Kedrick Brown

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

KEDRICK BROWN
6-foot-6.75, 225 pounds
DOB: March 18, 1981

Leo Papile
``The first time I saw him in Florida in January, I didn't believe what I 
was seeing from a physical standpoint. It was too good to be true.'' said 
Papile. ``Then the next day this kid shot the basketball, and that question 
was answered. It was almost like it was too good to be true.''

Jim O'Brien
"He has a lot more experience than many of those kids that went earlier 
on," said O'Brien, who described Brown as "a phenomenal athlete with the 
ability to shoot the long ball."
"He's had two years at the highest level of junior college basketball, and 
I think people will understand very quickly who Kedrick Brown is."
``There's no chance we're going to trade Kedrick Brown. Why would we? He's 
a phenomenal athlete with the ability to shoot the 3-ball. He shot more 
than 40 percent.''
'' I think he has guard skills at 6-foot-63/4 inches, and we were actually 
very surprised that he slipped to us. When you see him on tape, it will be 
very clear to you why we drafted him at 11.''
O'Brien said he'd be stunned if Brown and Johnson didn't play major minutes 
next season. They also happen to play the same position as two of the 
team's free agents - Bryant Stith and Chris Carr.

Chris Wallace:
Wallace estimated that only 10 to 12 NBA teams saw Brown play and began his 
post-lottery selection press conference by asking, ''So how many of you 
have seen Kedrick Brown before?''

When the Celtics saw Brown compete in Florida, they thought he was ''almost 
too good to be true'' according to director of player personnel Papile.

''We're not doing Arn a favor,'' said Wallace, who stated emphatically he 
would not trade Brown. ''We're doing the Boston Celtics a favor.''

``No (we're not going to trade him),'' Wallace said flatly. ``I don't know 
where that rumor got started, but he's going to be in our uniform for a 
long time.''

Kedrick Brown
``I feel I can help the Celtics on both the offensive and defensive ends. 
I'm an all-around player, not just (a scorer). I can rebound and defend, 
too.''

'I'm very excited,'' said Brown. ''I think I fit very well in this program. 
I think I can help on the perimeter. I think they treat junior college 
players like high school players. But I think I'm ready to make the 
transition from junior college. I'm very surprised [where I was selected], 
but I'm happy.''

"I think I can help the team on both the defensive and offensive end," said 
Brown. "On the defense, I can rebound. I can block shots. On the offensive 
end, I can play on the perimeter, I can shoot the three, I can post up. I'm 
just an all-around player."

''I'm very excited,'' said Brown. ''I think I fit very well in this 
program. I think I can help on the perimeter. I think they treat junior 
college players like high school players. But I think I'm ready to make the 
transition from junior college. I'm very surprised [where I was selected], 
but I'm happy.''

The "Coverup"
Word is the Celtics did everything they could to hide Brown from the rest 
of the league. The fact the 6-foot-7 forward played at Okaloosa-Walton 
Community College the last two years kept him out of the mainstream, but 
the Celts went further by aiding in Brown's decision to avoid working out 
for teams the last few weeks. Brown also skipped the Chicago pre-draft camp.
Other clubs who may have taken to Brown's athleticism were thus unable to 
select him at a high position because they simply didn't have enough 
information on him. Reportedly, one club picking ahead of the Celts was 
particularly miffed by the lack of a dossier on Brown, leading to a tirade 
from that team's head of basketball operations.
Asked whether the Celtics had indeed conspired with Brown and his agent, 
Arn Tellem, to keep the prospect out of sight, player personnel director 
Leo Papile said, ``I don't know anything about that.''
As he uttered the sentence, a slight smile came onto Papile's face.
It might also help you to know that Brown's JUCO coach was Bruce Stewart, 
who once was the coach at West Virginia Wesleyan. That school is located in 
Buckhannon, hometown of Celtics general manager Chris Wallace. Twenty years 
ago, Wallace hosted Stewart's coach's show on a local cable station.

Profile:
At 6-61/4, Brown led Okaloosa-Walton CC to a 55-10 record in his two 
seasons there. He averaged 22.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists last 
season, to go along with his 2.3 blocked shots and 2.3 steals per game. He 
scored 20 or more points in 19 games and shot 40.4 percent from the perimeter.

Maurer Scouting
Strengths:Super athletic player posses a 45-inch vertical is a threat to 
catch ally-oops in transition … Strong NBA ready body was strong enough in 
Junior College to play in the paint … Excellent finisher on the fast break 
lets his athleticism take control along with his good body control … Can 
create shots for himself off the dribble doesn’t really need a point guard 
to set him up …. Creates mismatches thanks to his versatile inside outside 
game as he is too strong for most small forwards and to fast for power 
forwards… Plays very good defense blessed with quick hands and has 
wonderful leaping ability making him a threat to block shots and steal the 
ball …. Very good rebounder due to his leaping ability which makes it very 
hard to keep him off the boards …. Descent passer although by no means 
Lamar Odom ….. Shot selection is above average considering his game 
experience …..

Weakness:Doesn’t have that much playing experience when it comes to as he 
hasn't really played stiff competition …. Needs to work on being better 
when it comes to ball protection as of right now he has a tendency to be 
careless with the ball … 3-point shot still needs to continue to be more 
consistent while it has improved it is far from reliable …. Must continue 
on being a better mid-range shooter …. Fundamentally Brown is still 
learning the do’s and dont's of organized ball although this will improve 
with added game experience ….