NBA Draft Busts: Darko Milicic

In what will go down in history as one of the greatest drafts in NBA history, the 2003 NBA draft will also be known for producing one of the biggest busts too. The Detroit Pistons selected 18-year old Serbian center Darko Milicic with the second overall pick right behind LeBron James. The Pistons chose Darko over players like

NBA Draft Busts: Rafael Araujo

Araujo started his basketball career at Arizona Western College. He dominated during his 2 years at the junior college before transferring to Brigham Young University (BYU) for his junior and senior seasons. Araujo earned the Mountain West Conference Player of the Year award his senior season, averaging 18 ppg and 10 rpg.

NBA Draft Busts: Michael Olowokandi

The Los Angeles Clippers once again had the first overall pick in the 1998 NBA Draft and once again they made the wrong choice. The Clippers chose 7-0 footer Michael Olowokandi aka “The Kandi Man” out of the University of the Pacific. Olowokandi signed with played for Kinder Bologna of the Italian League because of the NBA lockout before eventually signing with the Clippers. Olowokandi was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team averaging 9 ppg and 7 rpg during the shortened 1998 -1999 season. Knee injuries and a hernia hindered his production during the latter half of the 2002 -2003 season raising a red flag to the Clippers and forcing them to pass up on resigning him in the off-season. The native of Nigeria, who spent his first 5 seasons with the Clippers, eventually signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves as a free agent during the 2003 off-season. During his 3 injury plagued and inconsistent seasons with the T-Wolves Olowokandi averaged a horrid 6 ppg and 5 rpg. Midway through the 2005 -2006 season The Kandi Man was traded to the Boston Celtics. Again, injuries plagued the 7-0 footer and limited him to only 40 games during his 2 year stint in Boston. Olowokandi decided to call it quits and retired after the 2006 -2007 season at the age of 31.

Olowokandi is just one of the many draft disasters of the Los Angeles Clippers. Here are some of the notable players the Clippers have chosen when they had a lottery pick and who they passed up on since 1990.

1990 – chose Bo Kimble 8th overall, Toni Kukoc was still on the board

1995 – chose Antonio McDyess 2nd overall but traded him with others for Brent Barry, could have drafted Kevin Garnett

1996 – chose Lorenzen Wright 7th overall, could have chosen Kobe Bryant

1998 – chose Michael Olowokandi 1st overall, Dirk was still available

2000 – chose Darius Miles 3rd overall and Keyon Dooling 10th overall, Hedu Turkoglu and Michael Redd were still on the board

2002 – chose Chris Wilcox 8th overall and Melvin Ely 12th overall, could have drafted Tayshaun Prince and Carlos Boozer

2004 – chose Shaun Livingston 3rd overall, Devin Harris was still on the board

2005 – chose Yaroslav Korolev 12th overall, Danny Granger was still available

Just sayin…

Knicks & Wolves Trade Rumors

 

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News is reporting that the New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves have had “preliminary discussions” in regards to a potential trade involving combo-guard Toney Douglas and point guard Jonny Flynn. The Timberwolves’ recent signing of Ricky Rubio (their 5th overall pick from the 2009 NBA Draft) has made Flynn’s role less significant and thus more expendable. Toney Douglas is the name being thrown around in a potential deal for the former Syracuse floor general. Both Douglas and Flynn have had injury issues in the past. TD is coming off of off-season shoulder surgery while Flynn was limited to 53 games last season because of hip surgery. Douglas has clearly had a more productive first two seasons than Flynn has, but Flynn possesses more of the point guard skills the Knicks are looking for in their backcourt. TD has also shown that he can shoot the 3 and play above average defense while at the same time Flynn has struggled with his shot and isn’t near the ball hawk that Douglas is. Nevertheless, I think the trade would benefit both teams. The T-Wolves could use a guy like Douglas who can stretch the defense with his 3 point shooting, and the Knicks would love to have a lottery pick talent at point guard who hasn’t even began to show his true colors in the NBA in Flynn. Note that the Knicks would have to add another player or cash considerations in the trade for Flynn to make the salaries work. Isola thinks that Renaldo Balkman would be the likely player included. This trade is not imminent by any means, but look for the Knicks to make a splash during the 2011 NBA Draft this Thursday.

The Spanish Phenom Ricky Rubio, Wait What?

The Minnesota Timberwolves have officially announced that their 5th overall selection from the 2009 NBA Draft, Ricky Rubio, has decided to come play for them next season. Rubio, his former team Barcelona, and the Timberwolves have worked out a deal that will allow Rubio to leave Barcelona to fulfill his dream of playing in the NBA. The infamous Rubio has been raved about and sought after ever since the videos of the teenager broke out and during the World Championships and Olympics. I, however, can’t wrap my head around everyone’s rave reviews of the 20-year old Spaniard.

First of all, he is listed at 6 feet 4 inches and weighs anywhere between a buck eighty and a buck ninety. He has good size for a point guard but at that weight there is absolutely no way Rubio can hold his own among the other physical guards in the NBA. Rubio also does not have the blinding speed or blow-by ability needed to create his own shot at the next level. Which leads me to his inability to shoot the ball effectively from the field. Rubio shot only 39% from the field, 22% from behind the arc, and 6.5 ppg while starting in 17 of 20 games with Barcelona last season. Really? Those are the numbers being put up in the far inferior Euroleague by a guy who many think can be star in the NBA; I don’t buy it. We always see the same 10 second video clip of Rubio throwing behind his back or over his head and all of a sudden he’s the next Pete Maravich, come on. Rubio is all flash, no substance, and a whole lot of finesse. I don’t think he’ll ever live up to all the hype.