Hawks Draft Preview: Part II Zettler Clay IV - 26th June, 2006 1:41 AM Only a 10 dollar snitch could drop more names than all the ones that we have heard in the days leading to the draft. Sheldon Williams, Marcus Williams, LaMarcus Aldridge. Rajon Rondo, Randy Foye and Brandon Roy. Aside from the similarities in the phonetics of their names, these players all serve to contract the gap between a 26 win team and a playoff team. We even have an emergence of a Senegal native who can supposedly touch the rim without jumping. Having said this, Hawks pundits (and management) should keep in mind in what is needed and not what is available. Looking at players by position alone is not wise, nor is examining talent alone. We have seen many debacles in which some organization ended up crisped picking for need (most notably Portland, circa 1984). History shows us when you have a draft as, for lack of a better term, not as star-worthy, then the best player in the draft could be the 9th pick (Amare Stoudemire, circa 2002 draft) or the 43rd pick (Michael Redd). In fact, some would argue that the Hawks boast the best player of the 2001 draft, and he was picked 10th. But archives aside, we must, as true fans, be knowledgeable to ascertain what players in this draft best serve this franchise. But that won’t come without a few breakdowns. “Yo Z, who are the best point guard options in this draft? I’m hearing that this is a guard heavy draft, and we need one of those, Lord knows we need one of those.” Marcus Williams and Rajon Rondo are considered to be the best pure point guards in the draft. These guys averaged 2.33 and 2.11 assist/turnover ratio, respectively. Marcus Williams in particular did so in dominating fashion, having averaged 9.6 assists a game in his last 10 games, against the likes of Washington, Villanova, Kentucky, Syracuse, and West Virginia. In that span, he also coughed up the ball 3.3 times a game for a 2.91 assist/turnover ratio. His specialty is dishing the ball, along with the occasional scoring. The Hawks needs to limit turnovers, as well as stopping penetrating point guards like TJ Ford, Jameer Nelson, Ben Gordon (I know, not a point but he’s built like one), and Raymond Felton from getting to the paint, therefore exposing our butter-soft interior. If you can convince me that Marcus Williams can do that, then I’m all ears. Marcus will be a very good point guard in this league, but I highly doubt if that will be for the Hawks… Which brings me Rajon Rondo, who averaged a miniscule 1.6 turnovers a game in his last 10 contests. He has arms longer than Scottie Pippen, and hands bigger than Brett Favre, which aided in his 2.3 steals per game at Kentucky. Driving is a specialty of his, in which he could expose other Pillsbury interiors. He is a fire jump shot away from being a consensus top 10 pick. If there is anybody who can benefit this team on the basis of eliminating turnovers and playing tough as nails defense, it’s the Oak Hill Academy graduate. “But what about Randy Foye and Brandon Roy?” Aha, you have just mentioned possibly the two best players in this draft. These two athletes fit into that combo guard mold, which is transforming the league right now. DWade, Gilbert, LB23, Ben Gordon, AI, and Joe Johnson are a few to name. Brandon Roy did everything well at the college level, and Randy Foye led an undersized unit to a 25-4 record. Surely the Hawks have to capitalize. Brandon Roy, at 6’6, is one of the few players who probably will be a star, being that there is no discernible weakness to his game. If anything he could improve his jump-shot, but he shot 40% from 3 last year. I’ll let the nit-pickers pick at that, but this guy is the real deal. So is Randy Foye. He is quite interesting because here is a guy who, at Nova, met very few shots he didn’t like. He jacked them, and was highly effective doing so. Tough defense, fantastic ball-handling, nice infiltrating abilities and great shot should guarantee stardom on the NBA level. We know Roy and Foye can score, play D, and rebound very well for their size (5.6 and 5.8 rebounds per game respectively). Foye’s question mark is his passing ability, which probably makes Roy the favorite. I’m not sure if the Hawks can afford to pass on either of them, unless… “With the number 5 pick, is it really worth passing over Roy or Foy to draft a big man as you say? Bargnani, Aldridge, Sheldon, Ty Thomas, and others? “ We want and need rebounding and interior intimidation, so Andrea Bargnani is eliminated from this and any discussion thusly elated. LaMarcus Aldridge has the game to be a star in this league. He is young, boasts long arms, and is very skilled. He rebounds and blocks. And as sporadic as his scoring appeared at Texas, he flashed brilliance, noted in his 26 point, 13 rebound game against West Virginia in the NCAA tournament last season. The Hawks could use him, but something about that 4 point game against LSU that scares me. Or maybe it’s those whispers about the physical and mental fragility that has been attached to him like Velcro since high school. That Kwame Brown factor comes to mind too much with this talented kid.... Sheldon is everything coaches look for in a center, sans three inches. What do the Hawks reek of? This guy averaged 3 blocks a game over 4 years of solid playing time, against the best competition in college basketball. What makes anyone think that he is going to stop now? Strong as an ox, he straight up owned the paint, as well as post a very respectable 18.8 points a game his senior year. He is quite foul prone, averaging 3.1 fouls per game at Duke, but that was due to more aggression than hacking. If he was 6’10, he’s a top 4 pick, easy. Tyrus Thomas has the highest “bustability” factor going for him. Having your best and worst games of the year follow each other to end the season is not the ideal way to end your collegiate career. He played one year, and showed lightbulbs of highlights, capped by blocks and dunks. Offensive game is limited, and at 6’9, offers not much else to this team than we already have. The Hawks already have one of his kind. Saer Sene is a cat who seems to have snuck up on the fans, but NBA scouts have been salivating on this athlete for some time now. At 7 feet, 7’8’5 wingspan, he will be easily the longest player in the league. Right now, he’s more of a prototype and his potential is as high as anybody in this draft. A Priest Lauderdale he is not (hopefully) as any Hawk fan who has seen this kid would be enamored to have him aboard. “Ok, ok you broke it down a lil’ bit. But forget all of this alking. What’s goin’ to happen come Wednesday night?” I don’t know dude, I’m not a mind reader. But I’ll tell you what needs to happen: A good and savvy businessman always gets the most value for their dollar. Don’t draft a player at 5 if you can get him at 10. There are only two players in this draft that we need that can be drafted straight up. Don’t pass up on an obvious gift to pursue a positional need. Don’t pass on Brandon Roy to get a true point guard. Don’t pass on Sheldon to draft Patrick O’Bryant because he’s “longer”. Get the best player available to the skill set you need. If you notice I have not mentioned position needs, only skills. This is turning to a guard’s league where size is not as important as skills and athleticism. If it comes down to Randy Foye v. Sheldon Williams, compare impact potential of both players relative to their position. And get the best player. Last but not least, in a deep draft where there is no clear cut superstar, 2 are more than likely to be better than 1. In this draft, BK’s business savvy will be just as important as his talent evaluation. It is also the very thing that could save his job. “Come into the paint at your own peril” should be the Hawks new motto, because that’s the only way they will get into the playoffs. With the best guards in the league in the Eastern Conference, the Hawks inside D needs to dish out more trepidation than Sonny Corleone. Here is another year for the often maligned management to get it right, since we are talking about a franchise that hasn’t drafted an All Star since the debut of Tony Montana. 资料来源 http://hawks.realgm.com/articles/554/20060626/hawks_draft_preview_part_ii/ --

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