Can Danny?

Some picks get hurt. Others are at the wrong place at the wrong time.  But there are a select few that, for one reason or another, seem like reaches at the time and look worse and worse as time goes by.  The NBA is a crapshoot and these are the guy who are all crap and no shoot. 

Honorable Mention: Fran Vazquez: 2005 #11 - Orlando Magic

On the bright side, at least Korolev shows up.  Orlando GM Otis Smith was given a rather rude awakening when, a day after selecting Vazquez in the lottery, the Spaniard went public with his desire to stay in Spain "until he is ready for the NBA".  Here's Smith trying to win over the confidence of Magic fans, and there's his first lotto pick admitting he isn't ready for the NBA.  It's been an embarrasment but there's a light at the end of the tunnel.  Fran has recently stated that he is ready to come to the NBA and that he'll be over as soon as his contract expires.  He's signed for two more years.  He'll only be 26 but after four years of waiting, nobody's even sure how good the guy is.

10: Yi Jianlian: 2007 #6 - Milwaukee Bucks

At least Fran has said he wants to play for Orlando. The Milwaukee Bucks stunned many by ignoring the warnings of Yi's management that they didn't want to play in Milwaukee. In a comment that is eerily familiar to Danny Ainge regarding Kevin Garnett, the Bucks GM Larry Harris dimissed the talk as just talk and also said he thought the word was coming from the managers and not Yi himself. A day after the draft, Jianlian skipped the press conference announcing his selection and now seems like he is going to have to be shipped out.  But more troubling than all of this is the fact that Jianlian made absolutely no sense for the Bucks.  His skill set is somewhat similar to Charlie Villenueva and he is the last guy a team that needed defense should have selected.  With Corey Brewer and Julian Wright sitting in the Green Room along with a potential star in Brandan Wright and the phone reportedly ringing with offers like Devin Harris from Dallas, Jianlian was an unnecessary gamble.

One of the most damaging obsessions of the last decade definitely has to be Jim Paxson's fervent belief that he had to add a shooter alongside LeBron James.  This tunnel vision led Paxson to reach for Jackson, an unathletic guard who seemed born to play the college game. Three years later, Jackson was traded to Boston for undrafted big man Dwayne Jones.  He then failed to make the team but did manage a ten day contract with the L.A. Clippers. With 59 games under his belt, Luke Jackson might have to call it a career.  Unfortunately for Cavs fans, Jim Paxson's obsession didn't stop at Luke.  Two days before the 2004 draft was the Charlotte Bobcats expansion draft.  Paxson swung a deal that he'd give the Bobcats a future first round pick if they would take and then trade to Cleveland Utah's Sasha Pavlovic.  Pavlovic wasn't an instant success so eight months later, Paxson dealt another first round pick for Jiri Welsch, who is now out of the league. While this focus on shooter seems excessive, it becomes downright laughably pathetic when you realize that the guy the Cavaliers left unprotected and lost in the Bobcats expansion draft was their previous year's 2nd round pick, the reigning NBA 3-point Champion Jason Kapono.

8. Yaroslav Korolev: 2005 #12 - Los Angeles Clippers

When Danny Granger and Gerald Green fell to #12, the Clippers were helpless to stop their slide.  The problem was that Elgin Baylor had already promised the pick to 18 year old Yaroslav Korolev.  The young Korolev was an exciting young talent who hadn't any experience against top level competition.  Two years later, he still hasn't had any experience.  Korolev has played a grand total of 170 minutes in his two years in the NBA. Some might say that it's too early to call the 20 year old Korolev a bust but the front office of the Clippers seem to disagree. In an unheard of move, the Clippers declined the third year option on Korolev's contract so the young man is now an unrestricted free agent. The Clippers claim that they are still confident in his skils and just want to sign him to a cheaper deal but when you give your lotto pick from two years ago a paycut, and he agrees to it, it's not looking like you made the wisest selection.

7. Rafael Araujo: 2004 #8 - Toronto Raptors

Hopefully, Danny isn't about to learn the lesson that Araujo taught Rob Babcock: Never let your star's threats alter your draft plan.  Sitting at the eight pick for the Raptors was a mountain of talent, most notably Al Jefferson, Andris Biedrins, Josh Smith, Andre Iguodlala.  Any of the three would have helped out the Raptors but Vince Carter was making noise and leaving so Babcock panicked and drafted the guy who seemed the most NBA ready.  By most NBA ready, we mean oldest.  Araujo was 23 years old but he was unathletic, needed to learn how to play defense and just wasn't all that good.  But he was 23 and a center, so Babcock took him with the Raptors' picks.  Half a season later, Vince Carter was in New Jersey.   

6. Kwame Brown: 2001 #1 - Washington Wizards

Kwame Brown might be the biggest bust of the decade but I wouldn't call him the worst pick.  He was a top rated high schooler and in the pre-draft workouts showed great determination and focus.  He wanted to go #1 and busted his ass to get to the top. Things seemed like they were going to go as planned during his first summer league in which he showed great skills and looked like the real deal.  Then Michael Jordan moved from the front office to the front lines and Kwame became the victim of the most unfriendly friendly fire.  Weeks after David Stern announced Brown was the #1 pick, Michael Jordan was labeling him a flaming faggot.  Maybe he was always a dog and never would have had what it takes to make it but there is no doubting that Michael Jordan broke Kwame Brown's spirit.  It wasn't all bad.  Kwame played well enough at the end of his contract to fool Mitch Kupchak into thinking that trading Caron Butler for him would be a good idea.

5. Desagana Diop: 2001 #8 - Desagana Diop

With 25 year old center Zydrunas Ilgauskas experiencing injury problems, Jim Paxson decided that he needed a center.  He swapped draft picks and ended up dealing Jamal Crawford for Chris Mihm in the 2000 draft. Mihm didn't exactly pan out so Paxson, never one to not obsess on a position, walked into the 2001 draft and seemed determined to add another big man. Nevermind that at this point in the Cavs history, their lineup was atrocious.  Their starting swingmen were Lamond Murray and Wesley Person. Sitting on the draft board at the time of the pick were Joe Johnson and Richard Jefferson. Paxson didn't care and passed them over to select high school big man Diop.   However, this pick apparently didn't quench Paxson's thirst for height.  He held the #20 pick in the draft and took Brendan Haywood but, apparently wanting a more seasoned big man, Paxson immediately dealt Haywood for Michael Doleac. While Paxson was sizing up his new big men, he might have missed the announcements of picks 25 through 31: Gerald Wallace, Sam Dalembert, Jamaal Tinsley, Tony Parker, Trenton Hassell, and Gilbert Arenas.  Adding insult to injury, Paxson finally broke from his height fetish and took a swingman in the second round.  He selected Jeff Trepagnier at #36.  Two picks later, the Detroit Pistons drated Mehmet Okur.

4. Nikiloz Tskitisvili: 2002 #5 - Denver Nuggets

Everyone loves a fad and after Pau Gasol stormed the NBA, European players were all the rage.  It didn't matter if the players were raw or obviously needed to stay in Europe for a couple of years, the hype drowned out common sense and the legend of Tskitishvili was born. The Nuggets were rebuilding and could afford to take a project instead of Caron Butler. #1 ranked high schooler Amare Stoudamire had apparently gotten a promise from Phoenix and wasn't working out for teams so why not opt for the guy you'd seen, right?     After taking Tskitishvili and Nene (at #8), the Nuggets filled out their frontcourt with small forward Vincent Yarborough at #33.  The frontcourt the Nuggets passed on that day was Amare, Caron, and #35 pick Carlos Boozer.

3. Chris Wilcox: 2002 #8 - Los Angeles Clippers

Chris Wilcox was a decent selection. He was a beast at Maryland and seemed like a definite talent.  What makes this one of the worst picks of the decade is the story behind it.  At the time of the draft, the Los Angeles Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers were working out a trade for Andre Miller. The trade was all but done and, as the pick they were sending to Cleveland approached, the Clippers eagerly awaited a name from the Cavs to send to the Commissioner.  The time wore down and no name.  Nervous that time would elapse before they could send their pick in, the Clippers looked at the Cavs roster and assumed that, with Brian Skinner and an aging Ty Hill as their only power forwards, that the Cavs would select Chris Wilcox.  The Clippers made the call and sent in the card with Wilcox's name on it.  Wouldn't you know it, moments later, Jim Paxson calls up and tells the Clippers that the deal is a go and that Los Angeles should select Caron Butler for them.  Panic struck and the Cavs and Clips reps ran to the front but it was too late, the rules state that you can't change your pick once its sent in.  The draft concluded and everyone was stunned.  Why did the Cavaliers, whose best player was Andre Miller, select Dajuan Wagner?  And why did the Clippers, who a year earlier had traded their #2 pick for Elton Brand, opt for Chris Wilcox?  In the end, the deal for Miller was finally made with Darius Miles heading to Cleveland for 'Dre.  A disastrous season later, Andre Miller left L.A. as a free agent. Half a season after that, Darius Miles was unceremoniously dumped for Jeff Mcinnis and Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje.  And Chris Wilcox spent the first three and a half years of his career stuck behind Elton Brand.  Caron Butler came in third for Rookie of the Year and was one of the pieces that enabled Miami to land Shaquille O'Neal.  The man who won the Rookie of the Year?  Amare Stoudamire, who was selected the pick right after the bungled #8 pick.

2. Darko Milicic: 2003 #2 - Detroit Pistons

Darko might still pan out to be a good player but the bottom line is that the Detroit Pistons could be battling the San Antonio Spurs as the Dynasty of the late '00's.  Blame Larry Brown, Joe Dumars, Chad Ford, whoever, but the Pistons blew it on this pick and have been a man short over the last few years when it comes playoff time. 

1. Kedrick Brown: 2001 #11 - Boston Celtics

Kedrick Brown doesn't deserve to walk through life being known as a bust.  It wasn't his fault.  He played two years at junior college and was a fine but not highly sought after prospect.  But then he caught the eye of Celtics GM Chris Wallace, who had picks #10, #11, and #21 in the 2001 draft.  Much like the Trailblazers promise to Sebastian Telfair, the Brown promise went above and beyond the call of common sense.  When everyone heard rumors of a promise to Brown, the assumption was that it would be the Celtics pick at #21, not #11. But no, Chris Wallace, in order to keep Brown from working out for other teams, offered up the Celtics 2nd lottery pick for Brown. Making matters more awkward is that Joe Johnson fell in the Celtics' lap at #10 so they ended up taking both Johnson and Brown, despite already having Paul Pierce. While most fans were debating which much needed point guard the Celtics would be adding (Tony Parker vs. Jamaal Tinsley vs. Omar Cook), the Celtics drafted two more swingmen.  But the story doesn't end there.  Later, during Brown and Johnson's rookie season, Chris Wallace struck a deal with Phoenix for Rodney Rogers and Tony Delk.  The Suns were willing to take back either Johnson or Brown and let Wallace pick who he sent and who he kept.  Sticking with his initial inexplicable love, Wallace opted to send Joe Johnson to Phoenix and hold onto Kedrick Brown.  The choice was a disastrous one as Rodney Rogers would leave as a free agent at the end of that season while, two years later, Kedrick Brown would  be nothing more than filler in the deal for Ricky Davis and Chris Mihm.  Four years after Chris Wallace's promise, Kedrick Brown was out of the league.  But that's not even the worst part of it.  The worst part is that the reason the Celtics had the Nuggets pick that season was because they exercised their option on it.  They could have taken the 11th pick that year or waited until 2002 or 2003.  If Chris Wallace had shown a little patience, the 2003 draft would have featured the Celtics, and not the Nuggets, choosing between Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade in 2003.