The Detroit Pistons drafted Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, while Jalen Suggs ended up with the Orlando Magic.
The number 1 draft picks nba 2024 is a topic that discusses the Detroit Pistons taking Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. Jalen Suggs ended up with Orlando Magic.
- ESPN’s Tim Bontemps
ESPN’s Tim BontempsThe Detroit Pistons haven’t been a force in the Eastern Conference in a long time.
After selecting Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham is an American football player. as the first overall selection in the 2024 NBA draft on Thursday night at Barclays Center in New York, they’re hoping he can be the guy who propels them back to prominence.
Cunningham, dressed in an all-black suit, shirt, and tie, told ESPN’s Malika Andrews after the decision was announced, “It’s still surreal to be in the moment.” “Words can’t express the feelings… everyone is so thrilled, and my whole family is here.” It’s a gift to be able to share this time with them.
“It’s fantastic. I’ve made it all the way to Detroit. I’m all in for the Detroit Pistons. Let’s get started.”
Cade Cunningham was selected first overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 2024 NBA Draft.
• Recap and analysis of each selection • No. 1 Cunningham; Suggs to Magic
• Reactions from the public, as well as fashion statements Why Why is this year’s class making history?
Jalen Green and Evan Mobley were selected with the Nos. 2 and 3 selections, respectively, by the Houston Rockets and Cleveland Cavaliers, as anticipated. Scottie Barnes was selected at No. 4 by the Toronto Raptors, while former Gonzaga standout Jalen Suggs was selected at No. 5 by the Orlando Magic. The Golden State Warriors used their two lottery choices on Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, respectively.
Cunningham, though, was the catalyst.
The 6-foot-8 guard from Dallas will be tasked with leading the Pistons back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Detroit has reached the playoffs three times in the last 12 years, but hasn’t won a game since reaching the Eastern Conference finals for the sixth consecutive year in 2008.
The Pistons will try to alter that after winning the first overall selection in the NBA draft lottery for the first time since 1970 last month. In St. Bonaventure center Bob Lanier, Detroit picked a future Hall of Famer that year.
Cunningham joins a squad that includes a pair of outstanding players from last year’s draft in forward Saddiq Bey and center Isaiah Stewart, as well as last year’s free-agent acquisition Jerami Grant, who is currently playing for Team USA at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
“I believe that having a strong youthful core will benefit our chemistry since we will have to fight harder for everything because we will lack experience,” Cunningham said. “Last year, the Pistons had a big draft, and they acquired a lot of eager and talented players.
“I’m eager to come in and do everything I can to assist those guys get back to winning championships as quickly as possible.”
Green, the explosive shooting guard who made history last year as a member of the first G League Ignite squad, was taken by the Rockets, who had been strongly connected to him for weeks.
During the G League’s bubble in Orlando, Florida, Green averaged 17.9 points and shot 36.5 percent from 3-point range for the Ignite, displaying the type of talent that earned him a five-star recruit.
After dealing away franchise hero James Harden last season, Green will now be the focal point of Houston’s rebuilding efforts, as he’ll team up with big man Christian Wood for the Rockets under coach Stephen Silas.
| Year | Player | Pct. |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Williamson, Zion | 72% |
| 2012 | Anthony Davis* is a professional basketball player. | 67% |
| 2011 | Irving, Kyrie | 63% |
| 2013 | Michael Carter-Williams (Michael Carter-Williams) is | 62% |
| 2015 | Towns, Karl-Anthony | 58% |
| 2021 | Cade Cunningham | 58% |
| — Has been a member of the All-Star team | ||
Green said, “I can be that piece.” “I believe I can add that dog mentality and defensive attitude to the club, which already has a lot of great players and a lot of enthusiasm. I believe they are lacking one more element, which I believe I can provide.”
As a result, the Cavaliers had no option but to go with USC big man Mobley at No. 3.
Mobley was not just a strong positional match for the Cavs, who had taken perimeter players Collin Sexton (No. 8), Darius Garland (No. 5) and Isaac Okoro (both No. 5) in the lottery in each of the previous three NBA selections, but he was also widely regarded as the best talent still available.
After averaging 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.9 blocks in 33 games for the Trojans, Mobley swept the Pac-12’s main honors — conference player of the year, rookie of the year, and defensive player of the year — in his lone season on campus.
Teams attempted to trade up to No. 3, but the Cavaliers retained the selection and now hope that Mobley can turn the team around after three years of mediocrity after LeBron James’ departure to Los Angeles in 2018.
Some believed the draft began at No. 4, since there had been rumors in the days preceding up to it that the Raptors would pass on Suggs. And, in the end, the rumor proved correct, as the Raptors selected 6-foot-9 forward Barnes, the latest long and versatile big to emerge from Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton’s school in recent years.
Barnes, like last year’s top-five selection out of Florida State, Patrick Williams, who was selected No. 4 by the Chicago Bulls, will have to improve his shooting after hitting just 27.5 percent of his 3-point tries in his one season with the Seminoles.
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But the 6-foot-9 forward can do a lot of other things right now, and he’ll fit in well with the Raptors with Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby.
As a result, Suggs was unexpectedly selected fifth overall by the Magic.
Suggs helped lead Gonzaga to the national title game — his buzzer-beating 3-pointer in the Final Four upset UCLA — but an 86-70 loss to Baylor stopped Gonzaga from becoming the first team to go unbeaten in an NCAA season since Indiana in 1976.
Despite this, Suggs, who also played quarterback in high school in Minnesota, wowed with his two-way skills, earning him an unanimous top-five selection.
Orlando jumped at the opportunity to add a floor general to its roster, and the Magic will be hoping that Suggs can form a similar bond with new coach Jamahl Mosley as he did with Luka Doncic during his time as an assistant in Dallas.
The Magic also possessed the No. 8 selection, which they used to choose Michigan forward Franz Wagner, the younger brother of center Moritz Wagner, who ended up on Orlando’s roster at the conclusion of the season. Franz, unlike his brother, is a large wing player who can defend many positions, which should enable him to fit in well with Jonathan Isaac in Orlando’s frontcourt if he can recover from the knee injury that kept him out for the whole season.
“”It was a fantastic night for the Magic,” said Jeff Weltman, Orlando’s head of basketball operations. “We acquired two skilled, team-oriented players with good character. It’s not every night that you get to add not one, but two of these men.”
The Oklahoma City Thunder, who will have more first-round picks than one can count over the next several years, selected Australian guard Josh Giddey with the sixth selection.
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Giddey recorded three triple-doubles in the Australian league last season, averaging 10.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 7.9 assists. He was the sixth Australian chosen in the lottery, and the first since Ben Simmons went first overall five years ago. Along with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he offers the Thunder another long, lanky ball handler. Giddey scored 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists in a game against Nigeria with the Australian national team earlier this month in Las Vegas, in front of a slew of NBA scouts.
The Thunder possessed two additional first-round choices — 16th and 18th overall — when they entered the draft. In a deal with the Rockets, they were able to convert the first one (acquired for acquiring Kemba Walker from the Boston Celtics earlier this summer) into two additional future first-round selections, one each from the Pistons (2024) and Washington Wizards (’23). Houston subsequently selected Alperen Sengun, a Turkish big man, to play with Green. Oklahoma City chose Florida guard Tre Mann with the 18th overall selection.
The Warriors received their first of two lottery choices at No. 7, which they used to choose Kuminga, the second G League Ignite player to enter the lottery.
The forward was regarded as a possible contender for the first overall pick after a strong start in the G League bubble in Orlando. However, his emotions cooled, leaving him as a lottery possibility for Golden State in the midst of the season. Still, Kuminga, a large forward who led the Ignite with 15.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, is a raw talent with fast feet who can defend many spots and may be a good fit with Golden State’s Big Three of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.
Golden State used its second lottery pick on Arkansas guard Moody, who is one of the draft’s youngest players and wasn’t anticipated to be available with the 14th pick. He, like Kuminga, has some defensive skills and may develop into the kind of 3-and-D wing that Golden State needs.
Tyrese Haliburton, a lottery pick last year, came in and made an instant impact for the Sacramento Kings. This year, the Kings added another player at No. 9 in guard Davion Mitchell, who they believe will have a similar effect.
Mitchell will try to help Sacramento, which begins this season with the league’s longest postseason drought, turn things around after guiding Baylor to its first national title (15 years).
The Memphis Grizzlies slipped into the 10th pick earlier this week by dealing Jonas Valanciunas and the 17th pick to the New Orleans Pelicans in return for the contracts of Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe, as well as a future first-round choice. Memphis received a reward in the form of Stanford forward Ziaire Williams, who was drafted in the first round.
After an up-and-down rookie season at Stanford, Williams had one of the widest ranges of outcomes entering the draft. But he was a highly regarded recruit coming out of high school, and Memphis is banking on his ability to contribute to the Grizzlies’ intriguing young core, which includes Ja Morant and Jarvis Jackson Jr.
While Cunningham’s pick technically started off the draft, many deals were completed far earlier on Thursday.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, one deal stood out above the rest: former MVP Russell Westbrook was traded from the Washington Wizards to his hometown Los Angeles Lakers for a package that included forward Kyle Kuzma, guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and center Montrezl Harrell, as well as the No. 22 overall pick in Thursday’s draft.
Meanwhile, the Detroit Pistons traded center Mason Plumlee and the No. 37 overall pick to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for the No. 57 overall pick.
The New York Knicks had two draft choices, Nos. 19 and 21, but both were traded. The Hornets traded No. 19 to Charlotte in exchange for a future protected first-round selection, which they used to select Texas center Kai Jones. The Knicks subsequently dropped four places to No. 25 and acquired a future second-round pick from the Los Angeles Clippers, who selected Tennessee guard Keon Johnson at No. 21. The Knicks kept their No. 25 selection, selecting Houston guard Quentin Grimes.
The Brooklyn Nets traded guard Landry Shamet to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for the No. 29 pick (Day’Ron Sharpe) and guard Jevon Carter, while the Philadelphia 76ers paid cash for the No. 53 pick from the New Orleans Pelicans.
In exchange for forward Taurean Prince, a 2024 second-round selection, and financial considerations, the Cavaliers acquired veteran guard Ricky Rubio from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Utah Jazz completed the last deal of the first round, giving their final pick to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for the No. 40 pick and two future second-round picks. Memphis selected Loyola (Maryland) forward Santi Aldama with the first overall selection.
