Projected lottery choices bring questions, baggage

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http://www.charlotte.com/hornets/pub/bonnell.htm
Projected lottery choices bring questions, baggage
Sometime today an NFL team will decide whether a linebacker from Texas-El Paso is better than a tight end from Georgia Southern. And that crucial 183rd pick will be history.
In the NBA, it's a lot simpler. The draft in June lasts two rounds, and only the first one really matters. Typically, an NBA draft is about 20 players deep.
With that as your guide, here's an early look at how the first round might look, now that the NCAA tournament is over and the pre-draft camps have begun:
First off, three potential lottery picks - Stromile Swift of LSU, Troy Murphy of Notre Dame and Brendan Haywood of North Carolina - say they're staying. I tend to believe them, but you never know; kids get skittish closer to that deadline when they see a seven-figure guarantee.
Anyway, here's how a three-tiered first round might look:
The stars
Kenyon Martin, Cincinnati power forward: Clearly the top player in college basketball last season, but how does the broken leg affect him? No.1 overall picks aren't supposed to show up on crutches.
Chris Mihm, Texas center (undecided underclassman): A 7-footer with moves and touch, he could be the top pick even over a healthy Martin. Guys with this size and skill aren't available every year. Michael Olowokandi went No.1 overall, and wasn't nearly this good.
Marcus Fizer, Iowa State power forward: Question is whether he can get off those shots in the NBA. If not, he's Clarence Weatherspoon.
Courtney Alexander, Fresno State shooting guard: A big-time talent with lots of baggage. Is this guy the next Isaiah Rider? You can bet Atlanta won't draft him.
Other lottery possibilities
Mike Miller, Florida small forward (undecided underclassman): A really good shooter - kind of a Wally Szczerbiak only taller - who hasn't figured out how to use all his tools. He can be coaxed into some bad shoot-or-pass decisions.
Joel Przybilla, Minnesota center: Because he was kicked off the team for not going to class, workouts will be crucial. He can block shots and pass, but he'll struggle to score in the pros. Quick, small centers made him look bad.
Darius Miles, St. Louis area (undecided): He's the best high school kid, assuming Eddie Griffin goes to Seton Hall (a good bet). Miles is 6-8 and quick as a whip. He's a suspect shooter.
DerMarr Johnson, Cincinnati freshman shooting guard: He's often compared to Lamar Odom because they're both 6-8 or 6-9 perimeter players, but Johnson is more of a shooter, particularly from three-point range.
Etan Thomas, Syracuse power forward: A good shot-blocker who is offensively limited.
Other first-round candidates
Hanno Mottola, Utah power forward; Chris Carrawell, Duke shooting guard/small forward; Quentin Richardson, DePaul small forward; A.J. Guyton, Indiana shooting guard; Mamadou N'Diaye, Auburn center.
Dan Langhi, Vanderbilt forward; Jamaal Magloire, Kentucky center; Jabari Smith, LSU center; Jason Collier, Georgia Tech center.
Scoonie Penn, Ohio State point guard; Ed Cota, North Carolina point guard; Mark Madsen, Stanford big man; Gerald Wallace, Alabama high school kid.
Jerome Moiso, UCLA power forward (undecided); Eduardo Najera, Oklahoma power forward; Desmond Mason, Oklahoma State forward.
AROUND THE LEAGUE: NBA vice president Rod Thorn said referees will call the playoffs just as they called the regular season. Seemingly that means an end to playoff-style hard fouls. We'll see.
If all's fair in the playoffs, then maybe the Hornets should spend the first round stomping on Allen Iverson's left foot or whacking his right arm. The 76ers star guard has a chip fracture in his left big toe, plus a rotator cuff injury and an inflamed right elbow.
Iverson probably can't practice the rest of the season because of the broken toe, and nearly missed Friday's game in Atlanta with the inflamed elbow. He said Friday night he still couldn't straighten the joint out.
Speaking of foot problems, Miami point guard Tim Hardaway has plantar fasciatis in his left foot. Last season, Hardaway played with a bad knee and the Heat lost to the Knicks in the first round.
Lenny Wilkens might be back in Atlanta after all. He'd probably want a buyout only if he could land back in Seattle. The Hawks aren't likely to fire him, with a limited field of alternatives.
Toronto free agent-to-be Tracy McGrady is building a house in Orlando, but he says that's not an indication he's a lock to sign with the Magic.
Chicago and Orlando have the potential salary-cap room to control the free-agent market over the summer. Assuming a $36million cap, the Bulls can clear up to $24million and the Magic can clear up to $22.5million. The actual room will be lower because those teams won't renounce all their free agents. For instance, the Magic should be very interested in re-signing center John Amaechi and forwards Ben Wallace and Bo Outlaw.
Look for Cleveland GM Jim Paxson to shop hard for trades this off-season. The Cavaliers have guards to deal - point guard Brevin Knight is extraneous with rookie Andre Miller playing so well, and Wesley Person or Bob Sura could also move.
Congratulations to Charlotte Christian coach Bobby Jones on his hall of fame nomination. His induction would send the right message about defense mattering.
Pistons coach George Irvine once roomed with Jones, and confirms Jones' early-to-bed/early-to-rise, squeaky-clean image: "He was lights out at 9:30 and I do mean the lights were out.
"You could be in the middle of watching TV or reading a book and at 9:30 - BOOM! - the lights were out."
Vince Carter wants to wear his No.15 jersey in the Olympics, but Grant Hill already has it. "Everything's negotiable. Tell his people to call my people. We'll work something out," Hill said. "We'll see how bad he really, really wants it."
A Blue Devil negotiating with a Tar Heel: I'm sure Hill will cut Carter a great deal.
There was screaming paranoia from the Pacers last week, after the Knicks benefited from a bad call to win in Indiana. Pacers guard Reggie Miller immediately speculated that the league conspires to help big-market teams.
Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy's sarcastic reply: "We only seem to beat them when the officials take a census and see that we're a big-market team and bestow upon us a victory.''

Writers in other NBA cities provided some of this material. Reach Rick Bonnell at 704-358-5129 or by e-mail at rbonnell@charlotteobserver.com.