The NBA draft is always a night full of excited families and high-level drama. However, the 2016 edition of the draft left fans wondering, is this the draft or a spelling bee? In all honesty, it would probably be just as entertaining to watch the commissioner try to spell the names of the players instead of pronounce them. The high quantity of international players made this all possible. So instead of giving out draft grades on talent, this is NBA draft grades: Names Edition.
Sacramento Kings: A+
Not the most exciting draft for the Kings fans, but they managed to to collect some of the greatest names from this years draft. Malachi Richardson, Isaiah Cousins, and Skal Labissiere, three very solid names. But the name that puts the Kings over the top in the name game is Georgios Papagiannis. George Papa-John's-is? I see a future marketing opportunity for the Kings. With a pick like Pappagiannis, and a character like Demarcus Cousins sharing his input on Twitter, the Kings had a draft they won't ever forget.
Boston Celtics: A
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Celtics fans also weren't sure what to think when their team selected Jaylen Brown with the third overall pick. Jaylen Brown has a pretty common name, and because he was their first pick it's impossible to give the Celts an A. However, they did an incredible job with their picks of Guerschon Yabusele, Ante Zizic, Abdel Nader. Say that three times fast. Like the Kings there are some serious nickname possibilities with this list. It could be 'Nader season next year in Boston.
Houston Rockets: B+
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The Rockets only had two picks but really made the most out of them by taking Chinanu Onuaku and Zhou Qi. Two absolutely spot on names to get a taste of culture from their native countries. Onuaku shoots his free throws underage, which is a huge bonus. Zhou Qi will be following the footsteps of another great Chinese rockets player in Yao Ming. Anybody with both a Q and a Z in their name is really unique. Love what the Rockets did here.
Toronto Raptors: B
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Jakob Poeltl and Pascal Siakam sound like they could be classic painters and not basketball players. The names stick out, but in Canada where last names are more diverse to begin with, it's just not the same.
Denver Nuggets: B-
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Juan Hernangomez and Petr Cornelie really hold this draft class together when it comes to quality names. Leaving out the traditional "e" in the American version of Peter makes saying the name that much more fun.
Philadelphia 76ers: B-
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The Sixers get a B- because the only pick anyone remembers from the Sixers draft is Ben Simmons. When looking deeper the Sixers picked up some great names later on. Timothe Luwawu and Furkan Korkmatz are like the seasonings on the main entree, Ben Simmons.
New Orleans Pelicans: C
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The Pelicans are the last team to make the name grades, while they don't have the international flavor that some teams have they still got two solid names. Cheick Diallo and Buddy Hield both played for big time programs and have been known for a while.
