May Says 4 Ways

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

2003 NBA DRAFT

A four-way intersection

Celtics' options are mapped out but which route will they take?

By Peter May, Globe Staff, 6/25/2003

anny Ainge emerged from his bunker yesterday to offer his thoughts on
tomorrow night's NBA draft. The unavoidable conclusion: He may have his
own ideas, but with one day left to go, things are fluid, even volatile. 

 

''I'm hopeful it will go a certain way,'' the Celtics basketball boss
said. ''I have a Plan A. I'm hopeful Plan A works.''

Ainge would not divulge the nature of Plan A -- surprise -- but it's
also not hard to take a look at his roster, listen to his thoughts about
the team, and arrive at some reasonable possibilities. The Celtics will
be picking 16th and 20th, barring a trade. Ainge said he has explored
moving up; so far, to no avail.

Ainge and the Celtics could be looking for help from four possible types
of player: a tested collegian, an intriguing European, a raw high
schooler, and -- the most unknown of all -- the attractive slider.
Here's a look at four players who might be there for the Celtics at 16
or 20 and, based on discussions with NBA personnel, players the team
might consider.

 The Tested Collegian: Marcus Banks, Nevada-Las-Vegas.

The prevailing view around the league is that the Celtics have offered a
safe haven at 16 to Banks, a 6-foot-2-inch point guard who can also, as
they say these days, score the ball. The Celtics deny there's a deal.
They also denied there was a deal two years ago to take Kedrick Brown.

''If there's a deal for him, I'd like to buy a beer for the guy who got
that story going,'' said Banks's agent, Michael Higgins. ''All it's done
is raised his value. There is no deal. And I don't think he'll last to
16.''

Maybe, maybe not. Banks worked out for only a few teams, one of which
was Boston. He did so despite a hip injury that forced him to miss
additional workouts. Any time a player suddenly shuts the door on
workouts at this time of year, a red flag goes up. The Jazz, picking
18th, tried unsuccessfully to get him in. Ditto with Orlando, picking
15th. Said Orlando general manager John Gabriel, ''My sense is that he
has a promise from someone, but I can't be sure.'' Similarly, Seattle
was trying to at least get Banks in for an interview.

No workouts and no interviews don't necessarily mean a team won't select
the player.

''We did see him a lot during the season,'' offered Kevin O'Connor,
general manager of the Jazz.

Banks went to Dixie (Utah) State for two years and then to UNLV for two
more. He'll turn 22 in November. UNLV coach Charlie Spoonhour said Banks
bailed out the Rebels on numerous occasions last season. ''And we
probably put him in situations which were unfair to him because he had
to do so much,'' said Spoonhour. ''He is about as fast from one end of
the floor to the other, with the ball, as you can be. He can make plays.
And if you get people to run with him, he's unselfish. Whoever gets him
is going to get a very good player.''

 The Intriguing European: Zarko Cabarkapa, Buducnost.

There are two Serbians on the Celtics' list, Cabarkapa and Aleksandar
Pavlovic. The Celtics know this much: If they don't pick either one at
16 (where the deal for Banks is supposedly made) then both could be gone
by 20. Cabarkapa supposedly has a promise from the Suns at 17 and Utah,
picking 19th, is said to like Pavlovic.

The 6-11 Cabarkapa is older (by 30 months), taller (by 4 inches), and
already has experience on the Yugoslavian national team. But the Celtics
were unable to get him in for a workout, whereas they did work out
Pavlovic and liked what they saw. Ainge said he wouldn't hesitate to
draft a player the team did not work out or interview.

It's hard to get a read on either player because of the tumult in
Buducnost last season. Some players weren't paid. Coaches came and went.

''He went through four coaches in two years,'' agent Bill Duffy said of
the 22-year-old Cabarkapa. ''The situation there was very volatile.''

The NBA invited Cabarkapa to tomorrow night's draft, an indication that
he is one of the top draftees in its eyes. Pavlovic's name was not on
the list.

 The Raw High Schooler: Kendrick Perkins, Ozen (Texas) High School.

He's 6-10. He weighs 285. He'll turn 19 in November. And someone will
take him in the first round.

Ainge recalled yesterday how he watched Jermaine O'Neal prior to the
1996 draft and saw nothing appealing. He said he saw nothing impressive
about Rashard Lewis, either. They're both stars. Could this kid be
another?

Perkins did work out for the Celtics, and they liked what they saw.

''I did like him,'' Ainge said. ''But he's a project.''

Still, Ainge is looking down the road and, maybe, in three years,
Perkins becomes the next O'Neal. That's the inherent risk with a high
school player. A same-aged European has probably been a pro for three or
four years.

''The way the business is today, you have to consider them,'' Ainge said
of high schoolers. ''But you also have to have patience.''

Would he do it if he thought it was right?

''If I think it's worth the risk, yeah,'' he said. ''I'm patient
enough.''

Former University of Massachusetts coach John Calipari, now in Memphis,
was among those college coaches who scouted Perkins. While it has been
assumed for some time that Perkins would go into the draft, he mulled
pulling his name before deciding he'd stay in. Reportedly, he has
promises of landing in the first round.

''There just aren't that many big people out there,'' Calipari said in a
scouting report for NBA.com. ''He does whatever you want. He has an
incredible attitude.''

 The Attractive Slider: Mickael Pietrus, Pau Orthez (France).

Definition of attractive slider: Paul Pierce. Definition of unattractive
slider: Acie Earl.

''Paul slid to us at 10,'' Celtics GM Chris Wallace said. ''It's hard to
think he would have fallen to 16.''

In other words, you're probably not going to get one of the top 10 guys
at 16.

Would Pietrus be there at 16? Not likely. The Bulls were thought to have
him lined up at No. 7, but that was before Jay Williams went the wrong
way off a motorcycle. The Wizards may take him at 10. Jerry West
probably won't let him past Memphis at 13. But strange things happen on
draft night. How many times has a coach or general manager uttered the
immortal line, ''We never expected him to be there when we picked?''

Pietrus is a strong wing player who can score and defend. He has
typical, ho-hum Euro numbers (12.2 points a game) but he also has heft.
His team also just wrapped up its season, making workouts and interviews
difficult.

Other potential sliders include Kansas's Nick Collison, although Seattle
probably will pick him, and Oregon's Luke Ridnour, once thought to be a
lottery lock. But Ridnour, like Pavlovic, is not on the NBA's invitation
list for tomorrow night in New York. And 15 guys were invited.

This story ran on page F1 of the Boston Globe on 6/25/2003.