<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Seeing all the points, decisions to be made
June 9, 2003
By Dan Wetzel
SportsLine.com Senior Writer
CHICAGO -- Marty Blake was kicking around professional basketball even before he helped found the Continental Basketball Association in 1946. So when the current director of scouting for the NBA declares the upcoming NBA Draft "the year of the point guard," he has the historic gravitas to be taken seriously.
"The draft is just loaded with point guards," said Blake last week here at the NBA pre-draft camp.
Alabama sophomore Maurice Williams agrees, although he does so with a shake of his head. It is a tough year to be a point guard, which might force Williams, a player with unquestioned first-round ability, back to Tuscaloosa for another year of seasoning.
Not because he isn't good enough for the NBA, but because this year, he isn't better than a lot of the other guys who also are good enough.
"It is tough," said Williams. "There are a lot of point guards this year. I feel comfortable I can play in this league it is just a matter of where I am going in the draft,
"You have to just go by what teams want. If a team likes you, they'll draft you. If not, they'll draft someone else. It's not a gimmie. This year it is not a no-brainer."
High schooler LeBron James, Texas' T.J. Ford, Oregon's Luke Ridnour, Kansas' Kirk Hinrich, Brazil's Leandrinho Barbosa and Louisville's Reece Gaines are, according to NBA executives, considered first-round locks. That's six point guards before you get to the murky area of the late first round, where Williams is hoping to get picked and earn a guaranteed contract.
The problem is, he isn't the only one.
Williams is battling Saint Joseph's junior Jameer Nelson, BYU's Travis Hansen, Boston College senior Troy Bell, UNLV senior Marcus Banks, Notre Dame sophomore Chris Thomas, Washington State junior Marcus Moore, Mississippi State senior Derrick Zimmerman and others for the guaranteed deal that comes with a first-round selection.
To make matters worse, the teams with the last two picks in the first round -- Dallas and San Antonio -- are unlikely to pick a point guard.
"It's just crowded this year," said Blake. "Sometimes this happens."
Which is why all of the underclassmen point guards need to think long and hard about returning to college for another season. They have ability, but the timing simply is awful.
"I am going to listen to what I hear from (coach Phil Martelli)," said Nelson. "I know he is calling around because I know he has my back. If it's not first round, I'll probably head back. It's tough, though. It's not like I am going to grow."
At 5-11, Nelson won't. He is the best pure point guard in the mix of contenders -- a likely preseason first-team All-American -- but the height is too much to overcome this year.
Even the seniors feel the crunch and the frustration. Just last year, only three pure point guards were first-round selections, and that includes Frank Williams (No. 25) and Gonzaga's Dan Dickau (last at No. 28).
But that was last year. This is this year. Something Williams knows all too well.
"If I don't like where I am at I'll go back to school," Williams said. "I feel I should have a pretty good idea. But it's not easy. Next year, I may be in a situation where I am not even thought of as a first-rounder. You never know what may happen. You have to go when the opportunity is there."
Here is our advice to the underclassmen and high school seniors who are considering the jump to the NBA at all positions. We spoke to scores of NBA personnel and to the players themselves. Since advice is free, we are free to pass out ours.
Maurice Williams, Alabama: Would probably be selected ahead of Nelson, but unless he gets a team to guarantee a first-round selection, another year in Tuscaloosa where the ball is all his will only help. This is an NBA talent who could wind up a lottery pick with another year of school. </font>
