Because in today's NBA, first round picks are overvalued and 2nd round picks are undervalued. You can sell pick #35 for cash or you can get some serious attention from IND for Paul George by offering picks 27, 28, and Julius Randle or Jordan Clarkson.

Most of the time the draft is a crap shoot. Where Deron Williams was picked over CP3, where Micheal-Kidd Gilcrist was drafted #2, where Manu Ginoblli was drafted #57. Or you can trade your first rounders for proven players. This method increases your chance for this newly added player to work out. Think about it like this. The Wolves traded away 3 first round picks that were all between #5-#13 and in return got bonafide All-Star Jimmy Butler and a first round pick. That seems like overkill for Butler imo because it's basically what Brooklyn traded to get Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry. But if you say Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn, and Lauri Markkanen, for Jimmy Butler and Justin Patton then it looks less appealing even though the jury is still out on everyone beside Butler. In fact some are saying Chicago got fleeced because they basically got Zach LaVine for Butler. My point is that trading firsts can get you very far if it works out (hopefully DMC and Jrue). If it doesn't work (Jerryd Bayless, Omer Asik) then it sets you back. But it's proves to be more effective than just building through the draft. For example regardless of how you feel about Holiday, who can convince me that Nerlens Noel + AD is a better combo than Jrue + AD?

Now, drafting second rounders (like trading away first round picks) also provide a huge reduction in risk. It's because players drafted in the second round do hit less frequently but it's far less risky and less of a letdown if the player doesn't work out. The difference between a "second rounder" (Frank Jackson at pick 31) vs a "first rounder" (Josh Hart at #30 ) is nothing. Between #31 and #21 Terrance Ferguson? Slightly more of a difference but not significant. On top of that, by drafting players like Diallo and FJ (guys "who came out a year early"), you get first round talent at a premium price because no one values second round picks. This gives a team an even higher percentage of getting a quality player, developing him, and putting zero pressure on him. Or you can keep ending up with guys like Darius Miller, Pierre Jackson, or Russ Smith that fade into D-league superstardom. The only problem is you have to be patient and wait for that talent to develop. For example right now no one would say FJ is better than Buddy Hield. But Buddy's freshman year, he shot 24% from the 3-point line and averaged 8 points a game in 25 minutes a game. Compare that to FJ's freshman year. Who's to say the FJ can't make those strides working with NBA trainers in 4 years? (Not saying he will but who knows?) So with the lack of draft picks the Pels have, I think Dell is making the most of them.

This post was edited on 6/25/17 at 6:58 pm