Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 23, 1993 TAG: 9305230031
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: Long
Lotteries in most states have three to six winning numbers. The winning number in today's NBA Draft lottery could be 7-6.
That's the height of Shawn Bradley, who set the NCAA freshman shot-blocking record for Brigham Young University two years ago, then went on a Mormon mission to Australia.
Rather than return to BYU for another year or two of developing his game, Bradley chose to make himself available to play in the NBA with guys closer to his size, like 7-7 Manute Bol and 7-4 Rik Smits.
That brings to mind the question going through the minds of the player personnel directors of the 11 non-playoff teams in the lottery.
Is this guy Bradley another Bol, or is he another Bill Russell who's nine inches taller?
Bol, of course, has blocked a lot of shots and has played eight years in the NBA as a second-round pick. But, as Charles Barkley once said of him, Bol has trouble scoring and rebounding when he's working out alone.
Bradley, however, is pegged as a different kind of 7-6. Despite his one year at BYU and two years of little basketball work, it's said that Bradley is "Manute Bol with skills."
Most of the 11 lottery teams are non-committal about who they would take if their lottery ping-pong ball comes up No. 1.
"He's not just a shot-blocker," said Golden State general manager-coach Don Nelson, who's been looking for a center-savior for years. "He's got great hands, he can pass, he can score from outside or in the box and he can make free throws. He's an amazing tall person. I don't think we've ever seen a guy like him in the league."
"If we win, we won't be holding up a jersey with anyone's name on it," Sacramento general manager Jerry Reynolds said. "But whoever gets the first pick has to consider Shawn Bradley. He's 7-6 and people don't start shrinking until their 60s. He might even play that long. At 7-6, you might slow down, but you won't get any shorter. His weight and strength are a factor, but they can be improved. Height can't be improved."
Bradley is listed at 235 pounds, 65 less than 7-1 Rookie of the Year Shaquille O'Neal, for whom everyone brought a jersey to the lottery in 1992. Reports have surfaced of a 40-pound weight gain in Australia, but they haven't been confirmed.
"More than any player in recent years, he's going to have to prove himself in workouts with the teams that finish high in the lottery," Reynolds said.
Another team very high on Bradley is the Milwaukee Bucks.
"We would have to find a very good reason not to take him," Bucks player personnel director Lee Rose said. "There would have to be a major red flag come up in interviews or workouts. There's no question he's destined to be a player in the NBA. He's not just 7-6."
Bradley and Michigan's Chris Webber are two of five undergraduates who will be drafted high by lottery teams. They are joined by Jamal Mashburn of Kentucky, Anfernee Hardaway of Memphis State and Rodney Rogers of Wake Forest.
The top seniors could be Calbert Cheaney of Indiana and J.R. Rider, who played just two years at UNLV.
"It's a unique situation where the top five picks might be undergraduates," said Washington assistant general manager, Chuck Douglas. "None of the top seven players, other than Cheaney, played four years."
Douglas was typical of the lottery teams when he said, "We're not quite ready to commit ourselves. If we get one of the top three picks, we'll watch every game Bradley's played, bring him in to work out and use every ounce of time we have. Here's a guy who could be the next Kareem Abdul-Jabbar who's four inches taller, or the next Manute Bol."
The 11 teams in the lottery each will have a number of ping-pong balls with their team logos. Three balls will be drawn from a bin, determining the top three picks in the NBA draft on June 30, with the rest of the teams drafting in reverse order of record.
Dallas, the worst team in the NBA with an 11-71 record this season, has 11 balls; Minnesota, the next worst at 19-63, has 10 balls; Washington, at 22-60, has nine; and so on down to Orlando, the best non-playoff team at 41-41, with one ball.
Sacramento has eight balls, Philadelphia seven, Milwaukee six, Golden State five, Denver four, Miami three and Detroit two. The Pistons, because of a past trade, will get the Heat's pick unless it's one of the top three.
"If we win the lottery, it will be like World War III breaking out with Switzerland winning," Magic general manager Pat Williams said. "Our ball is totally overmatched."
Center is not a problem for Williams because he won the lottery a year ago and drafted O'Neal, but he said he's looking forward to today.
"It's the Super Bowl of the teams that didn't make the playoffs," he said.
Rick Majerus, coach at the University of Utah, has a warning for any lottery team thinking of skipping Bradley:
"The biggest mistake since not drafting Michael Jordan would be passing on Shawn Bradley."
by CNB