Darko's troubles aren't over just yet


The most shocking question at All-Star Weekend was simply this, "Is LeBron James still the No. 1 pick?"

NBA beat writers, GMs, coaches, even players were all asking me the same question. I'm one of the few members of the media who has seen both James and Darko Milicic play live. If Darko is as good as advertised, they posited, wouldn't teams be crazy to draft a guard over a big man?

There's a pretty simple answer to the question. Darko could be the next Hakeem Olajuwon and it wouldn't matter. Given the ticket sales and fan interest LeBron will generate, no team in its right mind, regardless of its needs, is going to pass on him. Trade who you have to trade. LeBron will get you sellouts for the next 10 years.

Still, that's not dampening the buzz on Darko. While a few GMs have made the trip to Vrsac, Yugoslavia, to watch him play, most were waiting until the league ruled on his eligibility to make the 14-hour jaunt halfway around the world. Until know, Darko's audience has been numerous international NBA scouts and yours truly. That's about to change.

"My phone has been ringing non-stop," Milicic's agent, Marc Cornstein, told Insider. "Everyone's excited that he's in the draft, and they're ready to get a closer look."

Said one GM whose team has scouted Milicic heavily, "It's not very often that a young 17-year-old, 7-footer with an NBA body, an aura of toughness and low-post skills declares for the draft. If it was any other year, he'd easily be the No. 1 pick in the draft. I think that's why there's such a buzz. It's not very often that you have two No. 1 caliber picks in the same draft."

While just about everyone in the media was shocked when the NBA announced it was reversing its decision and would allow Milicic and another young international phenom, Sofaklis Schortsianides, to enter the draft, several GMs weren't quite as surprised.

Apparently, team executives, through their owners, were also lobbying David Stern to back down on the issue and let the younger international kids in the draft. Said one Eastern Conference executive, "The rule was stupid. Those kids were professionals. The rule made no sense for them. And the truth is, they're more mature than most of the kids with two or three years of college under their belts. I think Stern was getting it from all sides. It was a no-brainer."

Milicic was a bit more surprised. "I'm shocked," he said in a phone interview. "I'm just overjoyed. My NBA dream is about to come true."

However, Darko's saga still isn't over.

Cornstein left for Yugoslavia on Tuesday to begin talking buyout with Milicic's team, Hemofarm. It's not going to be easy. Milicic's parents signed a contract for Darko when he was 15 years old. The contract runs through 2007 and has no buyout provisions.

Negotiating overseas can be tricky. Hemofarm is going to want much more than the $350,000 that teams can contribute to a buyout. He's the only star on a virtual no-name team. Hemofarm has been very protective of Darko so far, and if past negotiations with Yugoslavian clubs are any indication, the talks could drag on for some time.

Cornstein, however, told Insider he isn't concerned. "It's going to happen. I'm not worried. His club is very reasonable. We have a great relationship. They understand that this is his dream and knew it would be coming sooner rather than later."

Even if Hemofarm does try to play hardball, Cornstein will have an ace up his sleeve. Recent rulings by FIBA, the international basketball governing body, have indicated that players, once they turn 18, don't always have to honor contracts signed by their parents. Clubs pretty much understand the contracts aren't enforceable after a kid's 18th birthday. Just the threat of litigation, and losing all of a buyout for Darko, should be enough for Cornstein to get a deal done.

Cornstein hopes to have his client's release secured by early June, when Darko's season is over. Cornstein then plans to bring him to the U.S. for private workouts with teams that haven't gotten a good look.

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