After drafting forward Joe Alexander(notes) with the eighth overall choice in the 2008 NBA draft, the Milwaukee Bucks will make him highest pick ever to have rookie contract option declined, league sources told Yahoo! Sports on Friday.

For Milwaukee general manager John Hammond, the rejection of Alexander’s 2010-11 contract option is a sobering admission that his organization made a major misjudgment with the first pick of its regime. The Bucks have until Monday to pick up the $2.7 million option or allow Alexander to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Only two other players – Golden State’s Patrick O’Bryant(notes) (ninth pick, 2007) and the Los Angeles Clippers Yaroslav Korolev(notes) (12th pick, 2005) – have had their teams pass on their first contract options.

Alexander, a 6-foot-8 forward, averaged less than five points and 12.1 minutes in 59 games as a rookie last season. Bucks coach Scott Skiles played 2008 second-round pick, Luc Mbah a Moute, over Alexander. The Bucks did find a gem in Mbah a Moute, and he continues to be part of the team’s regular rotation.

Once Milwaukee traded starting forward Richard Jefferson(notes) to the San Antonio Spurs this summer, it was believed the franchise would give Alexander a shot to earn significant minutes, but he suffered a hamstring injury in the preseason and isn’t expected back until December.

His inability to stay healthy is also a factor in declining the option, sources said

djsunyc wrote:

nyk4ever wrote:Good, I hope they decline his option so the Knicks can pick him up. I happen to 100% agree with Fish and think this kid can play.

play what? scrabble?

Don't be silly. It's Battleship.

That Milwaukee team's a joke btw...Let me see if I got this straight: they let Villanueva walk then they trade away RJ, all while having no suitable replacement for either on that level behind Alexander (you're looking at Mbah a Moute and Warrick, two guys that aren't exactly scrubs but hardly all-stars) & now they look like they're gonna completely bail on this guy Alexander, a 22-year-old salary-controlled player (for the next few years anyway if they pick up that option), a guy with much better potential & upside than either Moute or Warrick, because he pulled his hammy and is gonna be out for awhile? Have I got that right? What a friggin' joke. I'd be livid if I were a fan of that team. I thought you never were suppose to lose your job due to injury?? And never mind that, they don't have a great replacement for him anyway...I mean why give up on him now??? Jesus, where's the logic? Make zero sense. For a guy with Alexander's ceiling on that ****ty team, you pick up the inexpensive option for the next few years and see if he can find himself...Amazing..

JohnWallace44 wrote:The 3pt chucking doesn't bother me from this team, its the making of the three's that is bothersome.

Watched the Golden State game the other night and they do the same thing, but they were hitting them.

Regarding Alexander, he's got to have some personality issues if they don't want to re-up the guy. These are also different economic times and resigning someone just becuase they might have upside is not always prudent.

Man JW, you're losing me again as usual brother... So GS has a hot game from behind the arc (I didn't see that game but I'll take your word for it) and that makes it OK for MDA to allow his team to throw up 40 threes a game? We're basing what we do now on other teams' results??? Come on man...

And how does "economic times" have anything to do with picking up a team option on a player in order to extend his year-to-year rookie pay scale for another 3 years at $2.7 million, $3.5 and $4.7 in his qualifying year (if it even got that far)??? If anything poor economic times dictates that that's exactly what they should be doing..For that amount of money, you give it a shot. At least I would. How many players took some time before they eventually found themselves a few years after going pro? And this kid's not even healthy right now...Sometimes it doesn't happen right away. If the Bucks abandon this guy and he becomes available for a few million next year and we have the cap room & roster spot where we could guarantee him some PT, it'd be a no-brainer for me. He wouldn't necessarily be part of my plan A (a LeBron max. deal), but you better believe I'm looking at him with my plan B, C, D. You be crazy not to...

As for the Knicks' current style, in your first post you declare, "the 3pt chucking doesn't bother me from this team," then in your 2nd post (which I tend to agree with a little more if I got you pegged right) you sound more like your admitting that most of these 3s are indeed bad shots. If that's what you're saying, then I agree with you. They are bad shots.. They're low %, lazy shots that are there whenever they want them. And they're coming from players that don't have any business taking shots like that. They're robbing themselves taking shots like that. There's just no offensive variety in our attack at all -- swinging the ball around and jacking up 3s in 7 secs. or less, failing to incorporate the legit, skilled 6'10" post presence we just drafted that could definitely help us, etc...Real quick on D'Antoni - I distinctly remember hearing him say how he was flexible when it came to his players and that he's always adapted to the players he's had to work with, smaller guys, big men, going back to his days in Europe...Anyone else remember hearing that?? Well you know what, I haven't seen that at all with us. It's the same fruitless plan of attack every game, and it ain't workin'...I don't wanna belabor the point, you guys know where I stand on this by now..

A little better effort tonight to move away from taking that many 3s in what I've seen so far yet we're still getting our butts kicked---by the BOBCATS!! Down 20 right now..Unbelieveable...

JohnWallace44 wrote:I get you Finestrg.

The three strategy in general doesn't bother me as much as the way we get them. Teams that are taking anywhere near the volume of treys that we do are getting wide open shots. We're taking them with guys, not in our faces, but too close for average shooters to be hoisting threes.

It keeps coming back to the PG play to me. If the PG play is going to be this bad and we're playing a former forward at SG, AND we don't have a post presence then we'll never have those easy kick out threes.

Recipe for disaster.

You're right. The PG play is terrible...Du-du hit at least one big lefty layup down the stretch and he did finish with 13 & 8 tonight, but he's just not a big time player. Can't get to the bucket to score himself or set up others in close, doesn't take command like we need & just doesn't run the show properly, terrible turnovers that can't happen being a starting PG, etc.. Not good enough. NOT AT ALL. Hey the dude is what he is, a limited back-up PG trying to fulfill a starting role on an NBA team. That role needs to be upgraded. Believe me, Walsh is well aware of the situation. Before the news about the cap # possibly dropping came out, contract offers were on the table for J-Kidd, Andre Miller (and thank God those offers were rejected because tying either of those guys up could've hurt us in free agency next summer). Sessions was also very much in the plans early on as well, then the rumors about the cap dropping surfaced...I still feel Walsh made the right move passing on Sessions. He just couldn't tie that money up before the cap issue was resolved. I blame David Stern & league for this btw -- how the hell did the league not let GMs know exactly what cap room they had to work with this off-season??? Crazy...

You guys might think I'm crazy but unless a better alternative presents itself, as of right now I'm looking towards next year's draft to hopefully get a PG late. Unless we find a way to do even better, guys like Arizona's Nic Wise, Cal's Jerome Randle and Maryland's Greivis Vasquez are all guys I'd rather have at the controls over Duhon. I'd like to see them acquire even more picks any way possible, but at least with our own 2nd rounder, one of these guys, if not all 3, have a chance of being there. Where does it say we can't get a decent PG late in the draft? Sessions was a deep 2nd round pick right? If I researched it, I betcha I could come up with countless others. Mo Williams is another guy that comes to mind..

tkf wrote:every GM pretty much knew Joe was somewhat of a project. great athlete, not much bball experience.. I think he still has a chance to be good. Just will need some time..

I agree. Alexander was drafted too early (like Hill), but he has nba talent if he can stay healthy.

http://www.ultimateknicks.com/forum/topic.asp?t=27312&page=1

I did not even know about UK at the time this draft was being discussed, but I saw Alexander as an athletic freak (I thought he might be on something, BTW.) with a somewhat shaky BB IQ. I considered him to be a project with some intriguing abilities, but a project nonetheless.

I think that he will someday turn into a decent player, wherever he plays, but I don't see him as someone who will even be a borderline All-Star type talent in the NBA.

As fishmike also noted-

its hard to develop a game that was based on athleticism when you have had a bad hammy for 2 years

I hope he straightens things out though, and is able to play. Seems like a good kid, and you would like to see him get a chance to play without injury issues.