Draft Watch: Alexander's hot, Lawson's not
Ford

By Chad Ford
ESPN.com
(Archive)
Insider

Updated: June 10, 2008

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Who has played well and who has struggled one week into team workouts? Getting reliable info isn't easy.

NBA agents often pick up the phone and call immediately following workouts, saying something to the effect of, "My client kicked someone else's client's butt in the workouts."

NBA GMs and scouts aren't much better at this point. They tend to say they like everyone -- partly out of fear of offending the prospect's agent and partly because they don't want to show their hand this close to the draft.

The other source of information is the players themselves. While they usually tend to overstate how well they personally played in a workout, they can be pretty accurate about how the other players in the gym performed.

So while the information that follows shouldn't be taken as 100% fact, I've tried my best to filter out the garbage and get the best possible read on the situation.

Here's what we're hearing:

The Hot List


Alexander

Joe Alexander, F, West Virginia
Alexander had workouts in Milwaukee and New York, and both went well. His toughness and shooting ability have made quite an impression.

I originally thought Alexander would struggle to crack the top 10 because of his lack of big-time experience, but now I can see how Alexander would appeal to coaches who like toughness (Scott Skiles) and coaches who like athletes who can get up and down the floor (Mike D'Antoni).

We've had Alexander at No. 13 for a while, but it's entirely possible that he finds his way into the middle of the lottery.


Hickson

J.J. Hickson, F, NC State
It shouldn't come as a huge shock that Hickson has wowed a few people in early workouts -- he's a very skilled big man who has an NBA body. Plus, he had an excellent freshman season.

"He's just incredibly strong for his age," Suns GM David Griffin said of Hickson after he worked out for the Suns. "He has a naturally thick body. He can bang on the perimeter, and he's also got a pretty quick face-up game."

We've had Hickson pegged in the 20s for the past several months, but I'm starting to hear more buzz that he could move into the teens if he continues to have strong workouts.

Hickson has worked out for the Suns, Sixers, Sonics and Blazers so far.


White

D.J. White, F, Indiana
It was surprising that White skipped the Orlando predraft camp, but it appears that move isn't hurting him. He has worked out for the Nets, Magic and Wizards and has more than held his own against some of the more heralded big men prospects in the draft -- Darrell Arthur and Marreese Speights.

He measures well at 6-foot-9 in shoes with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, and he's tested very well in some of the athletic drills. And while talk of a four-year senior being hot is odd these days, remember that White is still just 21 years old -- only a few months older than O.J. Mayo.

The Not List


Lawson

Ty Lawson, PG, North Carolina
Lawson had a couple of very good workouts in Cleveland and Indiana. And he had an impressive Orlando predraft camp. But then he got busted for driving after consuming alcohol (he's underage). At a time of year when teams are super sensitive to character issues, this won't help his cause.

How can a team like the Pacers (who had him in to workout against D.J. Augustin) take him now after all of the legal nightmares the team has endured recently with its players?

On top of that, Lawson twisted an ankle in a workout with the Wizards on Monday.


McGee

JaVale McGee, F, Nevada
McGee is long and athletic. But it's not a good thing when the best praise he gets from those who have seen him work out is, "You can't teach height." That's usually code for: "He stinks, but he's big." McGee got a lot of buzz this year after an excellent performance against North Carolina. And his basketball pedigree -- his mom played in the WNBA -- and perimeter skills helped justify the hype. However, his so-so numbers at the combine and lukewarm reviews from his workouts have several GMs wondering if he's worth a mid-first-round selection.

• A number of top international prospects are in Treviso, Italy, performing in front of NBA scouts at the Reebok Eurocamp.

ESPN's Fran Fraschilla is in Italy covering the camp and will have a full report later. But through the first few days, I've spoken with a couple of scouts who have attended the camp.

Here's what we're hearing about the top players there:


Ibaka

Serge Ibaka, F, Congo
Most NBA teams got a good look at Ibaka at the Nike Hoop Summit, where he played well against some of the top high school players in the country. But he didn't blow anyone away.

He has good size and is an explosive leaper, but the rest of his game is still raw. He doesn't have the strength or inclination to play in the paint, but he also lacks great quickness, limiting his ability to guard small forwards. And for someone who likes to play on the perimeter, he isn't a dead-eye shooter. As a physical prospect, Ibaka is very interesting. But as a basketball player, he still has a lot of question marks.

Ibaka played well on the first and third days of Eurocamp, but he struggled at other times. He's a likely late-first-round pick if he stays in the draft.

Nicolas Batum, G/F, France
Batum, who once was considered a potential lottery pick before a so-so year in France, played in a game Monday in an effort to create some draft buzz. He shot 6-for-18, and 1-for-7 from 3. I don't think that was the impression he was hoping to make.

Goran Dragic, G, Slovenia
A number of scouts love Dragic. He's a big point guard with good athleticism, but his lack of a perimeter game and his so-so court vision have kept him out of the first-round talk.

According to scouts, he played well in a private workout Sunday and again in game action Monday.

Omer Asik and Semih Erden, C, Turkey
With their team in Turkey failing to clear them for 5-on-5 play, Asik and Erden showed up to play in a workout. While both players are big and athletic, there is an interesting split among scouts about who's the better prospect. Asik is raw on the offensive end. Erden is more polished, but has a reputation for being immature.

• Later this week, we'll have an in-depth look at the top international prospects in the draft and examine their waning influence at the top of the draft.

Posted by nyk4ever:

Posted by TrueBlue:

I hope people are taking notes.

I picked Mayo #2 for the Heat and D.J. White as my second round pick for Chicago at #39

Who ****ing cares?

Posted by TMS:

McGee

JaVale McGee, F, Nevada
McGee is long and athletic. But it's not a good thing when the best praise he gets from those who have seen him work out is, "You can't teach height." That's usually code for: "He stinks, but he's big." McGee got a lot of buzz this year after an excellent performance against North Carolina. And his basketball pedigree -- his mom played in the WNBA -- and perimeter skills helped justify the hype. However, his so-so numbers at the combine and lukewarm reviews from his workouts have several GMs wondering if he's worth a mid-first-round selection.

that doesn't sound promising.

Posted by BRIGGS:

If I remember right Chad Ford had Darko over Lebron James and has been brutal over the years with his *predictions and sources*