Had the Kings won the No. 1 pick in the June 25 draft, they almost certainly would have taken Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin.
Even with young big men Jason Thompson and Spencer Hawes improving enough last season to inspire confidence from Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie on down, the in-house consensus was most good teams rotate three quality big men and that there was plenty of room for more talent in the paint. Yet even as their fate at No. 4 means much of the focus regarding their top pick is on drafting a point guard, they may still opt to go big – particularly later in the draft.
Today we look at two forward candidates for the Kings' picks at Nos. 23 and 31: North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough and Georgia Tech's Gani Lawal. Both took part in last week's predraft combine in Chicago, which Kings brass attended, and were seen again at a group workout in Oakland on Tuesday.
• Hansbrough (North Carolina, senior, 6-foot-8 power forward)
If Hansbrough is available at No. 23, the Kings could very well take him.
For all the questions about his athleticism and ability to match the physicality of professional forwards, the Atlantic Coast Conference's all-time leading scorer has proven critics wrong before and plans on doing it again in the NBA.
"They can doubt me or whatever but I got the job done and was a national champion,"
> Hansbrough said while in Chicago. "Doubt me all you want."
Hansbrough, who spent four seasons flourishing in the same town (Chapel Hill, N.C.) in which Kings regional scout and UNC alum Keith Drum resides, firmly believes his extended stay in college means he can contribute quickly at the next level.
"A lot of people have potential, but you never know if it's going to actually show up or not,"
he said. "With me, you're getting someone who's good, who's proven, who has been there for four years. You know what I'm about, and I've improved my game each year. … Plus, my maturity level is up there. I'm more of a guy that's more of an adult than some of these young guys who really haven't been away from home for as long."
In many respects, Hansbrough is a less flashy version of Griffin, who measured 6-8 3/4. He showed his respectable strength at the combine, bench pressing 185 pounds 18 times to Griffin's 22. His standing vertical leap was 27 1/2 inches, Griffin's was 32.
Griffin is a superior rebounder (14.4 per game to 8.1), which isn't surprising considering the disparity in leaping ability. Hansbrough, however, has a significant edge when it comes to making the most of his ability to draw fouls.
Whereas Griffin hit just 59 percent of his free throws last season while averaging 9.3 attempts per game, Hansbrough – who holds the Atlantic Coast Conference's mark for career free throws made – was an 84.1 percent free-throw shooter while averaging 8.7 attempts in his senior season.
• Lawal (Georgia Tech, sophomore, 6-8 power forward)
Thompson was a bright spot in the Kings' otherwise dreary campaign, playing in all 82 games as a rookie while consistently competing at a breakneck pace.
Lawal could be the same type of fan favorite.
"Any team that picks me, I'm going to do the dirty work from the power forward (position),"
Lawal said in Chicago. "I try to use my length and athleticism for rebounding, blocking, altering shots, just being a beast around the boards. Just be strong down there and play hard and give it my all every time I step out on the court. I just think I could bring real sense of workmanship."
Lawal is far from polished, with a suspect mid-range game and cover-your-eyes-bad free throw percentage of 55.9. But his strengths are the Kings' weaknesses, from strong post defense to an aptitude for mop-up duty with offensive rebounds and putbacks. He averaged 15.1 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks for the Yellow Jackets last season.
Asked to compare himself to NBA players, Lawal picked Atlanta's Al Horford and Utah's Paul Millsap. Lawal said in Chicago he would work out for the Kings today, but that session did not transpire. It is not known if it will be rescheduled.
