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2011 NBA D-League Draft Primer, News, Notes And Some Trades

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By Scott Schroeder
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Live updates with my love analysis will be here, for those interested. If you don't have Twitter, just keep refreshing.

The 2011 NBA Development League draft will take place via conference call in just a couple of hours (6 p.m. Central Time with audio and everything else available to follow the happenings over at D-League.com). Not a lot is known aside from the top pick likely being Jamaal Tinsley for the Los Angeles D-Fenders -- something I've assumed ever since his name was thrown into the hat -- but a lot of fun things are being rumored.

I didn't get one question today about my mock draft so either A) none of the D-League coaches have checked Ridiculous Upside while prepping for the Draft; B) I was dead on or C) I was really far off and nobody wanted to hurt my feelings. That or nobody really knows what is going to happen this evening.

The most interesting stories of the night probably revolve around how much teams have done their research. Are Jamal Sampson and Chris Taft, two players working on an NBA comeback, healthy enough to warrant a high selection? Will Al Nolen's foot injury be healed in time for training camp? What's the deal with Jason Ellis? Is Byron Eaton really 240 pounds?

Another interesting thing to watch will be the dynamic in different selections between teams owned by NBA clubs and those that are focused solely on winning. Sometimes a solid D-League player matters more than Ridiculous Upside when it comes to putting butts in the seats.

First of all, the trades that I'm aware of that have happened:

  • The Austin Toros have traded the second overall pick to the Texas Legends for Justin Dentmon, leaving the Del Harris led team with the second and fifth overall picks unless they make another move in the next two hours. The trade was first reported by ESPN's Marc Stein.
  • The Idaho Stampede have ninth and 12th picks in the second round after trading Jeff Graves to the Erie BayHawks. It should be an interesting portion of the draft considering the two picks in between them are held by the Iowa Energy.
  • The Bakersfield Jam have the eighth and 10th picks in the third round after sending Luke Zeller to the Toros. The Jam have five of the draft's first 41 picks, including three in the first round, and will also bring Brian Butch, Anthony Harris, Adam Koch and Damian Johnson to training camp.

Trades to be made that are out there include a possible shopping of the Reno Bighorn's Donald Sloan in a move to get into the first round and the Dakota Wizards trading up with the Sioux Falls Skyforce for the fourth overall pick.

Further 2011 D-League Draft reading available here:

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