Of course, for every winner of the 2008 NBA Draft, there has to be corresponding losers. And there are certainly some losers when it comes to this edition of the NBA’s annual selection meeting.

New York Knicks: I’d be crazy not to start here with the Knicks’ selection of Danilo Gallinari. There is absolutely no doubt that this pick was influenced by Mike D’Antoni’s playing days in Italy with Gallinari’s father. D’Antoni clearly needed a stud PG at this spot with Stephon Marbury having no future in New York. Eric Gordon, D.J. Augustin or Jerryd Bayless would’ve all been good picks. Hell, even Brook Lopez would’ve been a better pick. Even if Gallinari pans out decently, it will take at least two or three years before he starts showing his worth. By then, who knows if D’Antoni is still around?

Milwaukee Bucks: So exactly what is the plan here, short-term and long-term? They just traded Bobby Simmons and Yi Jianlian, who possesses a game that management loves enough to trade him after just one season, for Richard Jefferson. The same RJ that has a huge contract that has three years left on it. And then they follow it up by drafting Joe Alexander, except Alexander plays at the same spot that RJ does, and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. Being a UCLA alum and having seen Mbah a Moute in action many times, I love his defensive tenacity and nose for the ball, but I really don’t see where he’s going to fit in unless he plays as an undersized backup PF. Then there are the rumors about the Bucks no longer wanting Michael Redd, except that he has a long-term contract that pays him like a franchise player when he really isn’t close to being one. If there’s a plan in Milwaukee, I’d like to see it.

Sacramento Kings: When I heard Jason Thompson’s name called, I, and I’m sure a LOT of Kings fans, were saying, “Who???” The Kings are screaming for a PG with Beno Udrih being an unrestricted free agent and most likely going to get some stupidly huge contract that he doesn’t deserve. They definitely got shafted when Bayless got taken one pick before, but that doesn’t absolve management of picking a guy that was rated to go in the lower half of the 1^st round. And not just that, but they drafted Spencer Hawes the year before! Their second round picks of Sean Singletary and Patrick Ewing Jr. probably won’t make much of an impact, if any at all. This team overachieved last season with a roster that’s not particularly talented, and it’s going to be hard to sustain that kind of success without getting some talent in the draft. Taking Anthony Randolph here would’ve made more sense with his huge upside. For a fanbase that desperately needed some excitement, this did nothing but deflate them.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin McHale made the right pick. Al Jefferson and O.J. Mayo was the perfect inside-outside combo for the Wolves for years to come. Then he remembered who he was, and had to screw it up. The post-draft eight-player trade sent Mayo, Marko Jaric, Antoine Walker and Greg Buckner to the Wolves for Kevin Love, Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal and Jason Collins. Why McHale made this deal, I have no idea. It doesn’t make the Wolves championship contenders. Love and Jefferson are both PFs, but someone’s going to have to play C and neither are defensive studs. It definitely doesn’t put butts in the seats. The locals probably would’ve been excited to see Mayo in action, but I doubt anyone’s going to rush out to see Love. They’re probably going to end up winning more games with these players when the they should blow a few years and stock up on talent. Then again, McHale runs the show here so he’d probably make another boneheaded move.