Thursday, May 11, 2006

It’s a Kind of Magic (Holy 2nd Draft, Batman!)

(I wrote this on Easter, if that makes any more sense.)



Freddie Mercury, Jesus of Nazareth, and Shaquille O’Neal have all moved on to greener pastures. For the city of Orlando, this trinity tells a story of painful tragedy, heart-wrenching loss, and miraculous redemption. If The Daddy, the Son, and the Spirit of 80’s Rock have anything in common, it is that each in his own way gave people a reason to come together and believe.


The concept of the “second draft” applies perfectly to what Darko Milicic is doing in Orlando. The Magic chose to 1) dump a veteran banger in exchange for a 26-year-old PG who would start for many teams, and 2) trade a future first-rounder for a former first-rounder, essentially making him their draft selection because he still has untested upside despite being in the league for nearly 3 years. Still younger than many of this year’s rookies, what kind of potential does the snarling Serbian have left to break through all the nay-saying and unfulfilled expectations?




Darko at age 20, in 21 mpg:
8.0p, 4.4r, 1.1a; 0.4s, 2.2b
FG 53%; FT 60%;
1.3 TO, 2.4 PF



Dirk at age 20, in 20mpg:
8.2p, 3.4r, 1.0a; 0.6s, 0.6b
FG 41%; FT 77%; 3pt 20%
1.6 TO, 2.2 PF


Raise any eyebrows? Dirk put a few more free throws and three pointers on the board in his rookie campaign, but Darko’s block-party (2.2 bpg!) and shot selection (53%!) blow the blonde bomber out of the water. Of course, Milicic had three more years to understand the NBA game and understudy with the Wallace Brothers—but Nowitzki had the coaching staff behind him all the way, which is worth more than gold.

Really, it’ll get you a max contract.



Perhaps all a talented young Eurobig needs is a losing situation where a coach can comfortably give him 7th man minutes and encourage him to find his game. Don Nelson is a zany, offensively-unorthodox genius, the perfect general to take a three-point shooting 7-footer into battle against gawking fans and smirking media. The Detroit franchise was bent on a championship, and the Dumars-Brown contingent continuously reminded everyone they had big plans for their #2 overall pick, mentioning the eventual goal of “a European Bill Russell” in every other press conference. But delicate flowers can’t bloom under Larry Brown, much less in 553 minutes played.

Does Darko Defy the Daunting Dilemma of his Disappointing Detroit Days to Deliver Dirk-like Displays of Downtown Dynamism? Might Milicic Make Mighty GM Joe Dumars Lament His Latest Mistake?

Probably not. Will he breakout as a 17ppg starter next season as Nowitzki did? Doubtful. But starting next to Dwight Howard takes a lot of attention away from you, leaving you open for easy jumpers and allowing you to block slashers who unwisely drive at you to avoid your frontcourt mate. Pending draft decisions in June (I hope they get Roy or Carney) and preseason play next October, I’ll pencil DM in for14-7-2 on 50% shooting with 2.5 blocks in 31 minutes. Which is better than 10-year veteran and former minute-blocker Rasheed Wallace’s numbers this season. Go figure.



See Darko: The Future - http://freedarko.blogspot.com/2006/02/i-hear-its-all-just-horizontal-myth.html

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