Draft Order Is Restored in the NBA

As expected, LeBron James began the most hyped, if not yet the greatest, career in NBA history Thursday, after which the foreign invasion began in earnest.

James’ selection a month out of high school was a foregone conclusion in the NBA draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers having jubilantly broken with tradition to announce they would take him when they drew the No. 1 pick. Nevertheless, Thursday’s event, held in New York’s Madison Square Garden before an audience of rowdy Knick fans chanting to have Knick General Manager Scott Layden fired, marked James’ rite of passage from adored amateur to targeted pro.

Not that anyone seems too worried about protecting him from expectations. The Cavaliers brought a No. 23 uniform top to the draft for him, Michael Jordan’s number.

This whole event was about James. When other players were paraded before the media, they were asked about LeBron too.

James was poised as usual, refusing to be baited into a declaration that he would consider his first season a waste if he isn’t rookie of the year, laughing when asked about Carmelo Anthony’s claim to be the best player there.

“Don’t make me answer that question,” James said at Wednesday’s pre-draft press session, breaking up. “Carmelo, I don’t know ... I don’t know how to answer that question.”

Said Miami-bound Dwyane Wade: “LeBron’s cool. He’s just like the rest of us. He just got a little more attention and a little more money in the bank.”

Thursday’s draft began roughly as projected, with the Nos. 1, 2 (Darko Milicic to Detroit), 3 (Anthony to Denver) and 4 (Chris Bosh to Toronto) picks rolling off, according to the consensus.

Miami sprang a mild surprise at No. 5, drafting Wade, leaving center Chris Kaman for the No. 6 Clippers, who will need one with Michael Olowokandi on his way out.

The Lakers, drafting further back, wound up with value, although it remains to be seen just how valuable their picks turn out. At No. 24, they got a fallen star, Illinois’ Brian Cook, who was projected for the lottery and included among the 15 invitees in the green room. Three picks into the second round, they drafted Arizona’s Luke Walton, a rare playmaking forward.

It was actually a good night for college seniors, with three (Kansas’ Kirk Hinrich, and Nick Collison and Nevada Las Vegas’ Marcus Banks) getting into the lottery and six more -- Cook, Xavier’s David West, Wake Forest’s Josh Howard, Louisville’s Reece Gaines, Boston College’s Troy Bell and Duke’s Dahntay Jones -- going in the first round.

Nevertheless, the pendulum continued to swing heavily toward teens (Bosh was the oldest of the top four picks at 19 years 3 months) and foreigners, with eight going in the first round, breaking last season’s record of six.

Serbian prodigy Milicic and French guard Mickael Pietrus went in the lottery, followed later in the round by two more Serbs, another Frenchman, a Croatian, an Argentine and a Brazilian.

It’s still a predominantly American event, but the margin isn’t what it used to be.

Here’s how it went.

1. Cleveland -- James. Big surprise.

2. Detroit -- Milicic. ESPN’s Dick Vitale, who prefers NCAA players (guess why), even if they’re just one-and-done, wailed about passing up Anthony. Of course, Vitale has been out of pro ball a long time and may have forgotten what a 6-11 1/2 center is worth, even if you have to wait a season or two.

3. Denver -- Anthony.

4. Toronto -- Bosh. After trying to trade the pick right up to the draft, General Manager Glen Grunwald figured out what everyone else knew: this 6-10 1/4 freshman may be slight but may become special.

5. Miami -- Wade. The Heat has wing players (Caron Butler, Eddie Jones) but Pat Riley must be one of those who sees Sidney Moncrief in the does-it-all-but-shoot Wade.

6. Clippers -- Kaman. They had to do it with Olowokandi outbound. Of course, Olowokandi wants to stay, is way better and his price has dropped sharply, but the owner won’t hear of it.

7. Chicago -- Hinrich. Rookie GM John Paxson, set to take Wade or Pietrus, changed his mind at the last moment and did the smart thing, taking a solid point guard with Jay Williams out and Jamal Crawford acting erratically.

8. Milwaukee -- T.J. Ford. Another Vitale protege. Lots of pros love Ford too, even if it looks like madness. He’s tiny and until he learns to shoot, defenders can fall back and take away his penetration.

9. New York -- Michael Sweetney. Another runty (6-7 1/4) power forward to go with 6-7 Othella Harrington and 6-5 Clarence Weatherspoon. However, they got 6-10 Maciej Lampe, a projected first-rounder, in the second round after a late-breaking contract issue with Real Madrid frightened everyone off.

10. Washington -- Jarvis Hayes. Had a burnout workout for them, and lots of people like him.

11. Golden State -- Pietrus. ESPN pundits tore them every way but loose but if Gilbert Arenas leaves, as expected, they’re starting over. They don’t think much of Jason Richardson, and Pietrus, who plays that position, has breakout potential.

12. Seattle -- Collison. Their big forwards (Rashard Lewis, Vladimir Radmanovic) don’t want to play inside. Collison isn’t as big (6-8 3/4) but will at least try.

13. Memphis -- Banks, who was then traded, along with Kendrick Perkins, to Boston for Jones and Bell, neither of whom was considered a first-rounder.

14. Seattle -- Luke Ridnour. Surprise, since the bigger Gaines was generally rated higher.

15. Orlando -- Gaines. They’re ecstatic, since they were one of the teams that had Gaines rated higher.

16. Boston -- Bell, who went to Memphis for the point guard they wanted, Banks, an imposing athlete but a question mark as a playmaker and shooter.

17. Phoenix -- Zarko Cabarkapa. They did give him a promise, after all. Young, tall (6-10) and skilled, he might be something ... but probably not for a while.

18. New Orleans -- David West. Small (6-8 1/4, 226) power forward who has one admirer, anyway.

19. Utah -- Aleksandar Pavlovic. Of course, their outside shooters won’t get the same looks with John Stockton gone and Karl Malone ready to follow.

20. Boston -- Jones, who went to Memphis.

21. Atlanta -- Boris Diaw. Usual shaky decision-making. He was thought to have fallen off the first round.

22. New Jersey -- Zoran Planinic. With Jason Kidd announcing he’ll visit San Antonio, the good times are obviously over and it’s time to start restocking the point guard position.

23. Portland -- Travis Outlaw. You’ve got love this one. Lame-duck GM Bob Whitsitt goes for it to the end, drafting another prep with a Jail Blazer-style name. Several of Whitsitt’s longshots came in and this one could too, although Trader Bob will be long gone.

24. Lakers -- Cook dropped on old questions about toughness, but if he’s tough enough, this is a coup. If Walton’s shooting improves, their second-round pick isn’t bad, either.

25. Detroit -- Carlos Delfino. No biggie. May stay in Europe.

26. Minnesota -- Ndudi Ebi. Another talented prep wing player who could be something ... one day. Another pick that must have Vitale in agony.

27. Memphis -- Perkins, an overweight (6-11, 285) prep, sent to the Celtics.

28. San Antonio -- Leandrinho Barbosa, who was traded to Phoenix for a future pick as the Spurs save $500,000, perhaps hoping to sign a big man to go with Kidd.

29. Dallas -- Howard. Don Nelson keeps his record intact of never doing one thing anyone ever predicted he would.

*

As expected, LeBron James began the most hyped, if not yet the greatest, career in NBA history Thursday, after which the foreign invasion began in earnest.

James’ selection a month out of high school was a foregone conclusion in the NBA draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers having jubilantly broken with tradition to announce they would take him when they drew the No. 1 pick. Nevertheless, Thursday’s event, held in New York’s Madison Square Garden before an audience of rowdy Knick fans chanting to have Knick General Manager Scott Layden fired, marked James’ rite of passage from adored amateur to targeted pro.

Not that anyone seems too worried about protecting him from expectations. The Cavaliers brought a No. 23 uniform top to the draft for him, Michael Jordan’s number.

This whole event was about James. When other players were paraded before the media, they were asked about LeBron too.

James was poised as usual, refusing to be baited into a declaration that he would consider his first season a waste if he isn’t rookie of the year, laughing when asked about Carmelo Anthony’s claim to be the best player there.

“Don’t make me answer that question,” said James at Wednesday’s pre-draft press session, breaking up. “Carmelo, I don’t know ... I don’t know how to answer that question.”

Said Miami-bound Dwyane Wade: “LeBron’s cool. He’s just like the rest of us. He just got a little more attention and a little more money in the bank.”

Thursday’s draft began roughly as projected, with the Nos. 1, 2 (Darko Milicic to Detroit), 3 (Anthony to Denver) and 4 (Chris Bosh to Toronto) picks rolling off, according to the consensus.

Miami sprang a mild surprise at No. 5, drafting Wade, leaving center Chris Kaman for the No. 6 Clippers, who will need one with Michael Olowokandi on his way out.

The Lakers, drafting further back, wound up with value, although it remains to be seen just how valuable their picks turn out. At No. 24, they got a fallen star, Illinois’ Brian Cook, who was projected for the lottery and included among the 15 invitees in the green room. Three picks into the second round, they drafted Arizona’s Luke Walton, a rare playmaking forward.

It was actually a good night for college seniors, with three (Kansas’ Kirk Hinrich, and Nick Collison and Nevada Las Vegas’ Marcus Banks) getting into the lottery and six more -- Cook, Xavier’s David West, Wake Forest’s Josh Howard, Louisville’s Reece Gaines, Boston College’s Troy Bell and Duke’s Dahntay Jones -- going in the first round.

Nevertheless, the pendulum continued to swing heavily toward teens (Bosh was the oldest of the top four picks at 19 years 3 months) and foreigners, with eight going in the first round, breaking last season’s record of six.

Serbian prodigy Milicic and French guard Mickael Pietrus went in the lottery, followed later in the round by two more Serbs, another Frenchman, a Croatian, an Argentine and a Brazilian.

It’s still a predominantly American event, but the margin isn’t what it used to be.

Here’s how it went.

1. Cleveland -- James. Big surprise.

2. Detroit -- Milicic. ESPN’s Dick Vitale, who prefers NCAA players (guess why), even if they’re just one-and-done, wailed about passing up Anthony. Of course, Vitale has been out of pro ball a long time and may have forgotten what a 6-11 1/2 center is worth, even if you have to wait a season or two.

3. Denver -- Anthony.

4. Toronto -- Bosh. After trying to trade the pick right up to the draft, General Manager Glen Grunwald figured out what everyone else knew: this 6-10 1/4 freshman may be slight but may become special.

5. Miami -- Wade. The Heat has wing players (Caron Butler, Eddie Jones) but Pat Riley must be one of those who sees Sidney Moncrief in the does-it-all-but-shoot Wade.

6. Clippers -- Kaman. They had to do it with Olowokandi outbound. Of course, Olowokandi wants to stay, is way better and his price has dropped sharply, but the owner won’t hear of it.

7. Chicago -- Hinrich. Rookie GM John Paxson, set to take Wade or Pietrus, changed his mind at the last moment and did the smart thing, taking a solid point guard with Jay Williams out and Jamal Crawford acting erratically.

8. Milwaukee -- T.J. Ford. Another Vitale protege. Lots of pros love Ford, too, even if it looks like madness. He’s tiny and until he learns to shoot, defenders can fall back and take away his penetration.

9. New York -- Michael Sweetney. Another runty (6-7 1/4) power forward to go with 6-7 Othella Harrington and 6-5 Clarence Weatherspoon. However, they got 6-10 Maciej Lampe, a projected first rounder, in the second round after a late-breaking contract issue with Real Madrid frightened everyone off.

10. Washington -- Jarvis Hayes. Had a burnout workout for them and lots of people like him.

11. Golden State -- Pietrus. ESPN pundits tore them every way but loose but if Gilbert Arenas leaves, as expected, they’re starting over. They don’t think much of Jason Richardson, and Pietrus, who plays that position, has breakout potential.

12. Seattle -- Collison. Their big forwards (Rashard Lewis, Vladimir Radmanovic) don’t want to play inside. Collison isn’t as big (6-8 3/4) but will at least try.

13. Memphis -- Banks, who was then traded, along with Kendrick Perkins, to Boston for Jones and Bell, neither of whom was considered a first rounder.

14. Seattle -- Luke Ridnour. Surprise, since the bigger Gaines was generally rated higher.

15. Orlando -- Gaines. They’re ecstatic, since they were one of the teams that had Gaines rated higher.

16. Boston -- Bell, who went to Memphis for the point guard they wanted, Banks, an imposing athlete but a question mark as a playmaker and shooter.

17. Phoenix -- Zarko Cabarkapa. They did give him a promise, after all. Young, tall (6-10) and skilled, he might be something ... but probably not for a while.

18. New Orleans -- David West. Small (6-8 1/4, 226) power forward who has one admirer, anyway.

19. Utah -- Aleksandar Pavlovic. Of course, their outside shooters won’t get the same looks with John Stockton gone and Karl Malone ready to follow.

20. Boston -- Jones, who went to Memphis.

21. Atlanta -- Boris Diaw. Usual shaky decision-making. He was thought to have fallen off the first round.

22. New Jersey -- Zoran Planinic. With Jason Kidd announcing he’ll visit San Antonio, the good times are obviously over and it’s time to start restocking the point guard position.

23. Portland -- Travis Outlaw. You’ve got love this one. Lame-duck GM Bob Whitsitt goes for it to the end, drafting another prep with a Jail Blazer-style name. Several of Whitsitt’s long shots came in and this one could, too, although Trader Bob will be long gone.

24. Lakers -- Cook dropped on old questions about toughness but if he’s tough enough, this is a coup. If Walton’s shooting improves, their second-round pick isn’t bad, either.

25. Detroit -- Carlos Delfino. No biggie. May stay in Europe.

26. Minnesota -- Ndudi Ebi. Another talented prep wing player who could be something ... one day. Another pick that must have Vitale in agony.

27. Memphis -- Perkins, an overweight (6-11, 285) prep, sent to the Celtics.

28. San Antonio -- Leandrinho Barbosa, who was traded to Phoenix for a future pick as the Spurs save $500,000, perhaps hoping to sign a big man to go with Kidd.

29. Dallas -- Howard. Don Nelson keeps his record intact of never doing one thing anyone ever predicted he would.

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

NBA Draft

*--* FIRST ROUND Team Player Pos 1. Cleveland LeBron James G 2. Detroit Darko Milicic F/C 3. Denver Carmelo Anthony F 4. Toronto Chris Bosh F 5. Miami Dwyane Wade G 6. Clippers Chris Kaman C 7. Chicago Kirk Hinrich G 8. Milwaukee T.J. Ford G 9. New York Michael Sweetney F 10. Washington Jarvis Hayes F 11. Golden St Mickael Pietrus G 12. Seattle Nick Collison F 13. Memphis* Marcus Banks G 14. Seattle Luke Ridnour G 15. Orlando Reece Gaines G 16. Boston* Troy Bell G 17. Phoenix Zarko Cabarkapa F 18. New Orleans David West F 19. Utah Aleksandar Pavlovic F 20. Boston* Dahntay Jones G 21. Atlanta Boris Diaw F 22. New Jersey Zoran Planinic G 23. Portland Travis Outlaw F 24. Lakers Brian Cook F 25. Detroit Carlos Delfino G 26. Minnesota Ndudi Ebi F 27. Memphis* Kendrick Perkins F 28. San Antonio{circ} Leandrinho Barbosa G 29. Dallas Josh Howard F *-Memphis and Boston traded selections. {circ}-Traded rights to Phoenix SECOND ROUND 32. Lakers Luke Walton G 34. Clippers Sofoklis Schortsanitis F

*--*

*

NBA DRAFT: FIRST ROUND AT A GLANCE

COMMENTS BY HANS TESSELAAR AND PAUL NETTER

No..... Team..... Player... Cl... P... Ht... Wt... From... Comment

1. Cleveland LeBron James -- G 6-7 1/4 245 Akron (Ohio) St. Vincent-St. Mary High No pressure, but ESPN’s Greg Anthony says he’s a Hall of Famer if healthy.

2. Detroit -a Darko Milicic -- F/C 6-11 1/2 250 Hemofarm Vrsac (Serbia and Montenegro) David Stern thinks he and James will save the East. We’ll see.

3. Denver Carmelo Anthony Fr F 6-6 1/2 233 Syracuse The anti-LeBron? No, he just thinks he’s better.

4. Toronto Chris Bosh Fr F 6-10 1/4 225 Georgia Tech Perhaps after losing McGrady, Raptors liked talk of McGrady-like upside.

5. Miami Dwayne Wade Jr G 6-3 212 Marquette Could be this season’s Caron Butler, which would be great since he’s playing with him.

6. CLIPPERS Chris Kaman Jr C 6-11 1/2 255 Central Michigan The clock is ticking ... but this time on his days as a Clipper.

7. Chicago Kirk Hinrich Sr G 6-2 3/4 186 Kansas Pretty obvious choice with Jay Williams’ career in doubt.

8. Milwaukee-b T.J. Ford So G 5-11 162 Texas Ford, Cassell and Payton in the backcourt? We don’t think so.

9. New York Michael Sweetney Jr F 6-7 1/4 262 Georgetown Size matters, as this undersized power forward could learn.

10. Washington Jarvis Hayes Jr F 6-6 220 Georgia A rare college scorer who knows how to play without the basketball.

11. Golden State Mickael Pius -- G 6-5 210 Pau Orthez (France) Aggressive Frenchman, but what about Jason Richardson?

12. Seattle Nick Collison Sr F 6-8 3/4 255 Kansas Welcome to NBA’s best position -- Duncan, Webber, Garnett, Nowitzki, Madsen.

13. Memphis-c Marcus Banks Sr G 6-1 1/2 215 Nevada Las Vegas His rights, along with Kendrick Perkins, shipped to Boston for Troy Bell, Dahntay Jones.

14. Seattle-d Luke Ridnour Jr G 6-1 167 Oregon Seattle’s kind of player on offense, but there are big questions on defense.

15. Orlando Reece Gaines Sr G 6-5 205 Louisville Impressive shooter, but the Magic needs help on the inside.

16. Boston Troy Bell Sr G 6-2 178 Boston College Danny Ainge’s first deal as Celtic general manager is with Mr. Laker, Jerry West.

17. Phoenix Zarko Cabarkapa -- F 6-10 235 Buducnost (Serbia and Montenegro) Needs to add strength, but can stretch defenses with his jump shot.

18. New Orleans David West Sr F 6-8 1/4 226 Xavier This move could mean P.J. Brown wears another jersey next season -- perhaps purple and gold.

19. Utah Aleksandar Pavlovic -- F 6-6 210 Buducnost (Serbia and Montenegro) Great shooter, but shots will be a lot tougher to get if both Stockton and Malone are gone.

20. Boston-e Dahntay Jones Sr G 6-6 1/4 214 Duke Very athletic, but not much of a shooter or ball-handler.

21. Atlanta-f Boris Diaw -- F 6-8 203 Pau Orthez (France) Hawks didn’t have to go all the way to France to keep going in the wrong direction.

22. New Jersey Zoran Planinic -- G 6-6 195 Cibona Zagreb (Croatia) Tall Croatian point guard who many thought would go higher.

23. Portland Travis Outlaw -- F 6-9 210 Starksville (Mississippi) High Could there be a better name for a Trail Blazer?

24. LAKERS Brian Cook Sr F 6-9 1/2 234 Illinois At best, he’ll help. At worst, he’ll replace Samaki Walker.

25. Doit-g Carlos Delfino -- G 6-5 230 Skipper Bologna (Italy) Pistons would love if he played like countryman Manu Ginobili.

26. Minnesota Ndudi Ebi -- F 6-8 195 Houston Westbury Christian High Timberwolves finally have another first-round pick and it’s a reach.

27. Memphis-h Kendrick Perkins -- F 6-11 285 Beaumont (Texas) Ozen High He could be a baby Shaq -- or a baby Tractor Traylor.

28. San Antonio Leandrinho Barbosa -- G 6-3 176 Bauru Tilibra (Brazil) Champions send his rights to Suns for future first-round pick.

29. Dallas Josh Howard Sr F 6-6 1/2 202 Wake Forest Coach Don Nelson is at his unpredictable best again.

a-from Memphis; b-from Atlanta; c-from Houston; d-from Milwaukee; e-from Philadelphia; f-from Indiana; g-from Doit through Sacramento; h-from Sacramento through Orlando

*

SECOND ROUND AT A GLANCE

*--* No Team Player P Ht Wt From 30 New York-a Maciej F 6-10 240 Universidad Lampe Complutense (Spain) 31 Cleveland Jason F 6-8 215 UCLA Kapono 32 Lakers-b Luke Walton F 6-8 245 Arizona 33 Miami Jerome C 6-10 242 North Dakota Beasley 34 Clippers Sofoklis F 6-8 3/4 285 Iraklis (Greece) Schortsani tis 35 Milwaukee-c Szymon F 6-9 240 Braunschweig (Germany) Szewczyk 36 Chicago Mario F 6-9 260 Mississippi State Austin 37 Atlanta Travis G 6-5 1/2 210 Brigham Young Hansen 38 Washington Steve Blake G 6-3 160 Maryland 39 New York Slavko C 7-4 279 Buducnost (Serbia and Vranes Montenegro) 40 Golden St Derrick G 6-3 195 Mississippi State Zimmerman 41 Seattle Willie G 6-4 204 Detroit Green-j 42 Orlando Zaur F 6-11 205 Ulker (Turkey) Pachulia 43 Milwaukee Keith G 6-5 213 Kentucky Bogans-k 44 Houston Malick F 6-11 225 Langen (Germany) Badiane 45 Chicago-d Matt F 6-10 237 Florida Bonner-l 46 Denver-e Sani G 6-5 197 Vitrus Bologna (Italy) Becirovic 47 Utah Maurice G 6-1 183 Alabama Williams 48 New Orleans James Lang F 6-8 1/4 316 Central Park Christian HS (Ala.) 49 Indiana James Jones F 6-8 225 Miami (Fla.) 50 Philadelphia Paccelis G 6-3 -- Dijon (France) Morende 51 New Jersey Kyle Korver F 6-7 210 Creighton 52 Toronto-f Remon Van C 7-3 -- FC Barcelona (Spain) de Hare 53 Chicago-g Tommy Smith F 6-10 215 Arizona State 54 Portland Nedzad C 7-1 -- Zenica Celik (Bosnia) Sinanovic 55 Minnesota Rick F 6-11 216 Minnesota Rickert 56 Boston-h Brandon F 6-7 260 Ohio Hunter 57 Dallas Xue Yuyang C 7-0 210 China 58 Detroit-i Andreas C 7-1 280 Greece Gliniadaki s

*--*

a-from Denver; b-from Toronto; c-from Memphis; d-from Phoenix; e-from Boston; f-from Lakers; g-from Detroit through Miami; h-from Sacramento; i-from San Antonio.

TRADES: j-to Philadelphia for the rights to G Paccelis Moriende and cash; k-to Orlando for cash; l-to Philadelphia for cash