Is Brandon Jennings on the block? | ProBasketballTalk
[UPDATE: Alex Kennedy tweets that sources close to the situation have "shot it down"]
Matt Moore breaks down the Bucks' situation regarding Brandon Jennings pretty well, in that it's almost completely unpredictable. Jennings' eventual growth into a productive, mature point guard, which seemed all but certain after his rookie season, is critical to the Bucks' success. Even for a professed Jennings-believer like myself, it is a bit unsettling that one Milwaukee's so-called "pillars" remains so shrouded in mystery.
Still, this seems like a pretty minor issue for the time being. The Cleveland Plain-Dealer article that first reported the news contains a single sentence, in a sidebar, indicating that the Bucks are "open to listening to offers" for Brandon. A fire sale this isn't. Jennings' reaction to the news will likely go a long way toward proving his maturity, but hopefully he doesn't read into it too much.
There are plenty of Bucks fans who are already willing to ship out Jennings in order to capitalize on his still-substantial potential, worried that we'll never consistently see the high level of performance that flashes to the surface every now and then while Jennings is on the court. It will, of course, take a pretty overwhelming offer to pry Jennings out of Milwaukee, and the team getting him needs to be willing to accept the risk that comes with a still-not-totally-proven young guard. Prediction? This goes nowhere.
A look at trading out of the NBA Draft lottery | Bucksketball
Josh turns his gaze on history in an investigation of teams trading NBA lottery picks for veterans in the last 10 years. Sometimes draft pick hold their highest value before any player is ever selected with them, but moving picks for veterans is sometimes just as risky as rolling the dice on a new player. No shortcuts on the road to success, huh?
Know the Prospects: The Morris Twins | Posting and Toasting
SBNation's Knicks blog offers lots of links to other scouting reports we've all probably seen already, but also some original takes on a pair of players that are projected near the Bucks' draft position.
Brandon Jennings Returns from India | Bucks.com
The Bucks' official site offers a whole bunch of links chronicling Jennings' week in India. It's a cool mix of stateside articles and coverage from Indian outlets. Looks like cricket might be Brandon's second calling.
Lottery consequences podcast | Draft Express /// NBA Combine Interviews | Draft Express
If you're a draft enthusiast I'd highly recommend giving Jonathan Givony's latest podcast a listen--though if you're a draft enthusiast then you're probably already visiting DX five times a day. Once you've taken that in, check out some player interviews from the combine.
2011 NBA Mock Draft 1.0, led by Kyrie Irving, Derrick Williams | Sam Amick - SI.com
Just another mock draft...<YAWN>... This one offers up a pretty original take, with the Bucks selecting Kemba Walker with the tenth pick while Alec Burks sits on the board. Walker is the type of player who seems like he'll have a productive career thanks to willpower alone, so seeing him selected high isn't a huge surprise or a totally indefensible one. But while a Jennings/Walker backcourt would be pretty fun to watch, the jury is still out on whether such a pairing could be at all successful.