- Rich Hofmann of the Philadelphia Daily News: "Twenty-Five years ago, give or take a few days, the 76ers' world pivoted violently. With all good intentions - isn't that always the way? - the franchise made two trades designed to secure the future. The moves were big and bold and when viewed both as a whole and individually, they made sense in the moment. The events, days in the discussing, were unveiled on the evening of the NBA's 1986 draft. Moses Malone and Terry Catledge were traded to Washington for Jeff Ruland, Cliff Robinson and two first-round draft choices. Then the first overall selection in the draft -- who turned into Brad Daugherty -- was traded to Cleveland for forward Roy Hinson and $800,000. The Sixers thought they were getting younger and more athletic. Instead, they were getting taken. Ruland wasn't healthy, played only five games and retired (before making a brief comeback, years later). Hinson was a bad fit stylistically and was soon traded. The team not only sank as a result, but in the quarter-century since, the Sixers have never been able to find a center who could consistently dominate. Instead, there has been this endless searching. Call it the Curse of Moses. ... The game has changed and the position has changed while the scarcity of quality big men remains a constant. It isn't as if everybody in the business except the Sixers has had a dominant center. But they haven't come close to finding a long-term answer in the middle. They are still looking, a quarter-century later, as another draft approaches."
- Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press: "The Pistons need a coach and a big man, which is like a car needing a gearshift and wheels. They are kind of important. At least, that's what I hear. I'm not a car guy. As the Pistons prepare to pick a center or power forward to play for new coach Lawrence Frank ... whoa, I should slow down here. I don't know if the Pistons will hire Frank. But I think they should, and my guess is they will. That is just a guess. But the alternatives are not as appealing, at least in my mind. Bucks assistant Kelvin Sampson is a bright coach, but he has barely spent time in the NBA. He is too risky for an organization that has gone through five coaches in the past decade. I just can't see Joe Dumars hiring him. Former Hawks coach Mike Woodson would be a fine hire, and he wouldn't stand for the insubordination that has plagued this team for two years. But Frank's potential is greater. He can be the guy who lasts 10 years and ends the rap that the Pistons can't keep a coach."
- Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon-Journal: "When Cavs coach Byron Scott began installing the Princeton offense early last season, he made it clear one of the biggest keys to its success was intelligent players running the system. It's hard to find anyone brighter than Kentucky freshman Brandon Knight, which perhaps is one of the reasons the Cavs are considering
Knight with the fourth overall pick in Thursday's NBA Draft. Knight and big man Enes Kanter are both expected to work out for the Cavs today at the Cleveland Clinic Courts. It will be the team's second look at Kanter, but its first real look at Knight since the combine last month in Chicago. ... As the Cavaliers begin to rebuild the roster, they have used the Oklahoma City Thunder's ability to acquire top picks and think outside the box as the ideal model franchise. Three years ago, Thunder General Manager Sam Presti shocked the rest of the league when he drafted Russell Westbrook out of UCLA. No one saw it coming, because Westbrook was a defensive-minded shooting guard. Now he is one of the top point guards in the Western Conference who combined with Kevin Durant to lead the Thunder to the Western Conference finals this season. And the Thunder selected him fourth in the draft." - Geoff Calkins of The Commercial-Appeal: "So the Grizzlies need a veteran shooter. What if the Bulls offered Kyle Korver in a Mayo deal? My own inclination would be to be very cautious about trading Mayo anywhere. His value has been artificially diminished by the worst season he'll ever have in the NBA. He was one of the Grizzlies' more dynamic performers throughout the playoffs. True, the Grizzlies might have a hard time signing Mayo to a long-term contract. But in the coming year he'll still be relatively cheap. This is a team that made it to the Elite Eight without one of its best players. Shane Battier seems unlikely to return. Why not hang on to as many of the remaining talented pieces as possible and take another run at it? So dull could be the best possible result this Thursday. Dull could be the season's final reward. 'We're not going to do something just to do something,' said Chris Wallace. Good."
- William C. Rhoden of The New York Times: "Kemba Walker, Connecticut’s all-American guard, has already learned an invaluable lesson in how the noblest intention, the greatest accomplishment, can be twisted around and used as cyberspace fodder. Walker was the star who led the University of Connecticut to the national championship last spring. His compelling back story is that he graduated after three years at UConn and enters the N.B.A. with a degree. In the course of describing the rigors of graduating early, taking classes and playing Division I basketball, Walker said that while he had read a number of books, he read only one book cover to cover. (Full disclosure: it was my book that he referred to.) The statement triggered an unexpected onslaught of criticism and denunciation about the state of academics and intercollegiate athletics. On Thursday, Walker will leave the mini-firestorm behind and walk across the stage into the N.B.A. with a major lesson learned: choose words carefully, speak from the heart selectively and remember that, like players, the news media are looking to make highlight reels, too. In fact, this group of rookies may be the most astute group of young players yet. They have had the benefit of watching generations of previous players fall in and out of traps. For most of the athletes’ careers, the adults -- coaches, athletics directors -- made all the money. The players were the raw material in high school, semipolished gems in college. Now they are the high-priced products; beginning this week, it’s time to cash in."
- Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: "I’ve always thought this is the best way to approach a draft, or at least when selecting beyond the first few picks. Check out the NBA TV draft shows this weekend and you will see a seemingly endless parade of lottery picks that began their careers that night with so much potential yet never panned out. NBA rosters change so rapidly, it makes little sense to draft players to fit needs that might not exist by the time that player is ready to help. Still, in most mock drafts, the analysis centers around how each player will fit a need. In some cases, this is done to explain the prediction, but as often, it is just to provide something to say about each pick and team. For the sake of predicting the Rockets’ selections, it would be nice if we could factor in need. They need a traditional, full-sized center, and a bigger, defensive-minded small forward. For several versions of this mock draft, I had the Rockets taking Chris Singleton, who fits their need for a stronger small forward. I won’t compare him to Gerald Wallace, whom the Rockets tried to acquire at the trade deadline, but he does seem a bit like Wallace when he entered the NBA after one college season. Singleton could be the pick at 14, could go several spots sooner and like most of the mid-first round picks, could slide. In the end, I thought the Rockets are more likely to choose someone that does something great, rather than a more versatile player that does more things well. Donatas Motiejunas has outstanding length and offensive skills. At 23, I went with Nikola Vucevic, though I think the other Nikola (Mirotic) would be a great pick and worth the wait if taken in the last third of the first round."
- Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: "Jerry Krause once thought there was so little chance of finding a useful player with the final first-round pick in the NBA Draft, he chose Connecticut center Travis Knight in 1996 and declined to offer him a contract. Today, however, with so many young, unproven athletes on the draft board, the unpredictability has seemed to help teams choosing late. The Bulls demonstrated that in 2009 when they found a more helpful player with the No. 26 pick (Taj Gibson) than they did at No. 16 (James Johnson). This past season, the all-rookie first-team included one second-round pick, New York’s Landry Fields, and one player who wasn’t drafted, San Antonio’s Gary Neal. Two years ago, Gibson and No. 21 pick Darren Collison made all-rookie first team, while the second team featured three second-rounders -- DeJuan Blair, Jonas Jerebko and Marcus Thornton. So as bleak as it seems, the Bulls have to feel there’s a decent chance of finding at least one helpful player with picks No. 28, 30 and 43 in Thursday’s NBA Draft."
- Marc Berman of the New York Post: "Even though it could mean the end to his starting role, Landry Fields is all for the Knicks adding another Pac-10, 6-foot-7 shooting guard hailing from Southern California. Fields has known Washington State's Klay Thompson for several years and attended his workout with the Knicks. If Thompson falls to 17 in Thursday's draft, the Knicks will snap up the Reggie Miller clone. But they may have to trade up to get him. Fields, out of Stanford, faced Thompson in the Pac-10 for three years. Both are from Orange County, Calif., and have worked out together a lot during summers. 'He's a great scorer, a real big guard,' Fields told The Post this weekend. 'He could be a great player in the league. He's absolutely a knockdown shooter [who] would run well in Mike D'Antoni's system. I'd be happy to have him.' If he is not scooped up by Golden State at 11, he could fall."
- Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune: "Former San Diego State forward Kawhi Leonard was originally scheduled to work out Sunday for the Jazz. But Leonard's session fell through, and he was not listed by the team for Monday's session, which is expected to be the final workout the Jazz will hold before the 2011 NBA Draft on Thursday in Newark, N.J. Leonard was initially expected to selected during the first 10 picks, but his stock is reportedly falling as selection day approaches. Leonard's decision not to work out with the Jazz appears to be a classic case of a player honing in on a few teams they believe will draft them, rather than working out for all franchises that are interested."
- Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: "His upcoming summer schedule sounds like a children's guessing game. As in, 'Where in the World is Rich Sheubrooks?' 'South Africa, Slovenia, Latvia, Spain, Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania...' Sheubrooks recited, listing the countries he'll soon visit, scouting teenage players for the Charlotte Bobcats. Sheubrooks is the team's director of global scouting, which means his annual travels come to fruition in Thursday's NBA draft. ... Sheubrooks, who also scouts globally for Nike, predicts there will be more international players chosen in the lottery (the first 14 picks) Thursday than ever before. The draft's top two big men are Enes Kanter from Turkey and Jonas Valanciunas from Lithuania. Later in the first round, Jan Vesely from the Czech Republic, Bismack Biyombo from the Congo and Donatas Motiejunas from Lithuania will all be chosen. Regardless of whether the Bobcats pick any of those guys with their ninth and 19th picks, international scouting is essential, according to Rod Higgins, the Bobcats' president of basketball operations. 'Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker -- should I say more?' Higgins said, listing foreign-born NBA stars. 'You have to be prepared to scout these players because basketball is a global sport - there's talent all over the world.' "
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: "Ryan Anderson earns his living by swishing 3-point shots and by collecting rebounds, but on a recent afternoon, he looked more like Manny Pacquiao than a professional basketball player. Wearing a pair of boxing gloves on his hands and a scowl on his face, the Orlando Magic power forward relentlessly jabbed a heavy bag with his left arm. 'Eight!' yelled Todd Drespling, who owns and runs Gym Rat Boxing and Fitness, a gym a few miles south of downtown Orlando. Anderson immediately unleashed a rapid barrage of eight left and right hooks. A loud 'THWACK!' echoed throughout the gym each time he made contact. Anderson spent the next 45 minutes completing a grueling workout that included almost 600 stomach crunches, countless punches and some weightlifting. But he isn't the only Magic player throwing jabs, hooks and uppercuts this offseason. Encouraged by team officials, Gilbert Arenas, Brandon Bass, Earl Clark and Chris Duhon have incorporated boxing into their training regimens. 'I thought it was kind of weird that they were sending me in here to box at first, but I love it,' said Anderson, who has been boxing since he was traded to the Magic in June 2009. 'It's just a great workout, and I see now why we keep coming back here and bringing guys here.' "
TRUEHOOP CONTRIBUTORS
Henry AbbottTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
J.A. AdandeTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Kevin ArnovitzTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Chris BroussardTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Chad FordTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Israel GutierrezTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
John HollingerTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Beckley MasonTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Marc SteinTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
HoopIdeaTrueHoop @HoopIdea |
You must be signed in to post a comment