Knicks traded picks for the quick fix

Sporting News, The, July 8, 2002 by Sean Deveney

Pondering the biggest deal of draft night, the one that sent Nuggets power forward Antonio McDyess and rookie point guard Frank Williams to the Knicks for Marcus Camby, Mark Jackson and draftee Maybyner "Nene" Hilario, there seemed to be only one reasonable conclusion: Bizarre, yes, but the Knicks did pretty well for themselves. You might even call them draft night winners. Imagine that.

Of course, how the trade rates depends on what the goal is. Is it to get to The Finals or to lift the team out of last season's misery and back into the excitement of mediocrity and the Eastern Conference playoff scrum that comes with it? With McDyess, who is coming off knee surgery, the Knicks probably can get back to winning 43 to 48 games. But McDyess never has been the kind of player who can impose his will on a team--he never led the Nuggets to the postseason--and there is some question about how he will handle playing in New York.

Still, the Knicks improved. They might have been better off trying to rebuild, but the organization lacks the patience for that, so it is back to the middle of the postseason pack they go. Call them a semi-winner.

Now, for the real draft night winners and losers:

Winners

Golden State. The drafting of small forward Mike Dunleavy settles the question of where to play flip-flopping forward Antawn Jamison--power forward, period. That was easy. The Warriors also needed point guard help, either to back up Gilbert Arenas or to start ahead of him. They were wise to trade into Philadelphia's 16th spot, just ahead of a bundle of teams in need of a point guard. Czech guard Jiri Welsch probably would have gone to the Wizards at No. 17 if the Warriors had not slipped in ahead of them. The Wizards were considering taking Welsch with the 11th pick. The Warriors added Cincinnati point guard Steve Logan in the second round.

L.A. Lakers. Though just weeks removed from winning their third straight championship, the Lakers are a team with needs. For one thing, Lindsey Hunter was a flop. For another thing, the Lakers need a shooter. By the end of draft night, Los Angeles addressed both problems, trading Hunter and No. 27 pick Chris Jefferies to Toronto for Tracy Murray and 20th pick Kareem Rush, one of the draft's best shooters. Hunter is gone, and once Rush learns the triangle offense, he will give the Lakers a deep threat. Murray probably won't get off the bench much, and he makes about $500,000 more than Hunter. That adds to the cost-conscious Lakers' payroll, but Murray's contract ends after next season.

Miami. Caron Butler frequently was compared with Celtics swingman Paul Pierce before the draft, and during the draft, Butler did a good Pierce impression. In 1998, Pierce dropped all the way to the 10th pick as teams in the early part of the draft went primarily for big men. In 2002, Butler slipped to No. 10 for the same reason. The Heat was blessed to have Butler fall that far. Miami scooped him up, as any sane team that had been giving regular minutes to Kendall Gill and Jim Jackson would have done. Maybe coach Pat Riley is kicking himself for not getting involved in this draft thing more often.

Losers

Qyntel Woods. Sizing up NBA prospects off the court goes something like this: A staff lackey makes phone calls to coaches and athletic directors, asking basic questions about potential draftees, such as "Is he a team player?" "How is his work ethic?" and "Has he ever been photographed in a hot tub with Freddy the Fixer?" Taking orders from those lackeys are more lackeys, who call everyone who ever came in contact with the kid--athletic office secretaries, equipment managers, strength coaches, high school guidance counselors, AAU teammates. If there are enough questions about a player, some teams retain a private investigator. When Woods slipped to No. 21, the presumption was that his candid admission of having smoked marijuana in high school hurt him. Not necessarily. "No team is going to not take him because he smoked pot," says one assistant coach. "There's more to it. Teams got scared. You look pretty deep into these guys. Sometimes you don't like what you see"

Cleveland and the L.A. Clippers. Somehow, by the end of draft night, Andre Miller still was a Cavalier. Meanwhile, the Clippers amassed a frontcourt of Michael Olowokandi, Elton Brand, Darius Miles, Corey Maggette, Lamar Odom and rookies Melvin Ely and Chris Wilcox. Those aren't Clippers; they're a freakin' armada. Of course, there's no way L.A. can find minutes for all those players--and they do not intend to. Apparently, as one source says, the Clippers and Cavaliers had been working on a deal to send Miller to the Clippers for one of the Clippers' forwards and their two first-round picks. The deal had not been made, though, when the Clippers were on the clock to use their eighth pick. They phoned in their choice, Wilcox, just as the Cavaliers called to say that they'd trade Miller if the Clippers chose Butler. Oops! Now, if the Clippers and Cavs can work out a deal over the summer, or if the Clippers can pry Baron Davis from New Orleans, the "loser" status changes.