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Demoting Stephen A. Smith from the booth to being the reporter who interviews, or in his case -- yells, at drafted players was one good move by ESPN as far as its NBA draft coverage is concerned.

Minimizing Stephen A. is always a good thing.

But the rest of it was mediocre theatre at best, and not all of it, for once, was ESPN's fault. Know what ruins the NBA draft? The trades. Does it even matter who drafts you anymore in the NBA? Those players have to know they'll be on the move soon.

That's what makes watching the draft so pointless. Why do I want to sit and watch O.J. Mayo take the stage and hold a Minnesota jersey when he gets shipped to Memphis five hours later? Listening to his interview with Stephen A. afterward about the joy of being a Timberwolf? Even more pointless, and not just because all I can hear is yelling.