I lost track of the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.
If tracking the Mavericks' draft was a shell game, I'd have guessed.
Here's the final tally: They got Shane Larkin in the first round and in the second round, Ricky Ledo, who seemingly was traded four times on Thursday.
That's a pretty nice haul actually as both can play in the league.
Larkin is a natural leader who can score and set up everyone on the floor. His athleticism and size are trouble, but that sort of thing just bothers me. Larkin can be a great point guard. Who cares what he measures. Steve Nash couldn't jump over a Kleenex, but he's going to the Hall of Fame.
Ledo is an interesting guy. He didn't play college basketball last season due to academic problems. He's bounced around quite a bit, and if you believe the stories, it's because of some maturity issues.
This draft was fine, but the Mavericks behaved on Thursday like a team desperate to move down and not have to pay a lot of money for specifically slotted guys.
The Mavs will do anything to free up space for Dwight Howard. He'll take the meeting, definitely, but if he doesn't go, Dallas has a different offseason ahead of itself.
Larkin and Ledo, with some good tutoring and guidance, could be a pretty effective backcourt for a while.
Grade: B
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