Re: BSG on pick swap rumor

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

At 13:30 12/06/01 -0400, Berry, Mark  S wrote:
>  If the Celts believe Gasol is a Pierce-like talent, then 10&11 probably 
> is a small price to pay.

Absolutely. Boston could very well end up with a Bonzi Wells and Keon Clark 
with the #10-#11 pick and come away feeling ecstatic to get a good third 
scorer plus a rebound/shotblock phenom, until a few years down the road 
they see everything else they missed out on.

Having said that, I also think there has got to be a LOT of hot gas in the 
Gasol rumor. Why would Chris Wallace be this candid about his draft 
strategy? What end does it serve?

If the Gasol rumor were true, I'm counting on him to be the proverbial 
Celtics player who makes contributions that "don't appear on the boxscore" 
(hustle defense, leadership and hitting the open man etc). But when I learn 
about a guy averaging 0.5 assists being compared to Toni Kukoc, I just 
wonder what kind of drugs everyone is on and why I can't have some too.

How can his non-scoring contributions work out into any consistent playing 
time on a team where the ball needs to pass through the hands of Pierce and 
Walker, and you need guys who can rebound and play defense on the court to 
complement them?

Maybe the Spanish pro league plays at a higher level than the NCAAs (except 
the Final Four round maybe). Makes perfect sense, they are older and more 
experienced. But by the same token there are probably few foreign imports 
or domestic players in that league that could hold McCarty or Moiso's jock. 
In fact, Waltah could probably step in over there and score twenty a night 
(on 35% shooting naturally) and be a major factor on defense as well. Me 
gusta Waltah!

This is a draft that is going to include one MAJOR bust among the top high 
schoolers and maybe Gasol as well. At the same time, it is a draft that 
will alter the power structure of the NBA. You can just feel it.

I was reading over one of those lists of previous alltime lottery busts and 
not all of the names were guys with a rap sheet (Chris Washburn, William 
Bedford) or self-evident physical shortcomings (Bobby Hurley).

We better know what the hell we are doing. It may be irrational, but I feel 
a bit more secure with two chances to choose the #10 guy than one chance at 
#6. In any case, Boston should wait until the clock is running on draft day 
before they decide to pull the trigger on any trade, unless it gets them 
into the top four picks.

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