Collegehoopsnet - Draft Mailbag 6/10/04

Do you have a question about CHN's Mock Draft, Draft News, or a general question for CHN's NBA Draft Expert. Email Shawn at njhoopsnet@aol.com , RE: Mailbag with your name, question & hometown.

I just wanted to know your opinion on Gonzaga guard Blake Stepp, and where you think he might go in the draft?

Stepp should get drafted between 40th and 50th in the draft. He has two things going against him in the mind of GM's. The first thing is the lack of success from Dan Dickau. When you see one long-range shooter from Gonzaga become a bust, there's the fear that a similar player like Dickau will fail too. The second thing is the brutal 3-18 dud he came through with in the NCAA tournament. These big games always resonate in the minds of GM's. Still, he will be picked before #50, and will have a better chance of succeeding in the NBA because of his nice 6-4 frame.

Also of note, Stepp sprained his ankle and is not participating in the Pre-Draft camp in Chicago. This should not really impact his draft status.

Living in Asia, I can't wait for the "next" Yao Ming. Korea's Ha Seung-Jin may be it. How did he do in his workouts with Boston, Denver and Portland? Will he be selected in the 1st Round?

Ha Sueung-Jin held a workout yesterday for NBA team in Chicago, separate from the pre-draft camp. It will be interesting to hear the word on how this went. He's been making the rounds, working out with just about every team that might need a big man. He's also been working out in Southern California on his own time with former NBA center Will Perdue.

At 7-4, he's humungous, but he's also extremely raw being only 19. It seems doubtful that he will make the 1st round, though he is very close. The guys he's in closest competition with are David Harrison and Peter Ramos.

I have been following this years draft for quite awhile. One name that I believe has been very quiet is the fabulous freshman Kris Humphries. I could be mistaken but I don't think he has worked out for any teams yet. His name hasn't been mentioned by many teams. Do you
know the reason for this? I haven't got a clue.

It's true, you haven't heard much about Humphries this off-season, and he is not at the Chicago pre-draft camp going on right now. This may simply be because Humphries' agent wants to hide his player from potential failure. The best thing for Humphries is that teams simply look at his 21 and 10 averages and get blinded by his actual skill level. No doubt, Humphries is worth a late 1st round pick, but its hard to say how good of a player he is. When it comes down to it, Humphries is basically a glorified jump shooter who was able to put up big numbers by being on an awful team. At 6-8, he's rather undersized for a PF, and though he has a strong looking body, its hard to project how he he'll guard NBA PF's like Rasheed Wallace or Karl Malone.

However, we've seen how good jump shooters are hard to come by, and how important they are with the new zone in the NBA. He'll definitely be worthwhile to have on the court to spread the defense out.

I was just wondering if you could tell me if anyone was looking at Anthony Myles from Xavier for the draft this year.. I went to college with him when we were both enrolled in Jr College..

Myles had a nice college career, but noting more. Over the last 2 seasons, he was very consistently around 10 points and 7 rebounds per game. But he is not really a plus player in any category, just decent all around. His lack of shot blocking ability is also a bad sign. There is very little chance he will get drafted, but with a solid 6-9 body, he should surface in a minor professional league if he wants to continue his career.

I have been browsing various mock drafts and have not seen any UT players except Mouton. What is the outlook on James Thomas, working for anyone? Also, what about Royal Ivey as a potential defensive stopper (similiar to Bruce Bowen) is he working out for any teams?

The guys you mentioned were part of a senior class that won a record 88 games for Texas (along with Brian Boddicker.) Working in reverse order, Ivey has been working out with some teams like the Hawks, Bulls and some other teams. No matter how well he performs, there is little chance of Ivey getting picked, however he should earn an invite to a team's preseason camp. With his defense and his effort, Ivey is the type of player NBA teams want in camp to push the other guys.

At 6-8, 235, Thomas had a great college body, but in the NBA its more of a question. What position would he play in the NBA where he wouldn't be overmatched. Play him small and he lacks an appropriate offensive game, as well as the ability to guard on the perimeter. Play him bigger and he lacks a go-to post up game, and his size becomes neutralized.

As far as Mouton goes, he has appeared on some mock drafts, but by now is left off of most lists. He got squeezed out by a lot of the foreign guys who became serious draft prospects in recent months. Mouton lacks a strong outside shot, and though he can score in the mid-range, he only averaged 13 ppg on 42% shooting last season. At 6-4, he's smallish for a 2 guard, and does not ever project to be good enough to trust at the point.

I was reading that Utah would possibly trade Harpring, #14 and 16 to the Bulls for #3 and either Pippen, Davis, Fizer, Robinson or Williams. As a bulls fan, I love this because they get ther SF in Harpring and possibly L.Jackson or Iguodala or Snyder for their sg. Is there something in the players that could be taken at #3 that i`m missing?

The Bulls and the Jazz are in different situations as franchises. The Jazz already have a very deep roster, which barely missed the playoffs last season. The Bulls on the other are still in the rebuilding process, and are simply looking to stock their roster with quality guys. The difference between the 3rd pick in the draft and the 14th is that with #3, you're talking about a potential future star. Below the top 12 picks or so in this draft, you're simply looking at quality NBA reserves or fringe starters, but not go-to players. The Jazz are talented enough as is, where they simply need that one more star to put them over the top. The Bulls simply need to stock their roster with quality NBA-ready talent.

Can you tell me the latest on Bryant Matthews? I have not heard much about his draft status.

Right now, Matthews is taking part in the pre-draft camp. Yesterday, he played on the same team as Nate Robinson, everyone's favorite little 5-9 point guard. The word is that Matthews' struggled yesterday, and that Robinson stole the spotlight.

Earlier in the summer, at the Portsmouth camp, Matthews was considered one of the better player in camp, and managed to score 20 points multiple times down there. Still, he has some flaws in his game which should prevent him from being drafted. These include an improbable 2 turnovers per assist last season at Virginia Tech, as well as the feeling that he sometimes takes bad shots.