Who would you take with the #1 pick

[arthurracoon]

Who would you take with the #1 pick

Why?

 

[arthurracoon]

just ignore jason garner

 

[Joe Mama]

I would take James. He would put fans in the seat, give you a bunch of games on national TV, and when it comes down to it I think he's the best player. Of course I've never seen Darko play.

I've read several articles saying that TJ Ford is the best passer to enter the draft since Jason Kidd. I think James is better than Ford.

Joe Mama

 

[SirStefan32]

I think you have to take James with the #1 pick, eventhough I am a huge fan of Anthony and Milicic.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

I agree with Stephan....It would be PR suicide NOT to choose James as the number 1 overall. Personally I would rather have the #2 pick in the draft this year and have to decide between Melo and Darko.....

 

[JCSunsfan]

Originally posted by thegrahamcrackr
Personally I would rather have the #2 pick in the draft this year and have to decide between Melo and Darko.....

Really? As far as ability, all of those players are probably neck and neck. But as as far as marketability, James is a goldmine, not only for himself, but also for his team.

If I was a GM, I want the first pick, and I want James. He's going to make me alot of money.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

If you are a GM you dont care about making money. Your job is to put a winning team on the floor and your only care about profit is if you overpay players. Seeing that first round picks are a set salary, that doesnt apply.

About the ability comment, we do not know that all 3 players have the same ability. But for the sake of arguement, we will assume that Melo and Lebron have the same ability. As an owner you might want Lebron for the marketing, but as a GM I would want Melo for the lockerroom attitude. I personally think that "Bron Bron" will cause problems. His family is crazy, he already has 100Mil in guaranteed money and he will want to be treated like a god before he has done anything. I dont think his new teammates will aprreciate that. Carmelo seems to have his head on straight, his mom WANTED him to grad. from college, even though they really need the cash. Just seems like less of a headache.


Then look at Darko. While an awesome talent at a wing position can be a big boost for your team, it wont win you anything unless you are MJ. I mean look at TMAC (we are being generous in assuming that any of these players will become as good as him), he cannot win by himself. Now if it was TD on that team instead of Tracey, I think they would do better. A dominant big man is almost always the choice over a dominant wing man.

So again, if all 3 players are equal in talent, and will be throughout their career, Lebron is the last person I want as a GM. That is why I would rather have the #2 pick, because not taking Lebron at #1 is career suicide, even if he might not be the best choice.

Andy

 

[Errntknght]

Change the question to who would you pick if you were the Suns GM picking #1. I'd say screw the hype and pick what we need which is a center - a center with some nastiness around the hoop and good shooting range is almost a no brainer.

It would have been interesting to see what Dumars would do with the #1 pick in Detroit. To me, even with Wallace in the post Detroit could still use more size and some offense in that area more than they need a SF. In their case I'd go for Darko, too... but picking him over Carmello is a lot easier than taking him before James. who probably already has a strong following around Detroit.

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by thegrahamcrackr
If you are a GM you dont care about making money.

hahahahahahahahahahah stop! Just stop! I can't take it!!

 

[Yuma]

If you want preseason ticket sales then take James. If you want fans to come out all year and see the ROY then take Anthony! If you want them to see a slow, skinny, white kid get knocked out of the box, then pick Milicic!

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by Yuma
If you want them to see a slow, skinny, white kid get knocked out of the box, then pick Milicic!

How many times have you seen Darko play?

And please, don't use the fact that he is "white" as a reason for rating him.

 

[Yuma]

Just going by those highlights they showed last night at the draft. Not one was a power move, or a good strong rebound. This kid was throwing up those weak twisty European underhand scoops for almost all his highlights. Then he was shooting some fadeaways from the baseline for his other highlights. He didn't shoot any threes in the highlight reel, which is supposed to be one of his strengths. They showed him running the court and he was slow. He is white, which is a fact, not a demeaning quality, but if you read it that way, then maybe you have a problem with white players not being good? He is skinny, and doesn't appear to be that strong from his highlights.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Originally posted by Yuma
Just going by those highlights they showed last night at the draft. Not one was a power move, or a good strong rebound. This kid was throwing up those weak twisty European underhand scoops for almost all his highlights. Then he was shooting some fadeaways from the baseline for his other highlights. He didn't shoot any threes in the highlight reel, which is supposed to be one of his strengths. They showed him running the court and he was slow. He is white, which is a fact, not a demeaning quality, but if you read it that way, then maybe you have a problem with white players not being good? He is skinny, and doesn't appear to be that strong from his highlights.

For no "power moves" here is a recap of his workout

John Jay Gym, Manhattan, 11:06 a.m.
Darko Milicic has been in the United States for a grand total of 67 hours and already he's in the practice gym, stretching out, preparing for what is supposed to be his first light workout in the U.S.


A private workout Thursday turned into an audition for the team that wound up with the No. 2 pick.
The plan is for Darko to run the floor a bit, shoot some jumpers, go through a few drills and call it a day. He's still battling jet lag, and he looks exhausted. But plans change, and after a few minutes of warm-up, the workout is in for a sudden jolt.

Next door, Detroit coach Rick Carlisle is wrapping up the Pistons' shoot-around in preparation for Game 3 in New Jersey. When they're done, Pistons president Joe Dumars, vice president John Hammond, director of international scouting Tony Ronzone and director of player personnel Scott Perry sneak in for a peek at Darko.

Within a minute, Darko's light workout becomes a high-energy audition. The gym is silent as he goes through a series of intense drills around the basket.

He rolls to the left. Swish.

He rolls to the right. Swish.

He puts the ball on the floor, crosses over and attacks the basket. Slam.

He takes the ball on the block, throws a shoulder into his defender and attacks again. Slam.

The trainer throws the ball off the backboard. Darko grabs it in mid-air. Slam. Again. Slam. Again. Slam.

He takes the ball outside the NBA 3-point line, turns to the basket, dribbles once, then glides through the air. Kaboom.

Time stands still for just a second as Darko pauses, waiting for everyone else to catch their breath.

Then he trots to the free-throw line and starts shooting. He is relentless. He continues, pounding the ball inside. He hits a baby hook with his left hand. Then he does with his right hand. Darko seems to use his left and right equally.

A second later he's standing three feet beyond the NBA 3-point line. Swish. Swish. Swish.

Forty-five minutes later the trainers are sweating. Everyone has seen enough. More than enough.

Darko looks to his agent and asks, "More?"

"No."

He shrugs his shoulders and begins running laps around the gym.

That is how you ace an NBA workout.

Most teams will tell you the individual workout is highly overrated. Workouts over-emphasize speed, agility and quickness. They do nothing to measure the intangibles that are the lifeblood of the game. But with Darko, it will be different. Teams already knew he could play. When a 7-footer tests like that in individuals, you take him to the bank.

“ That's a freak of nature right there. And he's just 17. Seventeen, Chad. ”
— Joe Dumars
Rick Carlisle looks stunned for the entire 10 minutes he watches. Ben Wallace and Rip Hamilton shake their heads in amazement. Joe Dumars' mouth didn't close the entire time. His jaw was on the floor. Whenever he wasn't typing notes in his PDA, he was whispering quiet exclamations. "Damn!"

"That's a freak of nature right there," Dumars says after the workout's over. "And he's just 17. Seventeen, Chad."

"We could really use him," Hamilton says. "That kid can play. Too bad he can't suit up tonight."

Sharp-shooter Jon Barry agreed. "He'd be perfect for us. Perfect. The thing I like about kids like this is they only have one agenda, and that's to play. They take this job seriously. It's their way out of a bad situation, and they're not going to squander it."

Another scout was more specific. "He's a different breed of European than any we've ever seen. I'm not sure how anyone guards him in the pros. That combination of size, speed, power and coordination is remarkable. Did you see how explosive he was around the basket? What's not to love?"

Fifteen minutes after the workout, Darko is still running around the gym.

"He didn't want that workout shut down," Ronzone said. "That kid just wants to keep pushing. He came to play."

 

[Goldfield]

Originally posted by Chaplin
How many times have you seen Darko play?

And please, don't use the fact that he is "white" as a reason for rating him.

Well isnt every "white" guy slow??? I know I am

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by BEERZ
Well isnt every "white" guy slow??? I know I am

Well, I'm not, so...

(That's not to brag, but I used to run track and play soccer, etc)