THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 7, 1995 TAG: 9507040125
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 11 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, CURRENTS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
NEARLY ONE-FIFTH of the players in the 43rd annual Portsmouth Invitational Tournament were selected in the NBA draft.
Two players were chosen in the first round and 10 were picked in the second round. Three others who had committed to compete in the 64-player PIT but later withdrew also were drafted.
The first-round picks were Wyoming's Theo Ratliff and Alabama's Jason Caffey.
Ratliff, a 6-10, 220-pound center, played in the PIT for the Naval Shipyard. He was the No. 18 overall draft pick and the first choice of Detroit. At Wyoming, Ratliff had a 14.4 scoring average but, more importantly, he averaged 7 rebounds and 5.1 blocked shots.
Actually, Ratliff had a so-so performance in the PIT, but his backboard work and teamwork efforts were impressive. He scored six points in an opening loss by the Naval Shipyard, had 11 points and 11 rebounds in a victory over Sales Systems and 11 points and nine rebounds in the consolation championship game, in which the Shipyarders defeated the Portsmouth Sports Club.
The 22-year-old Ratliff ranks 20th on the NCAA's all-time shot block list.
Quite likely Caffey helped his draft status more in the PIT than anyone. Projected as a late second-round pick before playing here, Caffey was selected on the all-tournament team and caught the eye of scouts.
Caffey, a 6-8, 245-pound forward, was a member of the K-Plus team. He pulled down 35 rebounds and scored 32 points in three games, sparking K-Plus to third place.
Caffey said he came to the PIT ``to prove I can do the dirty work.''
He wasn't interested in knowing how many points he scored. He was concerned about his rebounding stats.
``That's what I came here for,'' he said. ``I want to show I can play power forward in the NBA and doing the dirty work is how I intend to get there.''
The No. 20 overall draft pick, Caffey was the top choice of the Chicago Bulls.
Those claimed in the second round of the NBA draft were Terrence Rencher of Texas, Jimmy King of Michigan, Frankie King of Western Carolina, Dwayne Whitfield of Jackson State, Erik Meek of Duke, Anthony Peele of Fresno State, Troy Brown of Providence, George Banks of Texas-El Paso, Mark Davis of Texas Tech and Michael McDonald of New Orleans.
The three who withdrew from the PIT and were drafted are Donny Marshall of Connecticut, Cuonzo Martin of Purdue and Junior Burrough of Virginia.
Meek, the PIT's most valuable player award winner, was the No. 41 draft pick. He went to Houston by way of Dallas.
The 6-10 Meek snagged 43 rebounds in leading Beach/Barton Ford to the PIT title. It was the third-highest rebound effort in tournament history. And Meek played the last two games with a broken nose, injured early in the semifinal round.
In addition to Caffey and Meek, Jimmy King, Pelle and Banks were chosen on the All-PIT team. The all-consolation team, consisting of players whose teams dropped in the losers' bracket, included Frankie King, Brown and Rencher.
``When you eliminate the underclassmen who were selected, the players from foreign countries and those who did not participate in any post-season games, I think PIT players made a strong showing in the draft,'' said PIT chairman Mahlon Parker.
``Our selection committee got a little rankled during the draft on television because everybody kept referring to us as `the Portsmouth camp' instead of the Portsmouth Invitational. But I guess we are a camp to the NBA folks. Anyway, we were pleased with our showing in the draft. It continues to show the high caliber of our tournament.'' ILLUSTRATION: PIT PLAYERS IN THE '95 NBS DRAFT
Players who competed in the 1995 PIT, their college team and the NBA
club that drafted them:
[For a copy of the list of players, see microfilm for this date.]
Theo Ratliff, a 6-10, 220-pound center, played in the PIT for the
Naval Shipyard. He was a first-round pick and No. 18 in the NBA
draft. But he was Detroit's first choice.
by CNB