State of Michigan: Pistons pick two, U-M/MSU stars go in first round

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By @EvanPetzold

The state of Michigan provided a ton of interesting storylines at the 2018 NBA Draft, as the Detroit Pistons selected Miami shooting guard Bruce Brown Jr. and traded up to also select Creighton point guard Khyri Thomas.

As for the Michigan State Spartans, two former players – Jaren Jackson and Miles Bridges – were selected in the top 12. Meanwhile, the Michigan Wolverines watched Moritz Wagner get picked in the first round as well.

Detroit Pistons pick two

June 21 at the Barclays Center was supposed to be an uneventful night for the Detroit Pistons, which traded its only first-round pick to the Los Angeles Clippers back in January to help land Blake Griffin.

The team from the Motor City was supposed to select a 42nd overall pick and go home. Instead, things got interesting in Ed Stefanski’s first draft as the Pistons senior advisor.

As the Philadelphia 76ers were on the clock with the 38th overall pick, the Pistons made a move. The team sent two future second-round picks to the Sixers and got their point guard in return – Creighton’s Khyri Thomas.

The move was excellent, as Thomas can play offense and defense at a high rate. Many experts had him as a top-20 prospect. In the 2017-18 season, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound guard averaged 15.1 points, 2.8 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.

Going hand-and-hand with overall talent is Thomas’ 3-point shooting. During his three years at Creighton, he made 131-of-323 shots from downtown, a 40.6 percent conversion rate.

Brown, like Thomas, could have been selected in the first-round. Essentially, Detroit got two first-rounder talents in the second, earning itself A- to A+ grades from almost every draft analyst.

As a 6-foot-5, 190-pound guard, Brown was a rebounding machine for Miami (FL) in the 2017-18 season, pulling down 7.1 per game. He added averages of 11.4 points and 4.0 assists through 19 games, but his season was cut short due to an injury.

In the same way as Thomas, Brown has the ability to excel on both ends of the floor and hustle-type player.

Both Thomas and Brown are pure playmakers. Stefanski called both “high basketball IQ guys” and told the media to watch what he means during the Summer League.

“You need guys that go out there, be tough and leave everything out there, and that’s what these two guys are,” Stefanski said.

Could Michigan’s Moritz Wagner be the sleeper of the draft?

With the 25th overall pick in the draft, the Los Angeles Lakers added Moritz Wagner, who wrapped up his junior year at Michigan with a loss in the NCAA Tournament National Championship to Villanova.

Wagner is a difficult player to evaluate due to his plethora of offensive abilities but struggles on the defensive end. The native of Berlin, Germany, is still a raw basketball player and needs a few years to turn into what could be the steal of the draft.

The 6-foot-10, 210-pound power forward showed signs of greatness, like when he crossed up Michigan State’s Nick Ward.

Or, when he buried a fade away from the baseline late in the game to help Michigan put away the Spartans in East Lansing – giving the fans a glimpse of a young Dirk Nowitzki.

“Growing up, I was a huge NBA fan,” Wagner said after being drafted. “I remember getting up at 3 a.m. watching games. Dirk [Nowitzki] had a huge impact on that, Dirk being a player that made it, had done incredible things in the league, being a player under the radar a long time, a skinny kid from Germany and somehow made it.

“It’s a dream very, very far away when you’re over there, and it’s exciting to be here now.”

Wagner’s face up and back to the basket game is outstanding, plus he can step out and shoot 3-pointers with ease. The defense, however, needs work.

As long as Wagner develops, he has an opportunity to be a solid second-string option to Julius Randle at power forward in Los Angeles.

MSU’s Jackson, Bridges selected in draft lottery

It wasn’t much of a surprise, but Michigan State freshman power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. and sophomore small forward Miles Bridges were selected in the lottery.

Jackson went to the Memphis Grizzlies at No. 4 overall, while the Charlotte Hornets traded down one pick with the Los Angeles Clippers to get Bridges and two second-round picks.

Starting with Jackson, he has the ability to pair perfectly with Marc Gasol, and eventually replace him in a few years. He has a huge upside and dominates on the defensive end. As a freshman with the Spartans, Jackson averaged 10.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game, along with a shocking 3.0 blocks per contest.

If the 6-foot-11, 242-pound power forward adjusts to the NBA and continues his growth, he has the build and upside to become one of the most feared big men in the league.

Bridges, a successful one-two punch with Jackson for the 2017-18 season, was selected by the Hornets, using the Clippers pick.

Even though he is not the best ball handler, Bridges has quickness and power to get to the rim with authority. He averaged 17.1 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists for the Spartans in the 2017-18 season. On the defensive end, he averaged 1.1 blocks per game in his two-year MSU career.

Bridges is an explosive player, making him a valuable asset for the Hornets.

The 6-foot-7, 230-pound guard made 71-of-195 3-pointers in his sophomore season. In the NBA, almost every player needs to be able to stretch the floor. If Bridges can improve his 36.4 percent mark from downtown, the sky is the limit.

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