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Draft Grades (which we hate) all over the place for the Brooklyn Nets

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Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

We warned people just before the draft that they should pay no attention to the Nets draft grade. Ever since the Nets got A's for taking Antoine Wright in 2005 and Dick Vitale compared him to Dywane Wade, we lost interest.

Still, we have to track them and as one might expect, they are all over the place.  Chad Ford, whose grades get the most attention was down on the Nets, we think.  It was hard to tell. He gave them a C- for the night, same as the Mavericks, who had no picks, bought no picks and were looking to save cap space' a grade below the Pacers who don't need much talent, but could use some cash; three grades below the Wizards who had a second rounder, sold it and came away with zip, nada, zilch. The only teams with worse grades were the D students of the Draft, the Pelicans and Raptors, who were mainly as a punishment for blowing their big assignment and taking Bruno Caboclo of Brazil at No. 20.

More confusing is the justification for the grade, which quite positive.

The Nets bankrolled their way into the second round to get some interesting seniors who could evolve into rotation players. Of the three, Xavier Thames intrigues me the most. He can shoot and might even be a point guard. Brown is an elite athlete who can defend. Jefferson has an NBA body and has been improving every year at Baylor.

None move the needle for a capped out Nets team, but they are interesting second-round assets who might be able to play down the road.

At the other end of the spectrum was Zach Harper of CBS Sport, who gave the Nets an A, the highest grade of any Eastern Conference team, tied with the Hornets.

When the draft started, the Brooklyn Nets didn't have a single draft pick. By the end of the draft, they had purchased three second round picks. Markel Brown is an athletic combo guard who gives them a little bit of depth in the backcourt. Xavier Thames could fight for a roster spot and try to be one of the backup point guard options. Corey Jefferson is a great value pickup at the 60th pick when he was projected to go anywhere in the 40's and 50's.

CBS also did a pick-by-pick analysis of the second round. The Nets got A+ for both Markel Brown at No. 44 and Cory Jefferson at No. 60 and a B+ for Xavier Thames. Of Brown, Matt Moore wrote, "Tremendous scorer and athlete." (Knicks also got two A+'s ... and a C-).

There are plenty of others, some with letter grades, some with analysis but no grades.  Here are some links.  There are others. We're not going to help you find them.  Again, we hate them.

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