Thursday Quickies: NBA Draft Edition

Good morning, BBN. Today’s the day that some young men from the University of Kentucky fulfill their dream of making it to the NBA. De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk, Bam Adebayo, Isaiah Briscoe, Isaac Humphries, Derek Willis and Dominique Hawkins are all up for grabs in the NBA Draft tonight. Only Fox, Monk and Adebayo are expected to be drafted though. Those three are likely to all be first round selections, with Fox and Monk both likely to go in the top 10. They’ve done a lot for Kentucky basketball, and they’ll now go on to the NBA, where they’ll further Kentucky’s sparkling NBA reputation. Of course, John Calipari will be in attendance to witness their names being called.

Tweets of the day

Trash-talking De’Aaron is the best De’Aaron.

All three potential first-round Wildcats are getting paid that Nike money.

Your quickies

Three dreams realized: Monk, Fox and Adebayo - KSR
A look at the path to the NBA Draft for Malik Monk, De’Aaron Fox and Bam Adebayo, and what it took them to get to the day they always dreamed about.

P.J. Washington turning heads at USA Camp - SEC Country
The “positionless” Washington, a UK commit, is making quite the impression at the USA U19 tryouts.

Langford, Quickley and Reddish a dynamic combo - Courier-Journal
Romeo Langford, Immanuel Quickley and Cameron Reddish are working very well together, both on and off the floor, at the U19 tryout. Here’s to hoping they all end up in Kentucky blue somehow.

PFF ranks Benny Snell as second-best returning back in SEC - Cats Pause
Pro Football Focus says Benny Snell is the second-best returning running back in the SEC. No. 1 was Derrius Guice from LSU.

Vincent Flythe cuts list to six - Cats Illustrated
2018 defensive back Vincent Flythe has narrowed his list to Kentucky, Louisville, Georgia, Wisconsin, Maryland and Temple.

Diallo dominates Team USA scrimmage - KSR
Hamidou Diallo is making Kentucky fans glad he stayed with highlights like this. The UK guard is showing that among the best of the best at his age.

Vegas Golden Knights make expansion draft choices - FOX Sports
The Las Vegas Golden Knights, the NHL’s newest team, have claimed their players in the expansion draft. Their biggest get was goalie Marc-Andre Fleury from Pittsburgh.

Raiders, Carr closing in on $25 million per year deal - NBC Sports
Derek Carr has been playing like one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL so far in his young career. Now he’s about to get paid like one.

Nick Young is likely out of LA - CBS Sports
Swaggy P has declined his player option and will become an unrestricted free agent. Young has a chance to get a big pay day after a decent season.

Phil Jackson has probably lost his mind - SB Nation
Those words are mine, not necessarily the writer of the linked post. But it’s still true. Jackson is likely going to trade Kristaps Porzingis, who is quite literally the only asset that the Knicks have right now, if you don’t count Carmelo Anthony, who Phil would probably trade for some pocket lint at the moment. Phil’s unhappy with KP for skipping an exit meeting, which he claims no player has done in his career (but Shaq did it in 2003).

Possible destinations for Paul George - CBS Sports
George has reportedly told Indiana that he’s not coming back in 2018, so it’s likely they’ll try to get something out of him now.

Freddie Freeman plans to return from DL as third baseman - ESPN
The young Atlanta Braves slugger is looking to shift to the opposite corner of the infield when he’s healthy again.

George Clooney just sold his tequila company for a LOT of money - New York Times