Hi, I’m Mel Kiper Jr. and I’d like to welcome you to the 2017 Bucket Draft on ESPN. It’s a big day for franchises and players, and as the first team goes on the clock, we’re going to bring you in on the live action. Let’s take a look at the picks:
1. RW Pressprich
With the first overall pick, it looks like RW Pressprich is taking……
Wow an ex-Goldman Sachs salesman. Wow! Kind of surprised here.. He had a lot off-field issues, including had a run-in with the police at a DUI checkpoint in Scarsdale. Still, I think you’re getting good value here. He has a great pedigree, and presumably a relationship or two. And he did impress at the High Yield Conference in California, putting back 11 Tito’s and sodas on the first night. But you have to wonder if he will buy-in culturally, otherwise those off-field issues may come back to haunt this team.
2. Oppenheimer (via Jefferies)
And look what we have here! It’s a first round trade! We knew Oppenheimer was looking to make a splash early, and they certainly haven’t wasted any time. It looks like Opco is going to be taking….. another riskless trader…. with a 3 year guarantee! We knew there was going to be a run on riskless traders in here… But I did not think it would be this early. And I think they overpaid here, but time will tell. And as for Jefferies, a classic trade back strategy. In 2016 I think they actually traded all their picks.
3. Suntrust
With the 3rd overall pick, it looks like Suntrust is going with… A new Head of HY Sales. Well this is hardly surprising. We knew they wanted to make a statement and get a new face of the franchise in there – for jersey sales and to get butts in the seats. They picked a best-in-class ex Lehman veteran. Injuries are a concern. He’s had 4 hip replacements since the 90s. And you have to question his requests to work remotely from his house in Cape Cod. But I’m sure Suntrust is happy to have a new leader in the locker room.
4. Janney Montgomery
The pick is in. Wow… they went with the bucket journeyman…. this is just… this is bad folks. We know they were looking for experience, but this guy has been at 5 shops in 3 years. I gotta tell you- I’m not sure what Janney was thinking here. Maybe they got nervous on the clock, I’m not sure. I think most teams had a 6th or 7th round grade on this guy.
5. Cantor Fitzgerald (via Imperial)
Imperial traded back for a player to be named later. And with the 5th overall pick, Cantor selects… A 15yr BofA trading veteran. We knew there would be a run on traders here, and this is no surprise pick. We saw Cantor hosting meetings with him at STK, so we knew there was early interest. It’ll be interesting to see how he handles the no-capital model. I know scouts liked how he updated his morning runs, but he’s going to have to bring his game to an elevated level.
6. Stifel Nicolaus
Looks like Stifel is going with a veteran salesman from UBS, but also had stops at JPM, CS, and a long tenure with MS. Clients love this guy. But it has come at a price. He’s had some locker room issues with traders over the years. We’re going to have to see how he performs without the use of capital- It’s going to be a test for him physically and mentally, and we’ll see how solid those relationships really are.
7. Guggenheim
Guggenheim- 3 coaches in 3 years- they need to make this pick count. And they are going with….WOW! The surprise of the draft- a 35 year veteran coming out of retirement. We thought this guy had hung up his cleats but, turns out divorce has not been kind to him. In his recent interview with Suzy Kolber he told her he’s just “looking forward to getting back out there.”
8. Cowen and Co.
Cowen is going a different direction- We knew they were looking to get younger, and they are picking a 34 year old , fresh off the redeye from San Francisco. He has a decent background- was at Citi for 10 years before moving to his college roommate’s FinTech startup.
9. RW Baird (via BTIG in exchange for veteran assets)
And it looks like with the 9th overall pick… RW Baird is taking a first year analyst… When I spoke with their coach this winter I knew he wanted to grow the franchise organically. They went with the local product- A Fairfield University lax player. His uncle is a PM, which helps. But he’s certainly a project- but a lot of raw talent and upside here.
10. Seaport
And it’s Seaport going with the extremely high risk, high reward pick! They are selecting the uber-talented, uber-dangerous salesman from the psychiatric unit of Pelican Bay Facility in California. Tons of off-field issues here. He’s currently being rolled into the office in a Hannibal Lector-style straight-jacket and face mask. Oh watch out! He just faked a seizure to try and escape from the guards. Production should marginally increase, however, so Seaport should be excited about that.
