Stepping out

Sporting News, The, July 7, 1997 by Dave D'Alessandro

Now that this surreptitious bit of business known as the NBA draft has been consigned into history, we hereby nominate Rick Pitino as its Man of Distinction. In the span of 48 hours, the Boston boss managed to:

1. Make everybody in Chicago reach for their Maalox over a proposed Scottie Pippen deal.

2. Send out a hundred transparent smoke screens regarding the suitability of Ron Mercer for the NBA.

3. Screw up one deal by sending damaged goods to Philadelphia (your seat is still warm, Dino Radja).

4. Hold up an eight-player deal between the 76ers and Nets for a day by filing a grievance (regarding Radja) that had no chance of being upheld.

5. Draft a new backcourt--a potentially great one, in fact--at the end of the day. Which, by the way, could have been accomplished without all the other histrionics.

Welcome back to the bias, Coach. Back where you belong.

Other than that, the draft provided few surprises and the usual assortment of winners and losers who will delude themselves into thinking they're winners. Only one team, however, can be certain of what it has--that being the Spurs--and the rest can simply be gratified by the fact they don't have to spend $50 million on unproven commodities anymore.

Here's a rundown of how each team did last week:

The winners

Boston. What's not to like? Pitino has brought in the best point guard in the draft (Chauncey Billups) and arguably its best shooting guard (Ron Mercer), and with any luck, he might have a team that's as good as the one he had two years ago. But the Celtics are still a few frontcourt bodies from .500.

Cleveland. Say farewell to the Jurassic era. Although it's unclear what this team will look like by summer's end, the additions of Derek Anderson and Brevin Knight are clear indications the Cavaliers are changing the tempo in Rock 'n' Roll City. They still have the money to go after center Brian Williams, and if they can get a small forward (probably by trading Tyrone Hill) to replace the soon-to-depart Chris Mills, they're in business. But right now, the only small forward under contract is Donny Marshall.

Denver. The Nuggets acted boldly, but then, they had to. In one evening, vice president of basketball operations Allan Bristow added Tony Battie, Danny Fortson (from the Bucks), and Bobby Jackson (from the Sonics)--three guys who were ranked in the top 20 in recent weeks and who might start immediately. Bravo, Bristow. But you still need a point guard, which Jackson is not.

Golden State. The third rebuilding plan in four years is off to a decent start. The awful power rotation doe Smith, Felton Spencer, Todd Fuller and Andrew DeClerq) became bigger and more athletic when the Warriors picked 6-10 Adonal Foyle out of Colgate in the first round and 6-10 Marc Jackson out of Temple in the second. But the team is still a few trades from starting next season with any renewed confidence.

Indiana. The Pacers will be totally restructured by November, with Rik Smits still a possibility to be dealt (perhaps to the Nets). They're thinking of using Austin Croshere at small forward--a shaky proposition, because he has never defended on the perimeter--but that's probably a short-term move until they can trade one of the Davises.

Minnesota. We could be way off on this one, but late scouting reports all agreed center Paul Grant out of Wisconsin runs extremely well and has good skills for a 7-footer. He should crack this rotation, especially if the Timberwolves plan no further upgrades to their center rotation outside of the lateral Stoyko Vrankovic-for-Stanley Roberts trade last week. But they still can't afford to let Dean Garrett walk.

New Jersey. The Nets belong in this category, for now. They got what they wanted by trading for Keith Van Horn, the No. 2 overall pick. But at what cost? They gave up three starters (Eric Montross, Jim Jackson end Tim Thomas, the No. 7 pick) and virtually all of their cap space, and they still have three major holes in their lineup. The first order of business is getting guard Sam Cassell to re-sign; after that they must find some power players to replace Jayson Williams and Chris Gatling, both of whom will not return. The nucleus (Van Horn, Kendall Gill, Kerry Kittles) is athletic, and one day may be great. But if Van Horn isn't the real deal and John Calipari fails to find a center, this could get ugly.

Sacramento. From one St. Jean to another. Forward Olivier Saint-Jean, 6-6, is a nice catch: He is athletic and versatile, he works like mad, and he gives the Kings an excellent excuse never to play Billy Owens again.

San Antonio. Tim Duncan comes in like the avenging angel with a flaming sword, transforming a battered, humiliated 20-win team into an instant title contender. "He's going to help us get back to where we were in the past," G.M. and coach Gregg Popovich crows. Actually, they're even better.

Toronto. The Raptors are in no hurry, so Tracy McGrady can be brought along at a leisurely pace on a team that will show the requisite patience. The perfect place for an 18-year-old.