The inaugural season of the Basketball Experts League held its draft yesterday. Most managers were able to login to the Yahoo Sports draft engine and the discussions and bantor was certainly memorable. The line of the afternoon came from Zach Harper from TalkHoops.net. Zach had the flu, yet still managed to partake in the BEL Draft, as well as another draft later in the evening. Somewhere in the middle rounds, Zach interrupted everyone's deep thought as they awaited their picks with: "I need a bed pan...between puking, a puppy chewing my shoes and constantly having to piss..." John Karalis from Red's Army suggested that be the slogan for the league.

But, enough about estranged bodily fluids. Let's review the draft. The selection order was determined at random by Yahoo a half hour before the draft. Matt Satten from Dropping Dimes won the first overall pick (bastard!) and yours truly landed the eighth overall pick.

Check out rounds 4-6
Check out rounds 7-13

ROUND ONE

1. PF. Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics (Matt Satten DroppingDimes.com) Analysis: Garnett's going first in more and more fantasy drafts. It's not a bad pick, either. Many think he'll shine with two stars around him and more motivation. Expect a slight dip in points, but his boards should increase with two star perimeter shooters putting up threes; his assists should increase, with two star perimeter shooters to pass to; and his field goal percentage should increase, with fewer double teams to have to deal with.
    
2. SG. Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers (Matthew Hinzpeter FantasyInsiderOnline.com) Analysis: Kobe's a fantasy basketball stud, and helps a team compete in a variety of stats. Matt did well with his first pick. Fantapedia.net actually ranks Bryant at the top of its pre-rankings.
    
3. PF. Shawn Marion, Phoenix Suns (Howard Mash GameDayDraft.com) Analysis: There are some who've been scared to draft Marion, because of the trade rumors going around. Yet, there isn't any reason not to draft him this high. Marion's consistently been one of the top tier fantasy contributors in the past few season, especially considering that turnovers are factored in this league. Howard does well with his first pick and gets a player who covers all statistics (except assists).
    
4. SF. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers (Patrick Lee GOTathletes.com) Analysis: The only things to worry about with James are his free throw percentage, which has decreased slightly in each of the past few seasons, and burn out. The Cavs didn't get him enough help this off season and are still in negotiation for Anderson Varejao and Sasha Pavlovic. James will have a lot on his shoulders once again. Still, this is a good pick for Patrick. It's helpful to find a player who covers numerous STAT CATs like LeBron does.
    
5. PF. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks (John Karalis RedsArmy.com) Analysis: I'm sure this Celtics fan would have loved to have landed Garnett, but he'll have to settle for Dirk instead. That's not so bad. Dirk has been one of the most consistent fantasy basketball contributors in the last few seasons. He's a lock for great points, great percentages, boards, low turnovers and threes. And, he even typically gets center-eligibility in Yahoo Sports.
    
6. PG. Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards (Julie Simmons SportsRefuge.com) Analysis: If it weren't for his high turnover rate, Arenas could be one of the very best in fantasy basketball. He's great for points, steals and threes, while providing a solid boost in assists and is a good rebounder for a guard. The choices here were pretty much Arenas or Nash. With one, you get great percentages from a point guard, the league-leader in assists with solid threes. With the other, you get an elite scorer, a great pick pocket and threes.
    
7. PG. Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns (Michael Vu FantasySportsMatrix.com) Analysis: There was a bit of a drop off after Nash, so this should have been an easy pick for Michael. Nash immediately makes him the favorite in assists, while not really hurting him in other categories. Nash does turn the ball over quite a bit, but not to the point where it's unmanageable. Moreover, his 10-11 assists per game make those turnovers worth it.
    
8. PF. Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix Suns (Phil Partington Fantapedia.net) Analysis: Stoudemire is the top big man available at this point, and though I seriously contemplated Kidd, his recent injury, though small, concerns me more than Stoudemire's surgery. It worked out, too, since I ended up being a bit short for big men, while drafting numerous point guards.
    
9. PF. Pau Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies (Ari Bluestein SportsFanBase.com) Analysis: This should be a big year for Gasol. He's healthy, his teammates are healthy, which means he finally has some point guards to pass him the ball. Moreover, the Grizzlies added his best friend, Juan Carlos Navarro, who along with Casey Jacobsen and Mike Miller should be enough shooters to spread the court more.
    
10. PG. Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets (Geoff Stein MockDraftCentral.com) Analysis: If Kidd can stay healthy, this might have been a great pick. Kidd's played in 80 games in each of the last two seasons, but has had back problems during the pre-season. Still, he has returned to action and could be just fine, which would mean that I might have made a mistake not taking him. Though Kidd's field goal percentage is a bit low, he doesn't take all that many shots. What he does bring to the table is assists, steals not-so-bad threes and great rebounds from the point guard position. He's a triple-double threat each night.
     
11. C. Yao Ming, Houston Rockets (Zach Harper TalkHoops.net) Analysis: If Yao can stay healthy, he's a great pick up for Zach. His 25.0 ppg, 9.4 rbpg and 2.0 bspg are nice, but what makes him such an incredible fantasy commodity are his percentages. There aren't many players who shot over 50% last season while taking so many shots (17.1 per game), and also shot over 85% from the line while being near the top of the league in free throw attempts (8.6 per game). Yao can really carry your percentages. Turnovers are a bit of a problem. A center should not average 3.5 per game.
     
12. PG. Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets (Ken Slight BasketballMonster.com) Analysis: Paul should be healthy this season, which means a great year for fantasy. Ken anchors his point guard position and gets some great assists and steals, with solid points, decent boards for a point guard and low turnovers. Folks often wonder why Paul is more valuable in fantasy basketball than Deron Williams. The answer is steals. Paul averages around two per game, while Williams typically averages around one per game. Moreover, Williams gets slightly more turnovers and less rebounds. 

ROUND TWO 

1. SF. Rashard Lewis, Orlando Magic (Ken Slight BasketballMonster.com) Analysis: John Karalis has expressed much disdain for Rashard Lewis, but we at Fantapedia are big fans. Lewis is incredibly underrated and is a great fantasy contributor. In addition, he should be even better as the first option in Orlando. Lewis' numbers were at their best when Ray Allen was hurt last season. He's an adequate scorer, who also brings a few threes to the table, and doesn't hurt you in any areas, like turnovers or the percentages.
    
2. PF. Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs (Zach Harper TalkHoops.net) Zach goes big with his second pick, taking care of his two center slots early. Free throw percentage can sometimes be a concern with him, but it's nothing to worry. The bigger question will be his health. He's getting older and the Spurs likely won't push him too hard to ensure he's healthy for the playoffs.
    
3. SG. Dwayne Wade, Miami Heat (Geoff Stein MockDraftCentral.com) Analysis: Wade's recent injury is cause for alarm. Most reports say he'll be back by mid-to-late November, but that's not a guarantee. Other insiders suggest he might be out for longer. Yet, even if he comes back early, he's known to be injury prone. This pick could be huge for Geoff, or it could end up hurting him during the season.
    
4. SG. Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics (Ari Bluestein SportsFanBase.com) Analysis: Ari got some praise for making this pick, though I can't say I agree with their assessment. Pierce should be a more efficient scorer since a lot of pressure will be taken off him. Still, he'll have to share touches with two other stars and there are still injury concerns with him. There might have been better options than Pierce at this point, but time will tell.
    
5. SF. Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks (Phil Partington Fantapedia.net) Analysis: I was happy to have Smith fall into my lap. I was prepared to draft Marcus Camby had Ari taken Smith. Camby would have been fine, but there's always that lingering concern for injury with him. Moreover, Smith has an incredible ceiling. Smith helps my team in rebounds, while anchoring my blocks.
    
6. C. Marcus Camby, Denver Nuggets (Michael Vu FantasySportsMatrix.com) Analysis: Mike picked the best assists guy in the NBA with his first pick, and now anchors his center slot with a terrific rebounder, shot blocker, who also contributes steals, low turnovers and even assists. If he can stay healthy, Camby is a fantasy star and a pretty darn good pick for Michael at 18.
    
7. SG. Andre Iguodala, Philadelphia 76ers (Julie Simmons SportsRefuge.com) Analysis: Julie nabs another versatile guard with her second pick. Iguodala should shine this year and his versatility makes him a solid pick at 19.
    
8. PF. Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors (John Karalis RedsArmy.com) Analysis: John grabs another big man with his second pick. Though he's not a great shot blocker, he did finish in the top 25 by totals according to Yahoo's rankings. Between Bosh and Nowitzki, John is looking solid in boards, points and percentages.
    
9. SF. Caron Butler, Washington Wizards (Patrick Lee GOTathletes.com) Analysis: Butler flirted with being a top twenty fantasy player last season before getting hurt. He spreads his stats out fairly well, and really provides a good boost in steals. Like many other players, health will be a concern. This pick was a bit of a surprise, but it wasn't necessarily bad. Butler could be huge this season.
    
10. SG. Ray Allen, Boston Celtics (Howard Mash GameDayDraft.com) Analysis: Howard already nabbed a lot of his big man statistics with Shawn Marion. Now he looks for some threes and points from Ray Allen. There will be concern that Allen's numbers could diminish since he'll likely be the Celtics' third option this season, but most experts have confidence in the star.
     
11. PG. Baron Davis, Golden State Warriors (Matthew Hinzpeter FantasyInsiderOnline.com) Analysis: Though he was healthy last season, Davis has a huge history of injuries to be concerned about. If Davis can stay healthy, Matthew gets a great complement to Kobe Bryant. If he can't stay healthy, this pick could haunt him.
     
12. PF. Al Jefferson, Minnesota Timberwolves (Matt Satten DroppingDimes.com) Analysis: Matt gets the other side of the big Celtics-Timberwolves trade by drafting Big Al. Jefferson posted great numbers late last season, and should be able to post even greater numbers on a depleted Timberwolves team. Still, there are no guarantees as to how well he'll hold up in the West. However, with Kevin Garnett now in the East and Elton Brand hurt for a lot of the season, things might not be so bad for him.

ROUND THREE

1. PF. Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic (Matt Satten DroppingDimes.com) Analysis: Matt's going big early. His first three picks - Kevin Garnett, Al Jefferson and Howard - could single-handedly win him rebounds this season. Yet, there are other things to worry about. Dwight Howard committed more turnovers last season than any other center in the last 22 years (he averaged 3.9 turnovers per game with only 1.9 assists per game to show for it). Having Rashard Lewis there should help his turnovers a lot, but he's also a horrible free throw shooter. He's the new Shaquille O'Neal, shooting under 60% the last couple seasons while averaging 7-8 attempts per game.
    
2. SF. Gerald Wallace, Charlotte Bobcats (Matthew Hinzpeter FantasyInsiderOnline.com) Analysis: Easily the steal of the draft so far. Wallace slipped through the cracks, and Matt is all the better for it. With Kobe Bryant and Baron Davis already on his roster, Matt's team welcomes his great steals, solid boards and blocks. His first three picks combine for 5-6 steals per game.
    
3. PG. Chauncey Billups, Detroit Pistons (Howard Mash GameDayDraft.com) Analysis: Mash grabs his starting point guard while he can. He's done a great job of getting a balanced team so far, with Marion, Ray Allen and Billups.
    
4. SG. Vince Carter, New Jersey Nets (Patrick Lee GOTathletes.com) Analysis: Here's another player who slipped through the cracks. Vince Carter may not be playing for a new contract like he was last season, but he is capable of putting up excellent numbers. Patrick now has LeBron James, Caron Butler and Carter on his roster, which means he'll need to start looking for a center or point guard very soon. What helps is that James gets a boat load of assists and is pretty good at getting boards, too.
    
5. PG. Deron Williams, Utah Jazz (John Karalis RedsArmy.com) Analysis: Not a bad pick here. Williams was one of the top assist men last season and should only get better. If he added threes and steals to his game, he could be much higher. Still, it's tough to find point guards this good, who also shoot solid percentages. John's looking very solid so far with Nowitzki, Bosh and Williams. He'll need to start looking for some steals and blocks at this point.
    
6. SG. Michael Redd, Milwaukee Bucks (Julie Simmons SportsRefuge.com) Analysis: This isn't a bad pick, but I wonder if Julie's reading this draft that well. Bigs are going very quickly, and so far she has Arenas, Iguodala and Redd. Still, it's hard to fault her for these picks, because they're all great fantasy players. It's important to nab big men when you can, but it's also important to get the best players available early on to anchor your team. Given her needs,though, this is an interesting pick with Carlos Boozer still on the table.
    
7. PF. Carlos Boozer, Utah Jazz (Michael Vu FantasySportsMatrix.com) Analysis: Mike gets his second center-eligible player in his first three picks. With Nash anchoring him in assists, Michael has nabbed two excellent big men in Camby and Boozer. He may even compete with Matt from Dropping Dimes in boards with these two.
    
8. SG. Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings (Phil Partington Fantapedia.net) Analysis: I've been enamored with Martin all pre-season. The Kings' point guard, Mike Bibby, is more of a scoring point guard than a pass-first point guard, and with him out for 5-6 weeks, Martin should be even better for fantasy teams. He's an excellent scorer, hits three-pointers and has great percentages. With Amare Stoudemire and Josh Smith already on my roster, it doesn't hurt to get aid on the perimeter.
    
9. PG. Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets (Ari Bluestein SportsFanBase.com) Analysis: Iverson's a great scorer, but can be turnover prone and shoots poorly from the field. Moreover, it sounds like they're moving him to shooting guard full time, which means a big dip in assists. Still, if healthy, Iverson is a solid fantasy contributor who also helps in threes and steals. Ari adds AI to his roster that already includes Pau Gasol and Paul Pierce.
    
10. SG. Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets (Geoff Stein MockDraftCentral.com) Analysis: T-Mac's back may be an issue, but his talent sure isn't. Geoff should enjoy points and assist with this pick, but T-Mac's field goal percentage is a bit low. With Dwayne Wade, Jason Kidd and McGrady, Geoff will be watching the injury list closely this season.
     
11. PF. Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers (Zach Harper TalkHoops.net) Analysis: Zach's taking notes from Matt from Dropping Dimes by drafting multiple big men with his first few picks. Zach's drafted Yao Ming, Tim Duncan and O'Neal with his first few picks. O'Neal needs to stay healthy this season, and it wouldn't hurt to pick up his field goal percentage. Last season it was in the low 40% range.
     
12. PF. LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland Trail Blazers (Ken Slight BasketballMonster.com) Analysis: Quite a reach here! Aldridge is starting to get on peoples' radars, especially with Greg Oden out for the season. Still, this is a surprising pick. Ken hopes Aldridge can be a star this season. With more dependable players on the table, like Antawn Jamison and Josh Howard, this is an interesting pick. Yet, with Chris Paul and Rashard Lewis already on the roster, Ken felt compelled to go big.

Check out rounds 4-6
Check out rounds 7-13