scouts have also expressed concern about Lopez's congenitally misshapen right hand.

DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony is reporting that, while most Internet sites are predicting that the Sonics will draft Bayless with the fourth pick, most NBA teams with whom he spoke believe the Sonics will draft Brook Lopez.

A month or two ago, this would've seemed like a hot pick, and indeed, like any other investment market, the draft contains its hysterias and irrational fluctuations, so it can be hard to know when a rise or decline is warranted. But in this case, Lopez's predicted drop from the top half of the lottery seems justified for a couple reasons: his college shooting percentage and rebounding numbers were good but not great, and he posted epically slow times in the speed and agility drills at the combine. He's got some solid skills, but he's not fourth pick material. And from a fan's perspective--assuming we in Seattle get to remain fans--I'd much rather the Sonics build around speed than plodders. Anyone who's watched the Houston offense can recognize that Yao Ming hamstrings Tracy McGrady and the running game, and it'd be a bummer to see the Supes management do the same to Jeff Green and Kevin Durant.

UPDATE
Chad Ford is reporting that the Supes are now leaning toward super-athletic UCLA guard Russell Westbrook, but only if they can't engineer a trade (most likely Wilcox and the #4 for Mark Blount and the #2) to get Miami's pick and select Michael Beasley.