Professional sports drafts mark the culture of sports today. They don’t impact leagues immediately, but they fascinate fans. They attract the bright lights of TV and pique media interest.
Why not? There’s room for speculation and hope, plus plenty of endorsement deals and shoe contracts.
The NBA Draft, which runs Thursday night in New York, is the most exciting and relevant of all the pro drafts. The selections have already received the spotlight; everyone knows their names. Many of the players are ready to compete right away.
This year’s draft is especially intriguing. They’re calling it the best ever.
At the top, it’s the classic, prototype center Greg Oden, versus the wonder kid, 6-foot-9-inch Kevin Durant.
Both are headed to the Pacific Northwest. Portland has the first pick, and will probably choose Oden. Seattle should feel lucky to get Durant, an unprecedented talent, at the No. 2 spot.
Then there’s the contingent of Florida Gators that Bruin fans know all too well. Forward Al Horford, who’s powerful rebounding left UCLA helpless in Atlanta, will be the first selected. Corey Brewer, the slick small forward who locked down UCLA’s Arron Afflalo, and Joakim Noah, the loud center, will be among the top 10 picks.
Atlanta would be smart to take Horford third; he’s NBA-ready, and the team can fill its point guard hole with the 11th overall pick. Brewer will be a solid defender immediately and if he can hone the jump shot he used to torch UCLA, he’ll start as a rookie. The Celtics will grab him if he’s there at No. 5. Noah is harder to evaluate. He can’t shoot at all, but he is tenacious and should be a top 10 pick.
As always, there’s a mysterious international prospect in the mix. Yi Jianlian is a 7-footer from China. His age is a mystery, and in many ways his ability is too. He has refused to work out against other prospects, but has still managed to wow NBA general managers. Sacramento would love to add him if he falls to them at the 10th pick.
And even as the draft wanes and the audience at Madison Square Garden trickles out, UCLA faithful will find reason to watch. Afflalo, the man who twice led the Bruins deep into March, will be watching the tail end of the first round and the early second very closely. That’s when he is most likely to hear his name called.
Afflalo won’t lead a team in the NBA like he did in college. But he’s an NBA player, no doubt. Teams like Houston, Utah, San Antonio and Phoenix know how to get valuable players late in the draft. They all have picks at the end of the first round, and they will all see the benefit of having Afflalo, a savvy defender and confident shooter.
Coach Ben Howland was unflinching in his claim that Afflalo would have a long and successful career. No one knows better than Howland that Afflalo is physically and mentally prepared to face fierce competition in the NBA.
Howland knows better than to worry about when Afflalo is picked on Thursday night. No matter what, Afflalo can succeed, and Howland believes he will.
But for the fans, it’s suspense; a waiting game to see what jersey this Bruin hero will put on next. The draft allows basketball fans to merge the worlds of the NBA and NCAA, to see where the heroes of March will wind up when they’re playing in June.
This year it will be hard not to watch.
E-mail Allen at sallen@media.ucla.edu.