LarryB's 1997 Projected Draft

Mercer and Van Horn fight for position

How'd I do?

• I got the first six right on...toldya Mercer would go to Boston. I also pegged Indiana and Sacramento's picks right on.
• I picked 12 out of the 13 lottery picks...some in a slightly different order, but no-one except Cato slipped too much (from 10 to 15).
• I named 22 of the 28 first rounders, and Rhodes should hardly count against me. Also, Serge was the first pick in the second round.
• The only other First Rounder that I nailed exactly was #18 Chris Anstey to Portland.
• The second round was crazy where only 14 of my projected second rounders actually went in the second round, but 5 went in the first round.
• I had the first 15 picks of the second round as being drafted, but I only thought that 4 of the last 14 picks would be drafted.
• Overall I had 46 of the 57 players being drafted, so I only blew 11, including 1 first rounder and 8 of the last 9 in the second round (I had Erdmann). The other one was Eric Washington at #47.
• Overall there were only 6 draft picks that I had not even listed as possible draftees, 3 of which were foreign prospects, 2 seniors and an early entry (Bruton).

Projected Draft

1. San Antonio: C Tim Duncan (Wake Forest) 6-10/245
2. New Jersey: PF/SF Keith Van Horn (Utah) 6-10/225
3. Boston: PG Chauncey Billups (Colorado) 6-3/202 (sophomore)
4. Vancouver: PG Antonio Daniels (Bowling Green) 6-4/195
5. Denver: Tony Battie (Texas Tech) 6-11/220 (junior)
6. Boston: SF/SG Ron Mercer (Kentucky) 6-7/210 (sophomore)
   *Mercer will be gone in a second if he slips...see I told ya.
7. Philadelphia: PF/C Adonal Foyle (Colgate) 6-10/250 (junior)
   *They liked Foyle, but didn't want to blow the #2. Now they can take him with a clear conscience.
8. Golden State: F Tracy McGrady (HS) 6-9/200
9. Toronto: PF Tim Thomas (Villanova) 6-10/235 (freshman)
   *Toronto will go for the best available player who is not a PG. Therefore, Cato and Foyle are both prime candidates if Thomas doesn't slip.
10. Milwaukee: C/PF Kelvin Cato (Iowa State) 6-11/255
11. Sacramento: SG/SF Olivier Saint-Jean (San Jose State) 6-7/220 (junior)
    *Olivier is hot after standing out in Chicago. I doubt they'll bring in another small PG in Knight.
12. Indiana: SF Austin Croshere (Providence) 6-9/225
    *I'm gonna put my reputation on the line here. All along I thought that Croshere looked like he could be a lottery pick...but I wasn't quite ready to say it would happen. Well, it will happen, Bird will pick up this versatile SF to fill in a gaping hole...and it will be the right choice.
13. Cleveland: PF Danny Fortson (Cincinnati) 6-7/260 (junior)
    *The Cavs could use a C and SG...Derek Anderson will be tempting, but my feeling is they will steer clear of damaged goods (remember Daugherty?)

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14. LA Clippers: PG Brevin Knight (Stanford) 5-10/175
    *Who knows what the Clippers will do. They tend to draft talent over need.
15. Dallas: SF Jerald Honeycutt (Tulane) 6-8/245
    *Honeycutt would be the best fit, but I don't think they'll let one of the top 16 slip. This is a real mystery pick...
16. Cleveland: SG Derek Anderson (Kentucky) 6-5/195
    *They want someone big, but there's really not anyone available here worth this pick. I'm following the tradition of Best Available and he fits a need. I see Derek as clearly the best talent and a slip, and then there is a thin third layer of talent comprised of Honeycutt, Parker and Mo' Taylor.
17. Orlando: PG Jacque Vaughn (Kansas) 6-1/195
    *Orlando will hope for one of the lottery teams to take a chance on a prospect and let someone slip to them. The draft has about 16 solid players. The Magic's first realistic choice is Vaughn, then Honeycutt and Taylor.
18. Portland: C Chris Anstey (Australia) 7-0/235
19. Detroit: PF Maurice Taylor (Michigan) 6-8/235 (junior)
    *Jerome Williams couldn't get off the bench last year, he must not be the long-term answer, but they need another big man. They'll use their early second rounder to try to get some BIG help, ie project center. This pick will go for best available, probably Maurice Taylor or Anthony Parker...depending on who they think is a better risk and which is available.
20. Minnesota: SG Anthony Parker (Bradley) 6-6/200
    *The T-Wolves would like some height, but I don't see any of the other big men as an improvement over what they have. They'll take Mo' Taylor or Anstey if they slip. Parker is clearly the best talent here, and he fits in for a weak position on the team.
21. Philadelphia: God Shammgod (Providence) 6-0/165 (sophomore)
    *Many see him as a first rounder...I think he could fall a bit more. He has looked capable of running a team in the Chicago camp.
22. Atlanta: SF Johnny Taylor (TENN-Chattanooga) 6-8/215
    *They would like to add some depth at the forward spot, they should also consider one of the guards as a reliable backup.
23. Seattle: C Serge Zwikker (UNC) 7-2/265
    *Zwikker demonstrated he has an offensive game at UNC, but his defense is questionable.
24. Houston: PG Andre Woolridge (Iowa) 6-1/190
    *Wooldridge is a good bet, although unspectacular in the camps, but he's proven he can be a good PG. Zwikker's been in for a visit too...hmmmm. Who they'd love to have: Honeycutt, Taylor, Derek Anderson or Anthony Parker. They might use their second rounder on the best available 2-3.
25. New York: PF Kebu Stewart (Cal-State Bakersfield) 6-9/240
    *The Knicks need a role playing big man...he's the one. There is a growing trend that says the Knicks will take John Thomas...I'm not saying it, just reporting it.
26. Miami: PG Bobby Jackson (Minnesota) 6-1/185
    *He has a lot of question marks for a team to gamble on a 3 year contract with a first round pick, but he might be worth rolling the dice. I think that Riley will try to surprise us. He'll go for best available, regardless of need. Miami needs a SG, but could still get one with their next pick.
27. Utah: SG/SF Marko Milic (Slovenia) 6-6/215
    *They don't have any real glaring needs to fill, but a sharp shooting big guard would be the biggest plus for the team. They've always drafted well, so watch whoever they take! He could be a salary cap move for them too.
28. Chicago: C/PF Scot Pollard (Kansas) 6-10/250
    *He can provide youth and a reliable backup at the two frontcourt positions. They really need to try to get a PG, but I had them taking a PG last year too, and they went with Travis Knight...go figure.
29. Forfeited by Washington

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30. Houston: SG Shea Seals (Tulsa) 6-5/210
    *Seals took a nose-dive at Chicago. He's still a fairly safe bet though, cause everyone already knew he was streaky. There's quite a debate as to who's next after Anthony Parker (Seals? Gray? O'Bannon? Collins? Cotton?).
31. Miami: SG James Cotton (Long Beach State) 6-5/200 (junior)
32. Detroit: PF Jason Lawson (Villanova) 6-11/240
    *I expect Lawson could be gone by now...Houston and Chicago are prime candidates. If they can get some height with this pick I don't think they would mind.
33. Denver: SF Mark Sanford (Washington) 6-9/210 (junior)
34. Philadelphia: C Pedrag Drobnjak (Yugoslavia) 6-11/270
35. Dallas: SF Charles O'Bannon (UCLA) 6-6/205
36. Philadelphia: PF John Thomas (Minnesota) 6-9/265
    *He's moving up in most polls, into the first round. I could be wrong but I don't see it...yet.
37. Philadelphia: SG Reggie Freeman (Texas) 6-6/205
38. Golden State: SG Ed Gray (California) 6-3/210
39. Milwaukee: PG Kiwane Garris (Illinois) 6-2/180
40. Sacramento: F Stephen Jackson (Butler CC) 6-8/210 (freshman)
41. Denver: G Alvin Williams (Villanova) 6-4/180
42. Seattle: PF Marc Jackson (Temple) 6-9/270 (junior)
43. Phoenix: C Paul Grant (Wisconsin) 7-0/245
44. Minnesota: C Lorenzo Coleman (Tennessee Tech) 7-1/295
45. Cleveland: SG/SF Bubba Wells (Austin Peay) 6-5/225
46. Washington: SG James Collins (Florida State) 6-4/190
47. Orlando: SG Dedric Willoughby (Iowa State) 6-3/180
48. Portland: PF Gordon Malone (West Virginia) 6-11/215 (junior)
49. Washington: SF Keith Booth (Maryland) 6-5/220
50. Atlanta: SG Nate Erdmann (Oklahoma) 6-5/195
51. Atlanta: PF Eddie Elisma (Georgia Tech) 6-9/210
52. LA Lakers: SF Tunji Awojobi (Boston U) 6-7/235
53. Vancouver: PG Anthony Johnson (College of Charleston) 6-3/190
54. LA Lakers: PF Odell Hodge (Old Dominion) 6-9/270
55. Seattle: SG Isaac Fontaine (Washington State) 6-3/210
56. Boston: SG Charles Smith (New Mexico) 6-4/194
57. Utah: F Danya Abrams (Boston College) 6-7/265
58. Chicago: C Garth Joseph (College of St. Rose) 7-2/315

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    Honorable Mentions

59. SG Victor Page (Georgetown) 6-3/210 (sophomore)
60. SF Ace Custis (Virginia Tech) 6-8/215
61. SG Eric Washington (Alabama) 6-4/190
62. G DeJuan Wheat (Louisville) 6-0/160
63. C Mark Blount (Pittsburgh) 7-0/230 (sophomore)
64. PF Ruben Garces (Providence) 6-9/235
65. PF Terquin Mott (Coppin State) 6-8/245
66. F Chris Crawford (Marquette) 6-9/225
67. SG/SF Carlos Williams (Alabama-Birmingham) 6-6/200
68. F Jared Prickett (Kentucky) 6-9/235
69. SF Cedric Henderson (Memphis) 6-7/215
70. C Nate Huffman (Central Michigan) 7-1/240
71. PF-C Peter Aluma (Liberty) 6-10/240
72. G Jeff Capel (Duke) 6-4/195
73. G Mike Penberthy (The Master's College) 6-3/190