Re: Sam Smith's Draft And Trade Scenarios

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

He's always injured and he's represented by Master P.
The C's have enough trouble with one client of his, I
don't think they want two. Plus, everyone would be bitching
about Il Duce adding another Kentucky player to the team.
Ray

skmishra wrote:
> 
> If the Cavs are in a mood to trade Anderson, they should offer him to Pitino
> for next years 1st rounder and some player whose name is not <Mercer,
> Potapenko, Battir, Walker, Pierce>. I would do the trade too.
> 
>       - Mishra
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>
> Newsgroups: alt.sports.basketball.nba.boston-celtics
> Cc: <celtics@igtc.com>
> Sent: Monday, June 14, 1999 5:13 PM
> Subject: Sam Smith's Draft And Trade Scenarios
> 
> > The Celtics, fortunately or unfortunately aren't mentioned...
> >
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
> 
> >
> >       NBA Report
> >       Workouts will be crucial to Bulls draft
> >
> >       By Sam Smith
> >       Tribune Staff Writer
> >       June 14, 1999
> >       One longtime Eastern Conference general manager was musing about
> this
> >       year's draft as the NBA predraft camp came to a close last week at
> Moody
> >       Bible Institute.
> >       "Drafts usually go in tiers," the team official observed. "You have
> a top
> >       tier of players, like with Tim Duncan and Keith Van Horn two years
> ago,
> >       then a dropoff to another tier, than another dropoff to a third
> tier. This
> >       year you start at the second tier."
> >       Which is why these next few weeks of continuing individual workouts
> will
> >       be crucial for the Bulls, who have the first pick.
> >       There is not a lot of demand for the top players in this draft in
> trades.
> >       Several teams, such as Cleveland at No. 8, Toronto at No. 5 and
> Charlotte
> >       at No, 3, want to move up, but they aren't making significant
> offers.
> >       However, one deal reportedly being discussed appears appealing to
> the
> >       Bulls.
> >       According to team officials, the Hornets are trying to trade Anthony
> Mason
> >       to Washington for the Wizards' No. 7 pick in the first round. They
> then
> >       would deal Nos. 3 and 7 to the Bulls for the No. 1 pick and
> presumably
> >       would take Maryland's Steve Francis. That would leave the Bulls with
> a
> >       chance to get Elton Brand at No. 3 and Corey Maggette or Wally
> Szczerbiak
> >       at No. 7.
> >       Toronto also would like to get the athletic Francis, but has only
> been
> >       offering Doug Christie and its No. 5 pick to move up. Toronto's
> feeling is
> >       it still will get a good point guard--Utah's Andre Miller and
> Arizona's
> >       Jason Terry should still be available--even if it stays at No. 5, so
> the
> >       Raptors don't want to part with much.
> >       Cleveland is desperate to get Szczerbiak, who played college ball in
> Ohio,
> >       both for the public relations impact and his scoring ability. But
> the
> >       Cavaliers have been offering Wesley Person, who has a big contract
> through
> >       2004, and the often-injured Derek Anderson. Neither draws any
> interest
> >       among the top teams, even with Cleveland's Nos. 8 and 11 picks
> thrown in.
> >       So the Bulls still may end up making the No. 1 pick and keeping it.
> >       In fact, rarely in the history of the NBA has a team with the No. 1
> pick
> >       not used it and kept the player. It happened in 1993 when Orlando
> traded
> >       Chris Webber to Golden State for Anfernee Hardaway and future draft
> picks,
> >       but no other team has done it in the last 20 years.
> >       The general consensus of general managers last week was that the
> Bulls
> >       were leaning between Rhode Island's 6-foot-9-inch Lamar Odom and
> Brand,
> >       though don't be surprised if Francis' athletic ability is too
> tempting to
> >       pass if they stay at No. 1.
> >       Is Odom the best? Most team officials here last week believe that
> Odom is
> >       the most skilled player in this draft.
> >       "He's probably the most gifted player in this draft," said one
> general
> >       manager. "He's more basketball player than athlete. He has a
> tremendous
> >       skill level for a player his size. But in temperament he's someone
> who
> >       would be served better by setting up his teammates than by being the
> >       proverbial 'main man.' You can't expect him to carry a team on his
> >       shoulders, but he can enhance a team."
> >       For the Bulls, the question would be whether he can make Kornel
> David and
> >       Corey Benjamin better.
> >       Odom also is considered a poor defender, though scouts point out
> that
> >       big-time offensive players in college often are asked to rest on
> defense
> >       and not be too aggressive so they'll stay out of foul trouble. And
> several
> >       liken him to Toni Kukoc, a tall player who is best on the perimeter.
> He's
> >       even left-handed. And comparing the two now, Kukoc is better.
> >       Plus, Odom appears to want to go to Vancouver, which has the No. 2
> pick in
> >       the draft.
> >       Odom studied the team before his workout last week, prompting
> personnel
> >       director Larry Riley to remark, "I would say he knows more about the
> >       Vancouver Grizzlies than any other player that ever visited us. He's
> ready
> >       to embrace what's going on here."
> >       But there appears to be a tug-of-war going on in Vancouver over
> whether to
> >       trade the pick.
> >       General Manager Stu Jackson says Odom "is the type of player who
> stirs the
> >       drink. He's not necessarily the main course. It's interesting to me
> his
> >       favorite players were Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Scottie Pippen.
> That
> >       tells you who he identifies with."
> >       That being the players who like to pass the ball.
> >       Jackson foresees moving Shareef Abdur-Rahim to power forward and
> playing
> >       Odom at small forward, where Pippen played for the Bulls.
> >       But coach Brian Hill prefers to deal the pick for a player such as
> Miami's
> >       P.J. Brown after seeing the success Toronto had after adding Charles
> >       Oakley to a young team.
> >       "I'm more concerned with defending and rebounding," Hill said. "We
> don't
> >       need an All-Star-caliber player. What we really need is somebody who
> can
> >       do what we want done, and that is defend and rebound."
> >       Given that division, it's hard to imagine that the Grizzlies would
> offer
> >       much to flip positions with the Bulls, who have to have questions
> about
> >       Odom, anyway, given their emphasis on defense for top young players.
> >       Francis update: With Vancouver unlikely to trade up to No. 1,
> Maryland's
> >       Francis becomes an intriguing prospect. "He's incredibly explosive,"
> >       marveled one general manager. "He's a player who is the epitome of
> the
> >       term 'upside.' At one point in high school, he was 5-3. He didn't
> play
> >       four years in high school, wasn't a big name, not nationally
> recruited.
> >       But you look at his athleticism and then review his career and it's
> >       natural that he could become a heck of a lot better. That's what
> happens
> >       with the influx of young players. It's more projections."
> >       There's much the same feeling about Bellwood's Maggette, who had a
> >       somewhat unimpressive workout for all teams last week. Those
> workouts are
> >       at the player's option, and Maggette did little more than shoot,
> which is
> >       not his strength. For example, Miami's Szczerbiak also had a general
> >       workout here last week and said he was disappointed when he hit
> "just" 35
> >       of 50 three-pointers. Maggette's shooting wasn't that good.
> >       But Maggette is expected to impress more in individual team
> workouts. It's
> >       possible if the Bulls could get Toronto to give up Tracy McGrady and
> No. 5
> >       for the No. 1 pick, they'd select Maggette, who fits the athletic
> profile
> >       of the type of player the Bulls like.
> >       Szczerbiak doesn't, but he works out for the Bulls this week, and if
> he
> >       should impress them, he also could fit in that No. 5 spot if the
> Bulls
> >       could make a trade.
> >       Szczerbiak No. 1? One Eastern Conference general manager said last
> week if
> >       he had the No. 1 pick, he'd select Szczerbiak, because a potentially
> great
> >       shooter like Szczerbiak would fit his team the best of the top
> players.
> >       If Szczerbiak winds up No. 1, it would shake up the top of the
> draft.
> >       Right now, the consensus among general managers is, on talent, the
> draft
> >       should go like this: Odom, Francis, UCLA's Baron Davis, Brand,
> Szczerbiak
> >       and Maggette.
> >       The next tier of players would include Connecticut's Richard
> Hamilton,
> >       Miller, Terry, Duke's William Avery and perhaps high-schooler
> Jonathan
> >       Bender or Yugoslavian center Aleksandar Radojevic.
> >       The Bulls have needs at every position.
> >       But Vancouver has a top guard in Mike Bibby. Both the Hornets at No.
> 3 and
> >       the Clippers at No. 4 favor a guard, though Charlotte could go with
> >       Atlantic Coast Conference favorite Brand and try to move Mason.
> >       The Hornets fear bringing the volatile and selfish Mason back into a
> good
> >       group they had after the trade for Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell
> this
> >       year.
> >       The Clippers are eager to draft local favorite Davis, whom one
> general
> >       manager labels the best pure point guard in the draft, while Toronto
> seeks
> >       a point guard, and could settle for Miller, who is mature and
> skilled at
> >       running an offense already.
> >       Minnesota, which could lose free agent Terrell Brandon, also wants a
> point
> >       guard at No. 6, though bad decisions and bad luck have robbed them
> of
> >       talent with which to trade up. Washington, at No. 7 is uncertain
> because
> >       of the possibility of Isiah Thomas taking control, while the
> Cavaliers
> >       yearn for Szczerbiak.
> >       "Toronto needs a point guard, Minnesota wants one, so does Golden
> State
> >       and the Clippers," notes one personnel director. "If you are on the
> verge
> >       of making the playoffs, once you get past the first few in the field
> and
> >       don't think there is anybody whose upside is so dramatic, then you
> abandon
> >       the best athlete and fill your need."
> >       First-rounders: At the predraft camp, where mostly lesser-known
> players
> >       vie for a chance to move into the first round, it was generally
> agreed
> >       that players such as Calvin Booth of Penn State, Michael Ruffin of
> Tulsa,
> >       Lee Nailon of TCU, Roberto Bergersen of Boise State and Chris Herren
> of
> >       Fresno State, Melvin Levett of Cincinnati, Lonnie Cooper of
> Louisiana
> >       Tech, Vontego Cummings of Pittsburgh and Kenny Thomas of New Mexico
> should
> >       find themselves in the first round of the draft.
> >
> >       (C) Chicago Tribune 1999
> >
> >
> >
> >