Wednesday, June 01, 2005

Hoops: Today's Draft Notes

Well, Jarrett Jack worked out with the Minn. Timberwolves....

North Carolina State's Julius Hodge, Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack, UAB's Donnell Taylor and Jackson Lanier High School star Monta Ellis participated.


"We worked them out pretty hard and they responded well," Timberwolves general manager Jim Stack said. "Some of them had a few first-time jitters, but all in all we were very pleased with how well they sustained their efforts."


"I just think I'd be able to help them in a lot of ways," Jack said. "Just try to bring a lot of energy and a defensive presence to this team."


Evidently Julius Hodge really stood out......


Evidently Bernie Bickerstaff wants to see Jack in action, even though with the #5 pick they are likely to take one of the other PG's:

Of those three -- Wake Forest's Paul, Illinois' Williams and North Carolina's Felton -- Felton seems the most likely to be around at five. He's not quite the ballhandler that Paul is nor the defender Williams is, but he improved his shooting and ran a team of strong personalities that won the national championship.


Bickerstaff also wants to audition Georgia Tech point guard Jarrett Jack.



Here's a Q&A of if it is actually possible that Jack gets taken by the ATL Hawks:

Today's question: Is there any chance the Hawks take Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack or South Gwinnett High's Louis Williams with the first pick of the second round?


YES — on both counts. There's always a chance. But I don't see it happening, but for very different reasons. Should both of them decide to stay in the draft, which seems likely at this point, Jack won't be around at the start of the second round and Williams might not be either. Jack is being mentioned in the same breath as Raymond Felton as the next best point guard after Chris Paul and Deron Williams. A point guard of Jack's caliber should be long gone by the time the second round begins. If he were to fall, for whatever reason, the Hawks would snap him up.


Meanwhile, a brief mention about BJ Elder's workout with the Nuggets:

There was a distinct Atlantic Coast Conference flavor at the Pepsi Center as the Nuggets put six more draft prospects through workouts.


B.J. Elder of Georgia Tech, Daniel Ewing of Duke and Jackie Manuel of North Carolina made up half the field.


"It definitely is nice seeing guys you competed against over the past couple years," Elder said. "It helps you relax and play well."


In addition, Elder worked out for the Phoenix Suns this past weekend:

The Suns worked out four draft prospects Tuesday: Georgia Tech guard B.J. Elder, Sam Houston State power forward/center Eddy Fobbs, Clemson forward Sharrod Ford and Syracuse swingman Josh Pace.



Meanwhile, guess who is helping Jarrett Jack workout and prepare for the draft? None other than ousted & blacklisted former coach Todd Bozeman (story here):

So for now, Bozeman settles for trying to re-create a coach's life. He likes working for Pfizer, he said, because selling a drug to doctors feels a lot like selling a college to high school basketball players. And despite his full-time job, he spends more than 40 hours each week immersed in basketball.


He coaches his 13-year-old son's Maryland Select team; he's an assistant coach for the 16-and-under D.C. Assault team; he works out college stars -- Maryland's John Gilchrist, Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack -- to prepare them for the NBA draft; he works out NBA players -- Rod Strickland, Rodney White -- who come home during the summer; he travels around the world -- Africa last summer, South America the summer before that -- to meet coaches and players.


Last but not least, Will Bynum worked out for the Memphis Grizzlies:

In for a look as the team evaluates draft candidates were Nate Robinson, a 5-9 guard from Washington who averaged 16.4 points last year; Will Bynum, a 6-foot guard from Georgia Tech who averaged 12.5 points last year; and David Logan, a 6-1 guard from the University of Indianapolis who averaged 28.6 points last year.


"What you try to do in that kind of a workout is to see what they're going to do in the full court, and how they handle going from a full court to a half court -- both offensively and defensively," said Tony Barone Sr., Grizzlies director of player personnel. "All three of these kids are physical specimens. You have to see these guys in a setting that's going to allow them to run a team, and when you have only three guys in a workout or four, you really can't always tell.


"You put them in some drills to see what their decision-making processes are. They did very well in that."