In his first official responsibility as Warriors general manager, Larry Riley couldn't entice Lady Luck into moving his squad up in the NBA draft lottery. Now, the movements he actually can control start to take precedence.
The Warriors stayed at their prelottery slot Tuesday night in Secaucus, N.J., and will select seventh in next month's draft. With the draft position established, Riley said he can begin to move trade talks past the preliminary stages. "Everyone is going to tell you that they are open to anything, but we really are open to moving up, moving down or making a trade," Riley said. "But we've thought all along that we could get a pretty good player at No. 7."
The Warriors have been linked by many mock drafts to 19-year-old point guard Brandon Jennings, who opted to play professionally in Italy instead of accepting a scholarship to Arizona last season. Along with getting a player in the draft, Riley said he would like to add an experienced player to a roster that was one of the youngest in the league last season.
That could be about it for summer transactions.
"I don't see a major overhaul of the roster," Riley said.
For several minutes Tuesday, it appeared as though luck could make for a major move. Picks Nos. 14-8 all fell in predicted order, upping the chance that the No. 7 Warriors could make their first lottery jump since 1995.
"When it all started, a heart monitor would have showed that I was about normal, but as it got closer to us, it went up a little," Riley said. "I started thinking we had a real chance."
Instead, the Los Angeles Clippers used a 17.7 percent chance to bounce from No. 3 to No. 1. Memphis made the biggest leap - from No. 6 to No. 2 - and Oklahoma City went from fourth to third.
"We just feel great that we're going to get a player who is going to help us for a long time," Clippers President Andy Roeser said in a conference call. "We're going to do our due diligence, and we're going to pick the best player in the draft.
"A lot of people think that is Blake Griffin. ... Some think it is one of the other players."
Griffin, Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio and Connecticut center Hasheem Thabeet are the consensus top three picks in a draft that isn't considered deep but has a field of good players from Nos. 4 through 15.
The Clippers' fortunes in the Griffin sweepstakes came at the expense of the projected Nos. 1-2 picks, with both Sacramento and Washington falling three spots. The Kings had a 25 percent chance to get the top choice, but only four squads in the same position have won the lottery since 1990.
Sitting at seven The Warriors remained in their projected slot at Tuesday's NBA draft lottery and will select seventh. Here's a look at the last 10 picks from the No. 7 spot:
