With NBA draft 2009 only hours away, endless mock drafts, lots of trade action and Shaq joining Cleveland and becoming "The Witness Protection" I want to take a step back and alert NBA teams on how to avoid drafting poorly and risking their jobs (I still can't believe Steve Kerr, John Paxson and Chris Wallace have a job as an NBA GM - just check their track record, it says FAILURE)..I don't claim to have any secret insight or something but I've been keeping notes on all those pospects for the last month or so..Inspired by this great article on biggest NBA busts here are my candidates for this year's draft:
- Brandon Jennings, PG: "Most Important thing about the Draft/NBA, Get on a TEAM that fits your game and kill those 3yrs and GET THAT Big 2nd contract! O yea and WIN" That's a line from his twitter account a couple weeks ago..Let me get it straight to you guys, BJ is Marcus Williams' cousin, for those of you who follow NBA Marcus is a very talented PG who was drafted by the Nets, had a great first-half season and then got traded to the Warriors...Word is that the reason he's out of the league now is his attitude, no surpise there...A year ago today, Jennings was the best high school point guard in the country, a sure-bet to crack the top five in this year's draft. Jennings committed to play at the University of Arizona but failed to meet academic standards and therefore became the first American to skip college and play professionally in Europe since the NBA's age restriction rule was implemented. He signed with Lottomatica Roma, a top professional team, for $1.2 million, plus a $2 million endorsement deal with Under Armour. In Italy, his practice time far exceeded his playing time. European style revolves around the entire team getting involved, rather than exploiting individual skills. He claimed the team treated him "like a little kid," and couldn't understand why the coach insisted on getting every player into the game. What was this, the YMCA? He played in 27 of 30 games for Lottomatica Roma, which went 20-10 and reached the Italian League semifinals. The ostensibly best point guard American high schools had to offer averaged 5.1 points and 2.1 assists....There are those darn numbers, mocking him, possibly reducing his value in the draft. He went to Europe to polish his skills, to bide time until the moment he fantasized about finally materialized. Today, word is he will be slipping in the draft just like Rashard Lewis a few years ago...
- Tyreke Evans, SG, Memphis: His talent is unquestionable but what everybody is missing is that on Tuesday, 18-year-old Pennsylvanian Jamar Evans was sentenced nine-to-20 years in prison for the drive-by shooting murder of 19-year-old Marcus Reason..Jamar is Tyreke's cousin and as we know all too well, many professional athletes have relatives who commit heinous crimes. But there's a twist in this case, one which doesn't implicate Tyreke but pops your eyes wide open: when Jamar Evans shot and killed Reason, Tyreke Evans was his driver. Tyreke Evans was never charged in connection with the murder. The prospect was expected to testify on behalf of his cousin, the Times reports, but never did before Jamar Evans pled guilty. A relative of Reason told the Times he felt Tyreke should have been charged with accessory to murder...you know the facts, now who's willing to take such a gamble???
- DeJuan Blair, F, Pittsburgh: This has nothing to do with character issues it's just that I've been around long enough to be able to identify talent, Blair is the second coming of Robert "Tractor" Taylor, undersized, crafty but not NBA bound...if you think that thing will be able to survive with the Duncans and the Stoudemires good luck...
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