PODCAST: Malcolm Brogdon, the 38th pick, and analyzing what we actually know about the NBA Draft

In recent days, Thon Maker stories, theories, and discussions have dominated any conversation about the Milwaukee Bucks, but Maker was just part of the intrigue of last Thursday's NBA Draft. The Bucks made two other moves, with the Bucks' selection of Maker at tenth overall started a night of NBA draft slips and surprises very few people saw coming. With that in mind, Frank and I got together on Monday to discuss all the non-Thon things that happened on Draft Night.

Download this episode (right click and save)

We started with the most obvious non-Thon draft topic: the Bucks' selection of Virginia wing Malcolm Brogdon. Since Brogdon was selected, many have suggested that he is NBA-ready and could be an immediate contributor for the Bucks next season. Those are two descriptions that I regularly try to avoid when discussing first round draft prospects because rookies are generally bad and prospects just shouldn't be expected to contribute in their rookie season. But despite my skepticism, I can't keep myself from imagining Brogdon using his NBA frame and mental makeup to defend at an NBA level next season. Can he actually do that? Can he knock down open threes? Can he carve out a role with the Bucks next season?

With the 38th pick in the NBA Draft, the Bucks selected UNLV sophomore wing Patrick McCaw, which would have made Frank and I jump for joy if we didn't already know the Bucks were selling the pick to the Warriors for 2.4 million dollars. Whether or not McCaw actually becomes a NBA player is far from certain, though the move does raise an interesting team-building question. Does it make sense for the Bucks to keep either of their second round picks from the 2014 NBA Draft, Damien Inglis or Johnny O'Bryant, on the roster instead of taking a chance on a new prospect with a second round pick? It's not necessarily a question of one vs. the other, but it's an interesting question to ponder, especially with the guarantee dates for JOB and Inglis drawing near.

Finally, we discussed what we learned in this NBA Draft. Even before the controversy that has come to surround Maker in recent days, his selection was considered one of the craziest moments of the 2016 NBA Draft. When looking through the rest of the draft though, it may have just signaled the beginning of a number of seemingly strange decisions that were made throughout the night. Taking a look back at the moves, how much do we actually know about the draft at this point? How much value do draft picks have to teams around the league? And how do we evaluate the "consensus" when players drop 15-20 spots on draft night?