Re: Interesting new mock draft from ESPN.com's Andy Katz

["j.hironaka" <j.hironaka@unesco.org>]

At 14:24 11/06/01 -0400, Berry, Mark  S wrote:

>Katz says Murphy has little shot of moving into the top 10, but that his
>great workouts to this point have made him too good for the Celts to pass up
>at 11. If that's true, then great. If he really has shown that well, then
>he's a great pick at 11. Murphy is a guy who was incredibly productive in
>college and has the measureables, but I think everyone expected him to
>suffer in private workouts due to lackluster athleticism at best. Instead,
>he's rising-I think that's a good sign. I like this pick better than Cook or
>Jefferson, but I'd like to know more about guys like Vlad Rad and Zach
>Randolph.

         Here's what Frank Burlison wrote for FoxSports, concerning Troy 
Murphy's 20lb weight loss. Seems like Murphy is back in the picture again.

Murphy's stock gets boost
June 09, 2001
(....)"I'm on a high protein diet now," he said. "I'm leaner now and I'm 
gong to stay on this diet from now on. I feel a lot quicker and more athletic."

NBA front-office personnel who've watched the 6-foot-9 Murphy work out in 
Los Angeles with fellow Fagan clients in this draft class (Jason Richardson 
of Michigan State, Gilbert Arenas and Kenny Satterfield of Cincinnati) have 
raved about his new-look body as well as the range and accuracy of his jump 
shot.

"I've been taking so many NBA 3-pointers (23-feet, nine inches) that the 
college 3's (from 19-9) seem about like 12-footers now," he said.

Murphy was generally looked upon as a player likely to be selected anywhere 
from just outside of the lottery (top 13) to the late teens.

Now, it's more probable that he will be chosen in the 11, 12 or 13 spots of 
the first round.

The jump shot is one of his biggest calling cards  he's rarely missed 
during recent workouts.

But his quickness and leaping ability will startle those who haven't seen 
him lately, Richardson believes.

"Troy is VERY athletic," Richardson said a couple of tables away from Murphy.

"We were playing in a pick-up game at UCLA with guys like Magic Johnson and 
Paul Pierce a while back. He had a baseline drive and I thought he would 
throw up some kind of hook shot or something.

"But he brought the ball down to his knees and threw down a reverse dunk. 
We had to stop the game. It was like 'wow!' No one knew he had it in him."


>As for Cook... sounds great at 21, although I'll be surprised if he's still
>there. I'd also urge the Celts to resist the temptation to snag a point
>guard this season simply because next year could be a great PG draft-Jason
>Williams, Chris Duhon, Frank Williams, Tito Maddox, Dajuan Wagner. Stick to
>the best player available. If that's Cook, fine, but don't reach for him out
>of need.

Here is more on Omar Cook, from Frank Burlison. In terms of shooting, he 
sounds like a Quinn Buckner, Rumeal Robinson type. But of course those guys 
were built like fire hydrants and could play defense. One things for sure, 
he's a poor match with our personnel. ANY pure point guard would be. You 
can't have a weak spot up shooter who dribbles too much. Ideally, you'd 
want a great pure shooter or a heads up Sherman Douglas type who looks 
constantly for the touchdown pass over the walk-it-up style.

------

"Omar Cook (6-0, St. John's, freshman): Clearly pulled away from a pack of 
mediocre at best point guard prospects in the camp and should be the second 
player (after Jamaal Tinsley of Iowa State) at the position selected in the 
first round.

If he were even an average jump shooter at best, he would be the first 
playmaker selected in the draft and he'd be a lot closer to lottery status 
than the 22-28 range in which he'll be chosen on June 27. But watching him 
fire up jumpers now isn't for the weak of heart."

-----

Randy Hill at FoxSports really has a low opinion of this year's point 
guards, even going after Jamaal Tinsley.

PROFESSIONAL OPINION: "He has average skills," said one NBA scout. "He has 
a nose for the ball and a good understanding of the game; he knows how to 
play. His quickness is not very good. He's not as quick as most point 
guards in the league right now and he doesn't have a very good body. His 
shooting is average at best. He's real steady, he'll get a lot of assists, 
but he won't beat that many guys off the dribble. I don't see him as a 
starter for anybody for a while."

YOU MAY BE REMINDED OF: New York Knicks point guard Mark Jackson. We don't 
know if Tinsley can do the Jackson Shimmy, but he can pass, get beat off 
the dribble and miss more perimeter shots than he makes.

-----