The Bears’ needs on the line are more complicated than expected. One might think they are set in the interior with former Packers left guard Josh Sitton joining recent high draft picks Kyle Long and Cody Whitehair. Long, however, got a bad break with a shoulder injury piling on his ankle injury, setting up a rocky offseason of health.
The emphasis will be on tackles to upgrade from Charles Leno and Bobby Massie, but Long’s status might prompt the Bears to go for a big, strong lineman who can swing inside. The ideal guy for that would be Western Michigan’s Taylor Moton if he’s still there for their second-round pick. Come Round 3, Troy’s Antonio Garcia would be ahead of Florida State’s Roderick Johnson because of the Senior Bowl familiarity. A little later, maybe on Day 3, Pittsburgh’s Adam Bisnowaty or Bucknell’s Julie’n Davenport are in play.
With that in mind, Giannis Antetokounmpo was an obvious choice. I wrote long on Giannis a few weeks ago and I won’t rehash all the particulars. His rise from fascinating phenom to top-10 player has been one of the pure joys of this season.
The Warriors are going to trounce the Blazers (bless their hearts), rest up, and trounce the Clippers or Jazz in Round 2. It’s that rest while the other team is fighting for their lives that makes it so tough to survive two months of playoff action as a team outside the No. 1 or 2 seeds.
The Memphis Grizzlies will finally blow up the roster after getting blown off the court by the Spurs.