Draft rumors
Among the teams looking to move up? The Blazers, Grizzlies, Jazz and Suns have been the most active according to sources. The Nuggets, Suns and Mavs have been trying to acquire another pick, as well. Who's listening? The Raptors, Heat, Bucks, Knicks and Wizards all would move down, if they could get a solid veteran to help them win right away.
The word at the camp was that Brazilian big man Anderson Varejao will withdraw his name from the draft. Varejao's stock took a dive after limited playing time at the Euroleague final four. Playoff commitments to F.C. Barcelona kept Varejao from coming to the U.S. to work out.
Rumors that Pavel Podkolzine's workout on Friday was well choreographed to hide the player's lack of speed couldn't be further from the truth. Someone is talking the player down in hopes he slips in the draft. Pavel got off the plane from Italy on Thursday afternoon and arrived at Gold Coast Multiplex around 5 p.m. He met coach Billy Bayno for the first time there. Bayno ran him through drills, once, for about an hour, just to get a feel for what he could do. The workout on Friday was only the second time the two had ever met. Pavel ran the floor very well both days. How do I know? I was at both workouts and spent much of the evening with Pavel on Thursday. Teams that I talked to after the workout where shocked at how athletic he looked.
There's a rumor floating around that Zarko Cabarkapa got a promise from the Suns he'd be the No. 17 pick in the draft. This one is probably bogus. It started when Cabarkapa suddenly left the U.S., after only two workouts, to go home to Yugoslavia. Some teams assumed he quit working out because he cut a deal. Not true, according to Zarko's representatives and the Suns. Zarko's mother had a medical emergency, and he quickly flew back during the dead week of the Chicago camp to be with his mother. He'll be back in the U.S. early next week and begin working out again.
A similar rumor is floating around about Brazil's Leandrinho Barbosa, who canceled a workout claiming he had a pulled hip flexor. Several teams immediately assumed a team had locked him up. Again, untrue. Barbosa's agent, Michael Coyne told Insider the injury was real, and it is pretty much healed. He'll be back on the workout circuit again by midweek.
Among the teams looking to move up? The Blazers, Grizzlies, Jazz and Suns have been the most active according to sources. The Nuggets, Suns and Mavs have been trying to acquire another pick, as well. Who's listening? The Raptors, Heat, Bucks, Knicks and Wizards all would move down, if they could get a solid veteran to help them win right away.
The word at the camp was that Brazilian big man Anderson Varejao will withdraw his name from the draft. Varejao's stock took a dive after limited playing time at the Euroleague final four. Playoff commitments to F.C. Barcelona kept Varejao from coming to the U.S. to work out.
Rumors that Pavel Podkolzine's workout on Friday was well choreographed to hide the player's lack of speed couldn't be further from the truth. Someone is talking the player down in hopes he slips in the draft. Pavel got off the plane from Italy on Thursday afternoon and arrived at Gold Coast Multiplex around 5 p.m. He met coach Billy Bayno for the first time there. Bayno ran him through drills, once, for about an hour, just to get a feel for what he could do. The workout on Friday was only the second time the two had ever met. Pavel ran the floor very well both days. How do I know? I was at both workouts and spent much of the evening with Pavel on Thursday. Teams that I talked to after the workout where shocked at how athletic he looked.
There's a rumor floating around that Zarko Cabarkapa got a promise from the Suns he'd be the No. 17 pick in the draft. This one is probably bogus. It started when Cabarkapa suddenly left the U.S., after only two workouts, to go home to Yugoslavia. Some teams assumed he quit working out because he cut a deal. Not true, according to Zarko's representatives and the Suns. Zarko's mother had a medical emergency, and he quickly flew back during the dead week of the Chicago camp to be with his mother. He'll be back in the U.S. early next week and begin working out again.
A similar rumor is floating around about Brazil's Leandrinho Barbosa, who canceled a workout claiming he had a pulled hip flexor. Several teams immediately assumed a team had locked him up. Again, untrue. Barbosa's agent, Michael Coyne told Insider the injury was real, and it is pretty much healed. He'll be back on the workout circuit again by midweek.
