In Brian Gaine's first draft as the general manager of the Houston Texans
Justin Verlander Jersey , he wanted to add three things to the offensive and defensive side of the ball ??speed, athleticism and explosiveness.
In doing that with his eight picks, Gaine also added competition to multiple positions on the Texans roster.
"The one thing I want people to understand is that we're always going to be trying to add competition to the roster regardless of the position whenever it
makes sense," Gaine said. "Any players we added to the roster this year through
the draft we think has a chance to make the team."
Gaine worked his way through the past two days, not making any draft day trades, and addressed his team's needs.
Gaine admitted the opportunities to make trades were there and he did come close to making some moves.
"Always tempted," Gaine said about making a trade. "I'm always looking for an opportunity to improve the team. At every turn and every opportunity when we
were selecting, I'm evaluating the pros and cons of going up to get a player or
sitting tight or the opportunity to move back."
Heading into the draft, the Texans' deepest needs were on the offensive line, in the secondary and at tight end.
Gaine utilized four of his eight picks to bolster the secondary and the tight end spot.
In the third round, Gaine drafted University of Central Florida tight end Jordan Akins. Then in the sixth round
Cheap Customized Green Bay Packers Jerseys , Gaine selected Mississippi State tight end Jordan Thomas.
"It's important, especially in our offense at tight end because we have different roles and different jobs as it relates to the composition of the
group, in terms of the Y and the F and how we use those guys," Gaines said about
adding depth to the tight end position.
"Ideally we want them to be fully dimensional, but we like having versatile tight ends who can do different jobs."
SECONDARY IS PRIMARY
Gaine bookended his first draft with a pair of picks to help the secondary.
With his first pick in the third round, Gaine took Stanford safety Justin Reid and with his final pick in the seventh round selected San Jose State
cornerback Jermaine Kelly.
"We want to have a versatile secondary because of the variations of things we do in sub-package defense," Gaine said.
ADDING TO O-LINE
Gaine filled the Texans' need on the offensive line with Mississippi State tackle Martinas Rankin in the third round.
Gaine's other three picks were spent on wide receiver and outside linebacker.
"With the additions we made in this draft on the offensive side we feel like we added more weapons to surround Deshaun Watson with," Gaine said. "We also did
add offensive linemen through free agency and the draft."
With his lone pick of the fourth round, Gaine scooped up Texas Tech wide receiver Keke Coutee with the 103rd overall pick.
Texans offensive and special teams assistant Wes Welker also played his college football at Texas Tech before playing 12 years in the NFL.
"We've been in contact a lot throughout this whole process," Coutee said. "He worked me out in my private workout, so just being able to work with him and him
teaching me the game a little more and how to run routes is really good."
GETTING DEFENSIVE
After the Coutee pick
Cheap P.J. Hall Jersey , two of the Texans' final four picks were spent on outside linebackers.
Gaine drafted Wake Forest's Duke Ejiofor with his 177th overall pick and Stanford's Peter Kalambayi with the 214th overall pick.
Ejiofor finished his Wake Forest career with 128 tackles and 23? sacks. He also had 41 tackles for loss, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and six
pass deflections.
Ejiofor and Kalambayi join a defensive unit that includes J.J. Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and Whitney Mercilus.
"This is a dream come true," Ejiofor said. "I've watched J.J. Watt, Clowney and Whitney Mercilus. This is crazy, I can't believe I'm about to join them and
learn so much from them."
Ejiofor is recovering from right shoulder labrum surgery, but said he will be ready for training camp.
STLL NEED
The one area the Texans didn't add to through the draft was at quarterback.
Houston has three quarterbacks on the roster in Watson, Brandon Weeden and Joe Webb III.
"We feel comfortable with the group we have at the moment," Gaine said.
The Latest on the NBA Awards, where the league’s individual honors are being presented (all times local):
8 p.m.
James Harden of the Houston Rockets is the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.
He joined Michael Jordan as the only players to average at least 20 points
Isaac Yiadom Color Rush Jersey , eight assists, five rebounds and 1.7 steals in a season.
Harden led the league in scoring, 3-pointers and 50-point games with four. He helped the Rockets to an NBA-leading 65 wins.
Harden beat out Cleveland’s LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Pelicans.
—
7:25 p.m.
Oscar Robertson commends the activism of today’s NBA players, although he wonders why more white athletes aren’t speaking out.
”Where are the white athletes when this is happening?” he said backstage at the NBA Awards. ”It’s not just black athletes when you see injustice in the
world.”
Robertson went on to say he hopes ”the whites and the blacks can get together, even with the football,” a reference to NFL players who have taken a
knee or sat in silence during the national anthem to protest police brutality
and racial inequality.
The Hall of Fame guard was presented with the NBA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
—
7:15 p.m.
The NBA gave Oscar Robertson a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Bill Russell gave Charles Barkley something else.
Barkley and fellow Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were the presenters when Robertson received his honor. After Barkley mentioned Russell, Boston’s Hall of
Fame center flipped his middle finger in Barkley’s direction.
Robertson is the career leader in triple-doubles and was the first player to average one for a season. His antitrust case against the NBA also ushered in
free agency for players. Robertson says that was his most important assist.
Russell received the inaugural award last year.
—
6:55 p.m.
The name on everyone’s lips around the NBA isn’t at the league’s awards show.
LeBron James isn’t attending the show, where he’s vying for a fifth career Most Valuable Player award.
James has until Friday to tell the Cavaliers if he will pick up his $35.6 million option for next season or opt for free agency. Rumors about his future
have spawned a cottage industry in the sports world.
—
6:45 p.m.
Dwane Casey has won the NBA’s Coach of the Year award for his work with his former team, the Toronto Raptors. He was fired last month and has since become
coach of the Detroit Pistons.
Casey led the Raptors to the No. 1 seed in the East for the first time in franchise history. Toronto won a team-record 59 games. Casey coached the East in
the All-Star Game for the first time.
Casey won over Quin Snyder of Utah and Brad Stevens of Boston.
—
6:35 p.m.
Lou Williams of the Los Angeles Clippers is the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year.
The guard became the first player to average at least 20 points for the first time in his 13th season or later. He led the league in fourth-quarter points and
scoring average.
He beat out Houston’s Eric Gordon, last year’s winner, and Fred VanVleet of Toronto.
Williams kissed his two young daughters on his way to the stage after becoming the Clippers’ third winner in the last five years.
—
6:30 p.m.
Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz is the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year.
The center was the leading vote-getter for the league’s All-Defensive first team.
Gobert anchored a Jazz defense that ranked second in the NBA in defensive rating.
He beat out Anthony Davis of New Orleans and Joel Embiid of Philadelphia.
—
6:20 p.m.
Victor Oladipo of the Indiana Pacers has won the Most Improved Player at the NBA Awards.
The guard averaged 23.1 points in his first season with the Pacers. He earned his first All-Star berth
Cheap Taron Johnson Jersey , too.
Oladipo also led the league in steals for the first time.
He beat out Clint Capela of Houston and Spencer Dinwiddie of the Brooklyn Nets.
—
6:15 p.m.
Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers has won Rookie of the Year honors at the NBA Awards.
The guard averaged 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, joining Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson as the only rookies to post those numbers in a
season.
Simmons helped Philadelphia to a 52-30 record, including ending the season with a 16-game winning streak.
He beat out finalists Donovan Mitchell of Utah and Jayson Tatum of Boston.
—
6 p.m.
The NBA Awards aren’t just about the hardware. Everyone gets fed, too.
Players and their guests are sitting down to dinner at the second annual show. On the menu is salad with avocados, grapefruit and green goddess dressing,
and a main course of wild seabass with rice and steak.
Dessert is a vanilla cream puff, chocolate peanut butter cupcakes and pavlova with lemon curd and blueberry.
—
5:55 p.m.
Jeanie Buss says she has complete faith in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ front office no matter how Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka want to build
the team, whether it’s through trades, free agency or the draft.
Buss says she asked them a year ago to identify a style of play for the team and make decisions that reflect that style. She describes the Lakers’ style as
fast and says it’s about passing and sharing the ball while committing to each
other as a team.
Buss is the team’s controlling owner and president. Johnson is the team’s president of basketbal.
