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NBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP DAY 1
By Woody Wommack
The action started late on the first night of the 2007 Orlando Pre-Draft Camp, with drills running from only 6-8p.m. and even though the players scrimmaged, no scores or statistics were kept. However, General Managers, Scouts and Coaches had plenty of information to digest as the camps 62 players made their first impressions.
The day began with a check-in period at 5 p.m. and there were plenty of big names in attendance. From Michael Jordan to Elgin Baylor, almost every NBA Coach and GM could be seen arriving.
Inside the gym the players began stretching and warm-ups at around 6 p.m. Many players arrived late Monday or early Tuesday, and were clearly a little fatigued as things began.
Coby Karl (Guard, Boise State, 6-5, 194), the son of NBA coach George Karl, who is still recovering from a surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in his thyroid was especially sluggish during the warm-ups, but picked up the pace when the practicing began and later told InsideHoops.com that he felt fine during his first day in Orlando.
The consensus among most of the media and front office members was that the real action would start on Wednesday, and Tuesday night was just sort of an orientation for players.
Guys Who Stood Out:
Jared Jordan (Guard, Marist, 6-2, 186): Jordan showed how he averaged over 8 assists per game during his senior season. He consistently hit his teammates with passes giving them opportunities to score. Jordan is someone who will probably go un-drafted, but he impressed me during his first audition to NBA scouts.
DaShaun Wood (Guard, Wright State, 5-11, 180): Another small school guy who came up big. Wood hit three 3-pointers in a row at one point, and showed scouts that he could create his own shots despite his small stature.
Guys Who Didn’t Do So Well:
Russell Carter (Guard, Notre Dame, 6-4, 220) Carter’s jump shot just wasn’t dropping, especially in transition. It could be a case of jitters, but only shot 43% from the field as a senior, and he needs to show scouts that his shooting has improved if he wants to sneak into the back half of the draft.
Ron Lewis (Guard, Ohio State, 6-4, 195) Lewis may have been the emotional leader of Ohio State’s national runner-up team, but he needs to show that he can shoot the NBA three in order to get drafted.
Random Notes and Observations:
- The floor at the arena was very slippery, and many players could been seen slipping and sliding
- Brian Shaw discussed his job interviews with the Pacers and the Kings with some of the Lakers coaches, saying one interview lasted almost four hours.
- Lakers scouts also had a difficult time figuring out tip-off time for the Cavaliers-Pistons game, trying to figure out what time the game started in L.A. and in Orlando.
- The coaches who ran the drills were encouraging the players to push the ball up the court during almost every drill, perhaps trying to see in what kind of shape the players were in.
- Ekene Ibekwe-F-Maryland (6-8, 215) had the dunk of the day after stealing the ball and throwing it down on a fast break.
NBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP DAY 1
By Jake Chapman
Some thoughts and observations from day 1 of the pre-draft camp in Orlando. I watched teams 1 and 2 scrimmage each other for a bit longer than an hour and the following players were on those teams. Team 1 – Mohamed Abukar, Russel Carter, Zabian Dowdell, Herbert Hill, Quinton Hosley, James Hughes, Trey Johnson, Rashad Jones-Jennings, Ivan Radenovic, Chris Richard and Mustafa Shakur. Team 2 – Mario Boggan, Taurean Green, Jared Jordan, Antanas Kavaliauskas, Stephane Lasme, Sammy Mejia, JR Reynolds, Yue Sun, Ali Traore and Major Wingate.
Some notes I took – Chris Richard and Major Wingate both have NBA bodies. They’re physical, they play hard-nosed low-post defense and they rebound. I found out after the session that the two of them have practiced together for the last four or five years. Richard is huge but tends to play out of control at times on offense, possibly just a case of trying to prove too much. Playing behind such great bigs at Florida surely hindered his development, but with some teaching he could be a contributor in the league because of his physicality on defense and wide frame. He almost reminds me of Dale Davis. Wingate shocked me. He hustled for many loose balls, banged around with Richard and frustrated him, and said afterward that he compares himself to Rasheed Wallace because of his jump shot. He didn’t get many open looks today but if he makes hustle-plays like he did today and shows a quality jumper in the next few days he will help out his status greatly.
Mustafa Shakur and Jared Jordan both did great jobs setting the offense up. They both hit slashers on a number of tough looks, and Jordan was the most confident kid I saw today running the fast break. Shakur has some bad tendencies, I watched one sequence where he forced a fall-away jumper which missed, then left his feet on the defensive end 20 feet from the basket, allowing an easy penetration. He’s a very skilled passer especially in the half-court set, but some of his tendencies will drive coaches crazy. Jordan didn’t attempt many shots and it probably served him well because his passing skills looked great. He reminds me of Steve Blake and from what I’ve heard he’s a pretty good shooter. I like his game a lot. Taurean Green was out of sync. He had a few nice slashes and protected the ball in traffic well for a guy his size, but he turned the ball over a few times and didn’t command the offense well at all.
Mario Boggan and Antanas Kavaliauskus were two guys I’d seen a lot in college and I thought with their jump shots they’d be able to find a place in the league. They don’t really have positions, but guys like Ryan Gomes and Jason Maxiell have proven in past years that undersized power forwards can find specialized roles on teams. So far I’ve been wrong. Kavaliauskus plays okay defense in the post, but he’ll get pushed around at the next level because he’s so skinny. He’s way too slow too. And Boggan looked awful. I know he can shoot based on games I’ve seen, but he has no moves off the dribble and forced up some terrible shots today. Let’s see if he can recover in the next few days, because he truly has no position and so he must find a niche and exploit it.
Russel Carter has some skills, but he tries to do too much. He has a really weird body, almost like Fred Jones but with longer arms. He has big shoulders and a big chest and very long arms and he showed some athleticism, but he also took some really bad shots.
Trey Johnson looked to have a sweet stroke on the few shots he took, and also ran the floor real well. He’s quick and strong, and averaged 27.1 ppg in college. He will find a spot on someone’s roster, but his defensive skills are still a question mark.
Now on to the good stuff. I was very impressed with Sammy Mejia. He jumped out of the building on one play and hit a spot-up 20-footer on the next. A minute later he was playing some great D and so I started watching him. Time and time again he got into the lane without a problem. He’s long and athletic like Trevor Ariza but seems to have better hands and a good jumper as well. Maybe this was the best we’ll see from him this week, but if he has a few more workouts like today teams are going to be all over him. He may even creep into the first round.
Also Stephane Lasme was very impressive. Lost in the banging between Richard and Wingate was the athleticism and quick feet of Lasme. He hustles, moves very well and seems like a genuinely smart basketball player. He didn’t show too many offensive skills, but he can be a great dirty work guy. I’m keeping a close eye on he and Mejia the rest of the week.
Those are some things that stood out, some other guys I watched like Ivan Radenovich and Mohamed Abukar looked real bad and others still like Zabian Dowdell and JR Reynolds just didn’t stand out. I’ve heard good things about those two and Herbert Hill so I’ll keep an eye on them in the coming days.
NBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP DAY 2
Morning Notes by Woody Wommack
ORLANDO – The first live game of the 2007 Orlando Pre-Draft Camp wasn’t really much of a contest as Team 6 cruised to a 106-84 victory over Team 5 in the early hours of the afternoon on Wednesday.
Ryvon Covile (6-9, 250), a center from Detroit-Mercy led Team 6 with 19 points on 8-11 shooting. Coleman Collins (6-8, 205) a forward from Virginia Tech led all scorers with 22 points in a losing effort for Team 5.
The game was never really close as Team 6 jumped out a 16-6 lead early in the first half. Team 5 pulled to within five points at 34-29 after a dunk by D.J. Strawberry, but any sense of hope was quickly dashed after Demetris Nichols-F-Syracuse (6-7, 210) made a three-pointer and Coby Karl-G-Boise State (6-5, 194) followed his lead hitting back-to-back three-pointers to extend Team 6’s lead to 43-30.
Coaches and scouts alike were praising Karl, who looked anything but sluggish as he scored 11 points and dished out six assists. Ramon Sessions-G-Nevada (6-3, 190) also had scouts buzzing as he led his team with seven assists, while grabbing five rebounds and scoring 10 points.
The score at halftime was 56-46 in favor of Team 6, who never trailed the entire contest.
Game Notes:
Both teams have 10 players on their roster, and both coaches cleared their benches every five minutes of game time…Each team was also called for traveling violations many times, and some of the players said afterward that they were just getting used to the NBA rules…Two 20-minute half’s were played, with a three-minute rest for halftime. NBA referees officiated the contest, which lasted 1 hour and 16 minutes.
Early Session Notes:
Guys who stood out:
Renaldas Seibutis-G-Lithuania (6-5, 180) Seibutis showed a nice shooting touch during early morning warm-ups, making 4 consecutive three-pointers at one point. He also did a nice job setting screens, and showing he wasn’t afraid of contact inside. Washington Wizards scouts were very impressed with Seibutis and if he can continue to impress he may work his way into the second round of the draft.
Jeremy Hunt-G-Memphis (6-5, 210) Hunt made three consecutive 3-pointers during the early morning drills, and had scouts talking about his shooting stroke. Hunt needs to show that he can carry his touch into the team games in order to keep his buzz growing.
Aaron Gray-C-Pittsburg (7-0, 275) The big man showed a nice touch around the basket during the game, scoring 15 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Gray also consistently made 15-18 ft. jump shots during shooting drills, showing that he can pull defenders away from the basket despite his size.
Guys that didn’t do so well:
Bobby Brown-G-Cal. State Fullerton (6-1, 170) In a point guard-light draft Brown has a chance to raise his stock greatly in Orlando, unfortunately he hasn’t capitalized so far. His long range jump shot just wasn’t dropping this morning, and he’ll need to prove he can shoot the ball in order to get drafted.
Reyshawn Terry-F-North Carolina (6-7, 210) The stands were buzzing about Terry’s jump shot but unfortunately for him it wasn’t the good type of buzz that players are looking for here in Orlando. Terry’s unorthodox shooting style drew laughter from some scouts, and has this reporter wondering whether or not it’ll hurt his stock.
Dominic McGuire-F-Fresno State (6-7, 210) McGuire got grouped with the guards during shooting drills and missed eight consecutive three pointers at one point. In my opinion his game is more suited for the inside and mid-range area, and after shooting only 29% from beyond the college arc last season, I think he should stay inside and use his size to his advantage.
Random Notes and Observations:
- Edene Ibekwe-F-Maryland (6-8, 215) had the dunk of the morning after a beautiful lob pass from Jared Jordan-G-Marist (6-2, 186)
- The players are now divided into six teams, and will drill with their teammates for the rest of the camp
- Two more games are scheduled for this evening
- NBA Scouts and Front Office members seem to love their mints, boxes of Certs and Altoids can be seen as they’re passed from scout to scout
- Washington Wizards scouts discussed racquetball strategy during a break from the basketball action.
NBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP DAY 2
Morning Notes by Jake Chapman
Day 2 intrasquad drills continued:
For as many mistakes as I’ve seen him make so far, Mustafa Shakur has great court vision. He does have the tendency to leave his feet with the ball, but he also has threaded some needles and drawn some “aaahs” from the scouts and reporters in the crowd. I’m not sure he’ll get drafted; his jumper needs work and he can play out of control, but he has made some incredible passes in days 1 and 2.
Daequan Cook really stands out on the floor, but sometimes for the wrong reasons. He’s fearless and young, which can be a wonderful and terrible combination at the same time. He made some bad passes, once trying an ill-advised lob, but at the same token he has a nice jumper and his age and athleticism have got to make scouts stop and take notice. He definitely could’ve stood another year or two in college, but if he can put forth the work in his first few years in the league he can be an NBA starter in 2 or 3 years.
My love affair with Major Wingate continues. Last night he told me had a good face-up jumper. Today he showed me. Three times this morning he hit 17-footers from the baseline, and one was legitimately contested. He’s not as thick as Drew Gooden, but their games are similar and he really gets after it. I’d definitely take a chance on him.
Cartier Martin played well. He’s another guys without a real position, looking like an undersized four or a three who can’t penetrate. If he adds some bulk and keeps his quickness he may get drafted. He had a few nice plays helping out on defense, and scouts love to see that.
Stephane Lasme looked good again. He’ll go near the top of the second and maybe even creep into the first if he continues like this. I love his motor.
Also JR Reynolds showed some real quickness and Jared Jordan continued to set up his teammates. Jordan’s vision is phenomenal.
The rest of the day will be actual games with refs, so we’ll get some good stuff from them:
GAME 1
Game 1 was pretty entertaining, and it was dominated by the point guards. Team 5 played Team 6, and Ramon Sessions stole the show for Team 6, who won handily. First the team 6 guys who played well.
Ramon Sessions – this guy looked phenomenal. Nevada wasn’t just a good team because of Nick Fazekas, they had a point guard who set everyone up. Sessions is listed at 6-3, which may be a bit liberal, but his quickness caught me (and Team 5) off guard. He got to the lane whenever he wanted. He dished, he finished, he pump-faked and got Aaron Gray off his feet, then calmly hit a ten-foot banker from the right side. He cut without the ball when he found himself on the wing. He hit freethrow-line-extended jumpers, and a little running hook in the lane. He directed his teammates when the play broke down. He was money, pure and simple. He said after the game he’s relaxed because he has college teammate Marcellus Kemp here with him, I think he’s relaxed because he knows he’s the best player here. If he developed a long range jumper he’d be a first-rounder easy.
Sean Singletary was the fastest kid out there. He’s been plagued by injuries throughout his college career so he’s still a bit raw, but he pounds the ball low to the floor and seemed as quick as Tony Parker compared to the guys he was playing. He put a juke on Coby Karl and almost broke his ankle, then stepped back and hit a jumper from the foul-line extended. He needs work, he tries to go too fast at times and can lose focus, and he was called for just one carry when he could’ve been called for three or four, but if he polishes his passing skills he’ll be a contributor in the league soon. He’s a tiny little guy, but so is Iverson. Did I just compare Sean Singletary to Allen Iverson? I’m getting carried away.
Aaron Gray is an enigma wrapped inside a question mark. He’s sooooooo slow, he can’t defend the pick and roll on the perimeter, and he’s going to get beaten up at the next level because he’s soft. BUT, he will get drafted because he’s a legitimate seven-footer with post moves. He looked like he didn’t mind banging down low today, but he was easily the tallest guy on either team. At times he looks like an outstanding offensive player, and at times his close range hooks fell off the rim. I’m sure someone who needs low-post scoring will draft him early in the second or maybe even late in the first.
James Mays can play in the NBA. He’s raw but he’s insanely athletic (they often go together don’t they?) He can jump out of the building and I even saw him put the ball on the floor without much fear. He’s going to block shots and play great defense, and there’s room in the league for guys like that. Think Trevor Ariza only bigger, or Stromile Swift only smaller. Someone’s going to take a chance on him and be happy they did. I talked to him after the game and he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. Watch out for him.
DJ Strawberry is one hell of a defender. Active hands, quick feet and a good basketball IQ. He’s a bit lost offensively, but he’s easily the best perimeter defender I’ve seen here. Is that enough to get him drafted? Maybe not… but his work ethic will lead him to the league someday. See: Bruce Bowen and even Anthony Parker.
Bobby Brown is intriguing. He’s very quick and overly aggressive. But as a scout or front office guy I’d rather see someone getting after it on D then getting blown by. He’s not great offensively, but as the game was dying down and the play got sloppy he was still going a hundred miles an hour, love to see that.
Some other guys stood out but not for the right reasons. Justin Doellman can shoot threes, and that’s it. He’s a big boy, listed at 6-9, but he’s got a slow release and he jacked up some bad shots. Teams love big guys who can get shots off, but the Okurs and Radmanovichs of the league have much quicker releases than this guy. Curtis Sumpter couldn’t get anything going, then started pressing and ended up playing worse. I don’t want to beat up on too many guys, so I’ll reserve judgment on some of the others until we see more. The second game begins soon… I can’t wait.
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5/31/2007 12:58 AM
