NBA Draft 2024 first round winners (Spurs!) and losers (Dalton Knecht, sort of)

The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft is over, and now that we have a two-night affair, that means we have a moment to take a look at what happened Wednesday night before Round 2 on Thursday.

We’ve done some of that already with our grades for every pick, and you can see the 38 best available players (including, yes, Bronny James) who teams can select.

But it’s a good time to take a look at who won and lost in that first round. There wasn’t a ton of drama, as expected, but we’ve got some winners and losers to address.

Away we go:

Winners: San Antonio Spurs

I love what they did with their two picks. First, they took UConn’s Stephon Castle, who will be a good fit with Victor Wembanyama. Then, they took Rob Dillingham and traded him to the T-Wolves for … some picks in the distant future. That unprotected 2031 pick is a smart gamble, because you never know!

Winner: The French national team

If Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, Tidjane Salaun and Pacome Dadiet pan out, the world better look out.

Related, here’s what fellow countryman Victor Wembanyama said:

Loser (sort of): Dalton Knecht

He was supposed to be a lottery pick but fell. And fell. And kept falling … and even though he lost money on it, he landed with the Los Angeles Lakers. That helps!

Winner: Houston Rockets

A perfect example of team and fit. The Rockets needed Reed Sheppard and his shooting, and they got it. Simple!

Winners: Denver Nuggets

Another team with a need and a perfect fit. DaRon Holmes is the center they need if they want to keep contending. Nice work.

Possible losers: Washington Wizards

Look: I like the Alex Sarr pick. When you’re a team looking for the best player available, you take him. It’s just that trading Deni Avdija — who I like! — and getting the 14th pick, along with trading up with the Knicks late, might come back to bite them. We’ll see down the road if Sarr, Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George prove me wrong.