Senior Moment
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by user VirgCavs21
In a shocking development, NBA Commissioner David Stern has just announced that NBA teams will only be allowed to draft college seniors. "The Players Association has provided their approval, probably because they feel there will be less competition for jobs and the veterans can stay employed longer. I feel this is IDIOTIC," states the ever-annoying talking head, Steven A. Smith.
I know this scenario sounds far-fetched, but it has been part of an unrequited dream of mine for many years. I find it thoroughly distressing that I can't even watch the professional version of my favorite game. I enjoy MLB, I love the NFL, but I abhor the NBA. The game began to lose its luster for me in the mid-80s with all the mano vs. mano garbage (Magic and the Lakers against Michael and the Bulls, ick). It is not a pretty game to watch. I am a college basketball aficionado, although I do admit a slippage in the overall play in recent years. For the NBA to garner my attention again, some serious changes need to be made. The overemphasis on dunking, individuals and offenses that rely exclusively on the clear-out needs to stop. The team game has disappeared, and this is coming from a liberal, 31-year old, not a racist, middle-aged white guy (like how the typical NBA-hater is portrayed).
The next thing that needs to cease existing is the ridiculous situation that occurs at the end of every quarter.Why can you call time out at one end and get the ball at 2/3 court at the other end? That is utterly ludicrous! You can have three "buzzer-beaters" in the last two seconds. Wow! NBA action is fantastic (yawn).
The purpose of this "article" was for me to create my ultimate draft. One in which I know all the players who are selected (like used to happen in the days of my youth). Sorry, Saer Sene, Oleksiy Pecherov and Andrea (is this the WNBA?) Bargnani, you need not apply. Adam Morrison, Marcus Williams and Rudy Gay are not invited either. This is a moment for the seniors, a graduation, if you will. This is the last time I will ever see these players, so I would like to thank them for the four years of entertainment they provided me. I'm reclaiming my beginning of summer love affair with the NBA Draft!
(*** Please read this *** I didn't make these selections based on their prospective NBA teams supposed needs. I admittedly don't know their needs, as a self-professed NBA ignoramus. I picked players based on how good they are, and also how their size matched up with the usual projections for their positions. I used themidmajority.com and espn.com for heights, weights and 2005-06 stats, as I know the heights and weights may differ from their official measurements. In the interest of time I only did a first round; I have a second round selected, if more people are interested.)
Here goes . . . 1. Toronto- Randy Foye, Villanova 6-4, 205 G (20.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 3.0 APG 41%FG, 79%FT, 35%3PT) Simply the best! I’ve raved about him since his freshman year, and he came through tremendously the last two years. He reminds me of a much better scoring Deron Williams.
2. Chicago- Brandon Roy, Washington 6-6, 210 G (20.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 4.1 APG, 50%FG, 80%FT, 42%3PT) He finally was able to take over the reins of the team as a senior. He was a dominant performer and the best Husky on the floor, by far, in his last tourney game. What an all-around game!
3. Charlotte- Shelden Williams, Duke 6-9, 250 F (18.8 PPG, 10.7 RPG, 3.8 BPG, 58%FG, 74%FT) Blurb- I’ve never been a fan of Vampire Man quite simply because he played for Duke. He is virtually unstoppable in the paint, though, and never quits.
4. Portland- Maurice Ager, Michigan St. 6-5, 202 G (19.3 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.5 APG, 46%FG, 76%FT, 38%3PT) Blurb- He was a key player in MSU’s magical Final Four run two years ago, but also in their disappointing output last year. He may not possess the necessary intangibles of a winner, but he definitely has the athleticism the NBA craves.
5. Atlanta- Hilton Armstrong, Connecticut 6-11, 235 C (9.7 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 3.1 BPG, 61% FG, 69 % FT) Blurb- He showed an incredible improvement offensively this year. He would have put up 16-18 ppg on a team w/o so many scorers. He’s always been a phenomenal defensive presence.
6. Minnesota- J.J. Redick, Duke 6-4, 190 G (26.8 PPG, 2.6 APG, 47% FG, 86% FT, 42% 3PT) Blurb- He may be my least favorite of all time, but I do admit he was a terrific college player (even if he was aided by the refs on numerous occasions). He just won’t be his NBA team’s designated driver to the hole.
7. Boston- Rodney Carney, Memphis 6-7, 205 F (17.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 44% FG, 72 % FT, 39%3PT) Blurb- Carney is, quite possibly, the most overrated player in the draft! He is talented, but I don’t get the hype.
8. Houston- Mardy Collins, Temple 6-6, 205 G (16.8 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 4.0 APG, 2.8 SPG, 43%FG, 60%FT, 31%3PT) Blurb- This guy is a defensive glove, and a couple of Owls (McKie, Jones) around his size and talent-level have thrived in the NBA.
9. Golden St.- James White, Cincinnati 6-7, 200 F (16.3 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 49%FG, 84%FT, 37%3PT) Blurb- I think he can be a steal this year. He is, at least, the equivalent of Rodney Carney, and he actually improved during his four years.
10. Seattle- James Augustine, Illinois 6-10, 235 F (13.6 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 62%FG, 65%FT) Blurb- Augustine showed a lot of improvement during his career and can hit the mid-range jumper and bang down low. He’ll be a solid pro.
11. Orlando- Steve Novak, Marquette 6-10, 220 F (17.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 48%FG, 97.4 %FT!!!, 47%3PT) Blurb- He, not Redick, is the best shooter in the draft. I know this has been said about many players before, but if he had a European name, and was averaging 10 minutes of playing time for Benetton Treviso, he would be a lottery pick.
12. New Orleans/OKC- Kevin Pittsnogle, West Virginia 6-11, 255 F (19.3 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 48%FG, 86%FT, 40%3PT) Blurb- See the last comment from above. He can probably create his shot a bit more than Novak, too.
13. Philadelphia- Dee Brown, Illinois 6-0, 185 G (14.2PPG, 3.1 RPG, 5.8 APG, 36%FG, 76%FT, 32%3PT) Blurb- This speeding dervish is the consummate team player, who sacrificed his stats to help his team get farther than they probably should have last year. He’s a terrific change-of-pace guy off the bench.
14. Utah- Mike Gansey, West Virginia 6-4, 205 G (16.8 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 55%FG, 69%FT, 43%3PT) Blurb- Some say that he is a Redick-clone on offense, who can actually come up with a key steal when necessary. I like those people.
15. New Orleans/OKC- Paul Davis, Michigan St. 6-11, 270 F (17.5 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 57%FG, 87%FT) Blurb- The Big Crybaby (come on, you’ve seen his mug before) is a good catch and shoot guy with a nice touch. He’ll be a good contributor off someone’s bench.
16. Chicago- Justin Williams, Wyoming 6-10, 225 F (11.2 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 5.4 BPG, 52%FG, 56%FT) Blurb- I didn’t see much of his play, but from what I’ve read he’s quite a shot blocker. He also went to the same school as Theo Ratliff.
17. Indiana- Solomon Jones, South Florida 6-10, 215 F (13.2 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 3.0 BPG, 48%FG, 78%FT) Blurb- A good inside presence on a horrible team, he has really grown a lot in the past few years. He shoots free throws pretty nicely, too.
18. Washington- Hassan Adams, Arizona 6-4, 220 G (18.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 2.7 SPG, 48%FG, 60%FT, 31%3PT) Blurb- I watched one game this year where he went toe-to-toe with Brandon Roy and the Wildcats emerged victorious on Washington’s home floor. He just needs to improve that outside shot!
19. Sacramento- Eric Hicks, Cincinnati 6-6, 245 F (15.0 PPG, 9.7 RPG, 3.3 BPG, 48% FG, 66%FT) Blurb- This guy falls under the category of a Malik Rose-type. Short, hard-working and willing to sacrifice his body. I liked that depleted Bearcats team this year.
20. New York- Jose Juan Barea, Northeastern 6-0, 170 G (21.0 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 8.4 APG, 40%FG, 76%FT, 29%3PT) Blurb- He can score and dish, and I thoroughly look forward to seeing him lead Puerto Rico over the US in the next World Championships. This guy is a player!
21. Phoenix- Marco Killingsworth, Indiana 6-8, 268 F (17.1 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 54%FG, 61%FT) Blurb- He scored 34 against Lestat, er Shelden Williams, early in the year. His height is his primary downfall for all of those NBA-types.
22. New Jersey- Curtis Withers, Charlotte 6-8, 245 F (16.1 PPG, 11.3 RPG, 2.5 APG, 45%FG, 58%FT) Blurb- See the height comment above. This man can rebound!
23. New Jersey- Craig Smith, Boston College 6-7, 250 F (17.6 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 3.0 APG, 57%FG, 64%FT) Blurb- See Withers. Also, I’ve had the pleasure to watch Smith develop over his entire career, and I don’t think there is a better passing big man in the draft. Just don’t let him dribble and drive like he did at the end of the first round against Pacific. That was ugly!
24. Memphis- Chris Quinn, Notre Dame 6-2, 185 G (17.7 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 6.4 APG, 45%FG, 87%FT, 42%3PT) Blurb- I don’t think this kid gets enough credit for running as team and scoring better than the much more widely known McNamara. Check out his stats without Chris Thomas (remember him?).
25. Cleveland- Denham Brown, Connecticut 6-6, 220 G (10.7 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 40%FG, 87%FT, 33%3PT) Blurb- This guy is a clutch, Vinnie Johnson-like player who will be successful, I believe. I could have sworn his buzzer-beater against George Mason was going in.
26. LA Lakers- C.J. Watson, Tennessee 6-2, 170 G (15.3 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 3.8 APG, 47%FG, 88%FT, 42%3PT) Blurb- Mr. Underrated. We’ll truly see how good Chris Lofton is next year w/o Watson penetrating and dishing to him for a wide-open three. Watson is solid all around.
27. Phoenix- Rashad Anderson, Connecticut 6-5, 215 G (12.8 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 44%FG, 72%FT, 41%3PT) Blurb- Another terrific shooter who seemed to be a ten-year senior, I think Anderson has NBA three-point range, and I don’t understand why these NBA morons don’t see his obvious value. (And I hate Uconn!)
28. Dallas- David Noel, North Carolina 6-6, 232 G (12.9 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 3.5 APG, 53%FG, 63%FT, 42%3PT) Blurb- Noel could probably be the starting tight end on my fantasy team (no, I don’t mean that in a gay way), but he has a surprising touch on his jumper. As a Virginia fan, he was the Tar Heel who scared me the most last year. (Maybe I was right to be scared, after that 45-point debacle!)
29. New York- Bobby Jones, Washington 6-7, 215 F (10.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 47%FG, 74%FT, 32%3PT) Blurb- This guy’s name and game remind me of the early-80s 76’ers. He is a defensive stopper who needs to improve his jumper.
30. Portland- Gerry McNamara, Syracuse 6-2, 182 G (16.0 PPG, 5.9 APG, 35%FG, 90%FT, 33%3PT) Blurb- I’ll throw Gerry a bone, because I do appreciate a true competitor, which he is. He is such a streaky shooter, though, often times to the detriment of his team. I’ll never forget when they lost to Vermont in the tournament (I was there). McNamara seemed to miss many a shot (4-18), so we shouldn’t just recall his phenomenal Big East Tourney run.
Date
Wed 06/28/06, 5:14 pm EST
