Zzzzzzz. Zzzzzzz. Is the draft over yet? Man, that was a snoozer. I think ESPN should re-hire Stephen A. Smith just to give the draft a jolt. That was like watching paint dry. Or, maybe ESPN should hand the draft over back to TNT so we can listen to Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley make fun of all the picks.

Outside of Jeff Van Gundy, who was easily the funniest guy on the set, the draft coverage put me to sleep, not to mention the inordinate amount of sleeper picks (sleeper in a bad sense) NBA teams kept writing down on the card for Commissioner David Stern, and the bald guy who took over later in the evening, to read and announce to a very intoxicated crowd at Madison Square Garden who kept chanting “Jeff!…Van!…Gundy! “Jeff!…Van!…Gundy!”

The NBA Draft was the same old story: the good teams did well and the bad teams … well, to quote Barkley, they were terrrrrible! It’s impossible to opine how well or how poorly each did based on one night, but I’m going to do it anyway because it’s entertaining. OneManFastBreak.net breaks down the winners and losers of draft day.

WINNERS

— Sacramento Kings: GM Geoff Petrie is one of the best talent evaluators in the business and he landed the second-best player in the draft in Kentucky big man DeMarcus Cousins with the No. 5 pick. The Kings play in a division that includes the world champion Los Angeles Lakers, who boasts one of the biggest and tallest frontcourts in the league, so it was extremely important for the Kings to get bigger and stronger up front to compete with the Lakers. Cousins (6-11, 290) can complement 2010 Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans, giving the Kings a solid inside-outside punch for the next 10 years. There were questions about Cousins’ lazy attitude, but as Van Gundy pointed out, you can’t be lazy when you average 10 rebounds in 23 minutes. The Kings also took Marshall center Hassan Whiteside (6-11, 215) with their second selection, adding more length to their roster.

— Washington Wizards: The Wizards instantly became better by selecting Kentucky point guard John Wall (6-4, 195) at No. 1. Wall is not only the best player in the draft, but he is also the most charismatic. He is a leader and plays with a ton of energy, which the Wizards severely lacked last season after Gilbert Arenas was sent home for bragging about his gun collection in the arena. Washington also improved its roster by reportedly bringing in guard Kirk Hinrich, who is expected to be dealt next month by the Chicago Bulls to the Wizards in a cap-clearing move. With Wall, Arenas (assuming he’s on board with the team this season) and Hinrich, the Wizards have a dynamic three-guard rotation. The Wizards also added two physical frontcourt players in Clemson’s Trevor Booker (6-7, 240) and frenchman Kevin Seraphin (6-10, 255).

— Oklahoma City Thunder: OKC enters the 2010-11 season one big man away from seriously contending for an NBA title. Heck, they took the Lakers to six tough games with Nenad Krstic as their starting center so anyone with a pulse should be an upgrade. Thunder GM Sam Presti picked up Kansas center Cole Aldrich (6-11, 245) via a trade from New Orleans and then traded for 20-year-old center Tibor Pleiss (7-0, 220) of Germany. Aldrich is a strong rebounder and defender, and should contribute immediately for head coach Scott Brooks. Pleiss is a project they can stash in Europe for a year or two. Euroleague guru Fran Fraschilla compares him to Rik Smits. And for their second-r0und selection, the Thunder drafted Louisiana Tech’s Magnum Rolle (6-11, 225). You can’t go wrong drafting a guy named Magnum.

— Los Angeles Clippers: This is the only time of the year when the Clippers trump the Lakers on the front pages of the L.A. sports sections. The Clippers hold a draft lottery party every year, it seems like, and most of their picks normally end up as fodder for stand-ups at The Laugh Factory on Sunset Strip. But this season, whoever is doing the picking, the Clippers made some solid decisions. Wake Forest’s Al-Farouq Aminu (6-8, 205) is a capable small forward and Kentucky’s Eric Bledsoe (6-1, 190) is not a starting point guard, but he could be a decent backup. But the biggest news of the day in Clipperland is that Blake Griffin, last year’s top overall pick who missed the entire season because of a knee injury, has been cleared to play.

— San Antonio Spurs: Year in and year out, head coach Gregg Popovich and GM R.C. Buford make excellent picks in the draft and this season is no different. With the 20th overall selection, the Spurs took Oklahoma State shooting guard James Anderson (6-5, 210), who many consider as the best shooter in the draft and San Antonio badly needs guys who can put the ball in the basket. Then, with the 49th pick, the Spurs nabbed center Ryan Richards (6-11, 230) from England. San Antonio has a history with picking international gems, and Richards could turn out to be a steal.

LOSERS

— Portland Trail Blazers: Billionaire owner Paul Allen fired GM Kevin Pritchard on the day of the draft. Then, to add salt to the wound, he made Pritchard work the rest of the night. On his final shift as Blazers GM, Pritchard selected Memphis guard Elliot Williams (6-4, 180). A lame pick for a lameduck GM. But who could blame him? The Blazers also traded small forward Martell Webster to Minnesota for forwards Luke Babbitt (6-9, 225, Nevada) and Ryan Gomes. Gomes could be a nice player, but Babbitt could be another Luke Jackson.

— Minnesota Timberwolves: The Timberwolves keep taking athletes who like to run, but then they try to fit them in a triangle. It won’t work. I’d like to think Syracuse forward Wesley Johnson (6-7, 195), taken fourth overall, will be a stud but, for some reason, I keep seeing Hakim Warrick or John Wallace. Outside of Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse players tend to flame out in the NBA and Johnson could fall into that category.

— Orlando Magic: The Magic selected Kentucky center Daniel Orton (6-10, 255) in the first round. Orton averaged 3 points a game as DeMarcus Cousins’ backup and had trouble with keeping his weight down. Now, unless Orlando has plans of trading Marcin Gortat, they now have a logjam at the center position. Dwight Howard, obviously, is the starter and Gortat is an excellent backup. So where does that leave Orton?

— Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks not only didn’t address their needs in the frontcourt, but they seem to be planning for life without All-Star Joe Johnson. Atlanta swapped first-round picks with New Jersey, acquiring scoring guard Jordan Crawford (6-4, 195), and then took Pape Sy (6-7, 225) from the Senegal in the second round. Jordan Crawford is basically Jamal Crawford, so the Hawks have too many Crawfords on the roster.

— New York Knicks: The Knicks might as well have taken the day off because they basically have put all their chips in the LeBron James sweepstakes. Andy Rautins (6-5, 193) and Landry Fields (6-5, 185)? Are you kidding me? That’s the best they can do? It’s LeBron or Bust in NYC.

— University of Kentucky: Coach John Calipari was shedding a tear a little bit Thursday night. For one, he was happy his guys all went in the first round. Secondly, he knows he’s got some serious rebuilding (or reloading) in Lexington. But don’t feel too bad for Coach Cal because he’s got another stout freshman class coming in this season.

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A knee injury was not enough to keep Portland Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy from missing the playoffs.

Eight days after undergoing knee surgery to fix a torn meniscus on his right knee, Roy returned to the basketball court and played in a pivotal playoff game at the Rose Garden.

OK, maybe it wasn’t quite as dramatic as the Willis Reed moment at Madison Square Garden and Roy wasn’t dragging his leg around the court. However, Roy’s miraculous return was a moment Blazers fans won’t soon forget.

Roy scored just 10 points in the game, but the 26 minutes he spent on the court gave the Blazers a huge emotional boost, carrying them to a 96-87 victory over the Phoenix Suns and tying the series at 2.

Portland didn’t expect Roy to return so quickly and were prepared to go without him in the first round. But he jogged on the court with his teammates for warmups after getting cleared by his doctors. He then entered the game with 4:06 left in the first quarter and the Blazers seem to feed off the crowd’s excitement.

“We got our main guy back. Knowing that he was out there, I thought our guys were calm. I thought we played the game that we needed to play,” said Portland coach Nate McMillan, whose team has been besieged by injuries all season long, but Roy’s amazing recovery has given the Blazers a shot in the arm – or leg.

“I just didn’t feel right, you know, sitting in the training room knowing that I could contribute. So I just had to keep getting back at Coach,” said Roy, who played the entire fourth quarter.

“I was going to do everything to get out there on the court. I felt good out there on the floor, making some moves and just trying to get my rhythm back. I was just happy we got a big win. LaMarcus did a good job of carrying us.”

Roy’s presence certainly helped LaMarcus Aldridge, who hit 11 of 19 shots from the field and scored a game-high 31 points.

“As soon as he checked in the game and made his first open shot I said, ‘Thank God he’s back.’ Just having him out there is so big for us because any second he could get going,” said Aldridge, who added 11 rebounds.

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Brandon Roy, the All-Star guard of the Portland Trail Blazers, is reportedly contemplating about playing through a torn meniscus on his right knee and be there for his team in the playoffs.

Though Roy should be commended for even braving through a painful injury such as this one, the Blazers’ management and coaching staff should overrule their star player and tell him to shut it down for the rest of the season. It’s the smart thing to do and the right thing to do.

“I want to play,” Roy told the Associated Press. “It’s the playoffs. You play 82 games and take a beating just to get to this point.”

Roy, the franchise player for a franchise that has been ravaged by injuries this season, suffered a similar injury while at the University of Washington. The injury will require surgery, which will sideline him for four to six weeks.

Roy’s knee trouble is the latest in a long line of Blazer bad luck this season.

Starting center Greg Oden and his backup Joel Pryzbilla were lost for the season because of serious knee problems, and there is no certainty that both will be ready next season. Forward Nicholas Batum missed a great portion of the regular season with a shoulder injury and guard Rudy Fernandez has been nursing a tender back.

The injury bug also hit Blazers coach Nate McMillan, who ruptured his Achilles’ tendon during practice earlier in the year. 

Thirteen different Blazers have missed a combined 305 games because of injuries this season, second in the league only to the Warriors.

Even though the doctors have said that Roy cannot do more damage to his knee, which he injured last Sunday against the Lakers, the injury is serious enough that it will handicap him and the Blazers when he’s on the court. He won’t be able to jump, cut or change direction with the same speed and it could also put added pressure on his other knee if he tries to compensate.

So, the best strategy here is to play the healthy guys and hope for the best. Roy’s health should be the top priority and the Blazers shouldn’t risk the rest of his career for one postseason run.

Maybe next season the Blazers should hire a witch doctor to eliminate all the bad omen.

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Portland’s injury woes just went from bad to worse when starting center Greg Oden fractured his left kneecap against Houston on Dec. 5 and will likely miss the rest of the season.

Before his year was cut short, Oden was among the league leaders in field goal percentage (60 percent) and blocks (2.3) and was averaging 11.7 points per game. He missed his entire rookie season because of microfracture surgery and sat out 20 games last season due to foot and knee problems.

Oden’s latest setback is just one of several injuries for the depleted Blazers. Forward Nicolas Batum has yet to play after shoulder surgery, forward Travis Outlaw fractured his foot in mid-November, forward Rudy Fernandez is out 4-6 weeks after undergoing surgery to alleviate pain in his right leg and head coach Nate McMillan recently ruptured his right Achilles tendon during practice.

McMillan was participating in practice because the team is so short-handed.

Despite all his shortcomings and inability to stay upright for an entire season, the Portland Trail Blazers are still a better team with Oden in the lineup.

In the 61 games Oden appeared in 2008-09, the Blazers were 40-21 and gave up just 94.1 points per game, which is 2.2 less than what they allowed during the season Oden sat out after microfracture surgery.

“The potential for this team is all going to depend on how fast Oden grows,” said NBA TV analyst Eric Snow. “The faster he grows the closer [Portland] gets to the championship. That’s how important he is to this team.”

During the preseason, Oden averaged a team-high 13.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. I know it’s the preseason, but Oden needed to start somewhere. He is still very raw on offense, but he is moving better and seems to have the spring back in his legs.

The Blazers’ defense and rebounding have been stellar this season thanks to Oden. Portland is holding its opponents to 90 points per game (second behind Charlotte) and has a rebounding margin of 5.2 (tied for first with Memphis).

Now, the Blazers must push forward the rest of the season without their young franchise center.

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Rookie center Greg Oden has been in and out of the Portland lineup this season because of an unsteady knee. (GETTY IMAGES)

The comparisons are justified and the start of their careers are becoming eerily similar, leading me to believe that Greg Oden is the HD version of Sam Bowie. Ouch!

Back in the 1984 NBA draft, the Portland Trail Blazers committed a basketball sin when they took Bowie, a 7-footer out of Kentucky, and passed on some really good shooting guard out of North Carolina, who just wowed everyone during the ’84 Summer Games in Los Angeles.

Hakeem Olajuwon was the first player taken in the draft and then the Trail Blazers selected Bowie over Michael Jordan. The Blazers reasoned that they already had a budding stud at shooting guard in Clyde Drexler and clamored for a big guy.

Portland has not been able to live down the selection of Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan in the 1984 draft.

Blazers management asked for the opinion of Jordan’s Olympic coach, Bob Knight, to get a feel for their option 1A. Knight told Blazers brass that Jordan was the real deal and he’s a can’t miss prospect that could become super, super star. Portland gave Knight the same reasoning, saying the ballclub had a pressing need at center. Knight replied: “Put (Jordan) at center. He’s that good.”

Fast forward to the 2007 NBA draft where the Blazers were caught in the same predicament. The consensus choice was to take the 290-pound center from Ohio State, Greg Oden, instead of the wiry high-scoring forward out of Texas, Kevin Durant. So far, Oden hasn’t had enough court time to warrant a debate. Durant is the modern-day George “Iceman” Gervin while Oden can’t seem to escape the shadow of gimpy Trail Blazers big men such as Bowie and Bill Walton.

Whether it’s some sort of curse or just really, really bad luck, the last 30 years has not been good to Trail Blazers’ centers. Walton helped the franchise win its only NBA title but his career has been rendered incomplete because of a chronic foot injury. Bowie’s plight has been well documented, then came the tragic death of Kevin Duckworth last April. He was just 44 years old.

Oden never had any knee problems in high school, and although he missed nearly half of his season at Ohio State because of torn ligaments in his right wrist, his knees were sound during his one season in Columbus. But just months into what would have been his rookie season in the NBA in 2007, Oden went to have his knee scoped but doctors discovered that he needed microfracture knee surgery to repair the damage.

The injury bug just kept following Oden. In his first NBA game, he sprained his ankle during a nationally televised game against the Lakers. Then, his knee started swelling up, causing him to miss two weeks.

That’s when the Bowie parallels became surfacing.

Statistically, Oden and Bowie are equals. In fact, Oden’s stats are slightly lower than Bowie’s. In 48 games, Oden is averaging 8 points and 7 rebounds. He has missed 21 games this season. Bowie averaged 10 points and 8 rebounds during his rookie year in 1984-85. He played 76 games that season. The next three seasons, Bowie’s leg gave out and he was limited to 38, five and 20 games, respectively.

Frustrated by the injuries and his inability to live up to the massive hype bestowed upon him since draft day, Oden has looked lost, at times, and can’t seem to stay upright long enough for Blazer fans to feel good about his future.

The future is bright for Portland, with young studs such as Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Travis Outlaw, Nicolas Batum and Rudy Fernandez blazing the trail. Just not sure if Oden will be a part of that future.

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