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It was another frenzied NBA Draft day and night this year, and a couple of days later it's time to clean up the mess and make sense of it all. 

If there's one thing I'll remember about this year's draft, it's that it felt like the Blazers and Sonics were at the podium 30 times each.  Every time the Blazers were on the clock, the logo in the "next" position repeatedly seemed to belong to Seattle, and vice-versa.  So I guess I'll start with those two teams. 

The Blazers originally drafted Brandon Rush (13th overall), Darrell Arthur (27th), Joey Dorsey (33rd), Omer Asik (36th), and Mike Taylor (55th).  None of the five remain on the Blazers today.  Five draft picks, not a single keeper. 

They addressed their roster needs appropriately by trading Rush for combo guard Jerryd Bayless (11th overall).  They let Asik and Taylor go for future considerations, and sent Arthur and Dorsey to the Rockets for France's Nicolas Batum.

Although I think Rush and Bayless are closer in ability than most believe them to be -- Bayless was one of the most highly touted prospects in the class from the beginning, while Rush had to really impress to work his way up from the very late first round area -- Bayless is the better fit for Portland's personnel.  Rush is a SG/SF, and the Blazers already have key players in Brandon Roy, Travis Outlaw, and Martell Webster at those positions.

Bayless, while capable of playing 2-guard, is widely regarded as a point guard prospect.  He played the point at Arizona, although he's of the shoot-first mold.  Regardless, his distribution is something he can work on throughout the course of the next few seasons.  What's important to take away here is that the Blazers needed more help at the point than they did at the 2 or 3, after trading away Jarrett Jack and leaving Steve Blake as their only reliable option.  They spotted a hole in the roster, and addressed it.

Thumbs up there.  On the other hand, I like both Arthur and Dorsey, two relatively undersized big men whom they traded away.  They are set in the starting lineup with Greg Oden and LaMarcus Aldridge up front, but they could have used some toughness on the bench to go along with Joel Przybilla.  Arthur brings mental toughness and a nice range of offensive skill, while Dorsey brings physicality and the potential to be a (closer to his prime) Ben Wallace type player. 

The Blazers' success in this draft will be measured by Bayless' development -- or lack there of -- over time. 

As for the other team that seemed to have 4,000 picks -- the Sonics -- they originally drafted Russell Westbrook (4th), Serge Ibaka (24th), Walter Sharpe (32nd), Trent Plaisted (46th), DeVon Hardin (50th), and Sasha Kaun (56th).  Four out of six remain, as Sharpe and Plaisted were sent to the Pistons in return for D.J. White out of Indiana.

I think Westbrook is definitely one of the best long-term prospects in this class, I just don't think he was the right man for Seattle.  Looking to build around a shoot-all-the-time player like Kevin Durant, and limited one-on-one scorers Chris Wilcox and Jeff Green, the Sonics needed a point guard who can really pass.  Westbrook is the premier defender and most explosive athlete out of the rookie PGs, but he's a very very raw distributor.  I guess he can learn a bit behind Earl Watson and Luke Ridnour, but those aren't exactly two of the leagues top point guards.

I think Bayless would have been a more appropriate selection for them because at the very least, he has more experience as a primary ballhandler than Westbrook.  Also, scouts continue to say that although Bayless is currently a shoot-first point, he has the vision and potential to develop into a more traditional, efficient passing PG.  The potential for this is less with Westbrook; he's more of a slasher and pass-by-necessity type guard.  

I like Westbrook as a player, just not as a Sonic.

With Ibaka, the Sonics once again managed to draft a raw talent at the center position.  Add him to the list of crapshoots including Robert Swift, Johan Petro, and Mouhamed Sene.  Quite simply, the Sonics are a poorly run organization.  I don't see success anywhere within the next four or five seasons for them. 

Moving on, the New Jersey Nets did a fantastic job in this draft.  Stanford's center Brook Lopez surprisingly slipped to the Nets at No. 10, and they followed up nicely with Cal's Ryan Anderson at 21, and Memphis' Chris Douglas-Roberts at 40.

Although the Nets drafted centers in both of the preceding two drafts -- Sean Williams in '07, Josh Boone in '06 -- neither are back-to-the-basket post players.  Both live off hustle baskets, offensive rebounds, putbacks, and/or fine dishes from teammates.  Lopez, contrarily, appears to have the ability to create some of his own offense in the paint.  A quality New Jersey was definitely looking for, and found.

Anderson may go down as one of the steals of the field.  He was one of the premier statistical performers throughout the past college season, and has great versatility at 6-foot-10, 235 pounds.  He stretches smoothly out beyond the three-point arc, and has the skills to rebound well when he's not preoccupied by the perimeter.  The Nets are in danger of losing effective backup swingman Boki Nachbar to free agency, and if need be, Anderson can fill his role at a cheaper price while maintaining a relatively high level of bench play. 

Anderson may also have been selected as a safety net for Yi Jianlian, a similarly skilled player whom they acquired from Milwaukee for Richard Jefferson.  The Nets also received small forward Bobby Simmons in the deal, and at this point everyone knows they are setting themselves up for a run at LeBron James in 2010.  Simmons' expiring contract helps the Nets in the salary cap department, and New Jersey can use the next couple of seasons to develop Boone, Sean Williams, Marcus Williams, Lopez, Anderson, Jianlian, and Douglas-Roberts in time for the King's arrival. 

...more to come.  Look for further analysis in the coming days.