Selecting the best of the rest
The NBA Lottery system dealt the Grizzlies the No. 4 pick. Rather than selecting superstar A or B, the Grizzlies brass is now in the process of identifying the best possible candidate to help them return to the playoffs. The Grizzlies are confident there still is a superstar to be found at No. 4. ''I think you have to get over the disappointment of not getting the first or second pick,'' Grizzlies director of player personnel Tony Barone, Sr. said. ''The rest of the draft is deep. It doesn't matter if it's deep. What does matter is if it is top heavy, if there's enough players at the top that are going to be good for you, and there are.'' The first order of business is for Barone, the scouting department, Jerry West and newly hired head coach Marc Iavaroni to huddle and decide on a team philosophy. Do you take the best player available? Do you draft for need? Maybe you get lucky and answer both questions with the pick. ''Sometimes your roster is in a situation where maybe the best players available are at the same positions that you're pretty strong at,'' Barone said. ''Then, you've got to make another decision based on does that make sense to do. It's not as obvious as you think it would be at this point. ''It's a very important pick. Drafting this high, we feel there are very, very good players available at four. That's a key pick for us. We'd like to fill a need. We'd like to get a starter if we can. I don't know if that'll happen, but that's what our goal's gonna be.'' Beginning today, the Grizzlies will work out players they've identified as being worthy of the No. 4 pick, their only selection in this year's draft. Barone said the group will be much smaller than the 44-48 players they typically bring in. This year the workouts will be closed to the media. Al Horford and Joakim Noah of Florida and Brandan Wright of North Carolina confirmed last week they have scheduled workouts with the Grizzlies. The depth of this draft has been likened to 2003, when LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony were taken with the first and third picks. But unforeseen All-Stars like Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and Josh Howard have since emerged, along with other solid performers like Kirk Hinrich, T.J. Ford, and Leandro Barbosa. In the coming weeks, it's up to the Grizzlies to find their star. The following is a look at some of the players the Grizzlies will have to choose from. Al Horford 6-10, 245, F/C With Oden gone, Horford appears to be the best logical pick to fill the Grizzlies need for a bruising presence in the middle to go alongside Gasol. A member of two-time national champion Florida, Horford is considered to a beast on the boards as well as a formidable shot-blocker. The son of former NBA player Tito Horford, Horford averaged 13.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and blocked 1.8 shots per game, all of which could make life a lot easier for Gasol. Horford also runs the floor well and is a good passer in the post. While his offensive game is still unpolished, he has shown signs of contributing in that aspect, as well. ''I always try to make sure I work on all areas of my game,'' Horford said. ''My jumpshot, trying to really make it a consistent shot. Also on my ballhandling. I feel like I need to be able to ballhandle a little bit. Definitely in the weight room and keeping up my weight is really important to me." Brandan Wright 6-9, 205, F Wright put his name in the draft after one standout season at North Carolina. A Nashville native, Wright broke the Atlantic Coast Conference freshman single season record with his .646 shooting percentage from the floor. Wright's athleticism is a major strength at both ends of the floor. Offensively, he can score in a variety of ways, posting up or with his face to the basket. Wright, who said he could see himself being a No. 1 option in the NBA, averaged 14.7 points a game playing alongside all-American Tyler Hansbrough. He also averaged 6.2 rebounds a game. ''I think they'll be getting a really athletic guy that can run the court,'' Wright said. ''I can cause matchup problems for other teams. I think I can be a good defender who can do a lot of different things, guard a lot of different types of teams, add a dimension they don't have. ''I'm going to try to work on everything, get stronger, work on my ballhandling, shooting the ball, post moves, just the whole package. I'm only 19. I can continue to get better.'' Joakim Noah 6-11, 232, F/C Joakim Noah clearly was the emotional leader during Florida's two championship runs. He is a unique big man in that he does a lot of things well, but doesn't excel in one thing. In addition to his emotion and energy, Joakim Noah is a good rebounder, particularly on the offensive boards, and shot blocker, and passes well in the post, dishing out 90 assists last season. ''I don't feel like there's a player like me,'' Joakim Noah said. ''I'm very different than everybody. People think (Anderson) Varejao (of Cleveland), but I think it's more because of the hair.'' Noah averaged 12 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots a game last season, but wasn't quite as dominating as some expected after he was named the Most Outstanding Player during Florida's 2006 national championship run when many thought he could have been the top pick had he come out last season. Joakim Noah said he has been working diligently since the Gators' second title to prepare for the upcoming workouts. ''This has been the dream of my whole life,'' Joakim Noah said. ''I'm going to the NBA and I feel like I know I'm going to give 150 percent every night. That's something that I know I will do. ''I'm somebody who works very hard and somebody who takes basketball very seriously. I'm really excited about my situation right now. I was in L.A. with Corey (Brewer) and we worked out very hard. We had a great routine where we woke up at eight o'clock in the morning every day, lifting at 8:30, two basketball workouts every day. I feel like I'm in great shape. My jump shot's improved. I feel really good right now and I'm confident about these workouts.'' Corey Brewer 6-9, 185, F Should the Grizzlies opt to go the small forward route, then Brewer could be an option. Brewer, a native of Portland, Tenn., saw his stock rise when he was named the Most Outstanding Player for Florida in this year's title run. Brewer was a lockdown defender who also gave the Gators a boost on the offensive end. ''I played really well in the tournament,'' said Brewer, who claims he models his game after Tayshaun Prince and Josh Howard. ''I felt like it was good this year. I did some things that normally people didn't think I could do. I felt like it helped me out a lot.'' Brewer enters the draft with defense being his forte, but in the coming weeks, he hopes to show that he can produce on the offensive end, as well. He averaged 13.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists last season. ''I feel like defense is one of my strengths, and just playing hard all the time,'' Brewer said. ''I need to improve offensively in halfcourt situations. I'm going to go in and work hard every day, day in and day out, and bring my best. ''I feel like defensively, I can help somebody. If they need a defensive stopper, hopefully, I can go out there and make an impact. I'm going to do whatever the team needs and the coach needs.'' Mike Conley Jr. 6-1, 180, PG The Grizzlies are also in need of help at point guard, and most consider Conley to be the best available in the draft. His stock soared after a successful run in the NCAA Tournament, one that ended with a loss to Florida in the national championship game. Once viewed as a throw-in to help get Oden to Ohio State, Conley now has a chance to be taken just a few spots behind his lifelong best friend. ''I had a lot of motivation,'' he said. ''A lot of people weren't giving me that much credit for much of anything. I tried to block all that aside and just concentrate on my game and try to work towards getting better. ''It's been a whirlwind. I had no idea at the time what I had done for myself, especially during the tournament. I was so focused on that and the next game that I didn't really think about it until after everything was over. I never thought I'd have the opportunity to enjoy it with (Oden) because I always had the feeling he might be a one-and-done player. Finally, I get the chance to do it, and it's a great opportunity.'' Conley started all 39 games for the Buckeyes, averaging 11.3 points, 6.1 assists and 2.2 steals. He shot 52 percent from the floor, but just 30 percent from 3-point range. At the next level, he must develop a more consistent jumpshot. ''I have an all-around game,'' said Conley, who patterned his game from watching tapes of Isiah Thomas. ''I can shoot, I can score, basically everything that's tangible that a point guard needs, I want to show.'' Acie Law 6-3, 195, PG Law is another point guard with first-round talent. But many question whether he should be taken as high as the fourth pick. Law isn't one of those people. He has no problem telling who the best point guard in the draft is. ''I think I'm the best point guard, cut and dried,'' Law said. ''Conley's a great player, I'm not taking anything away from him. He led his team to the national championship (game). But I think he had a lot more help than I did. We're going to get the chance to work out against each other, and we'll prove it on the floor.'' A four-year player at Texas A&M, Law has the experience and the body that's ready for the rigors of a long NBA season. He has developed a reputation as a clutch player willing to take the shot when the game is on the line. No wonder he said he patterns his game after Detroit's Chauncey Billups, nicknamed Mr. Big Shot. ''I think that he's big at that position and I think I'm big for the position,'' Law said. ''I think he's a clutch player and I consider myself a clutch player. I think he's a great leader for his team, and I consider myself a great leader. The list goes on. That's a guy I pattern my game after.'' Projected as a late lottery to mid-first round pick, Law hopes to rise on the charts during the workouts, particularly for those teams in need of a point guard. ''I think my body, I'm big enough physically to handle 82 games,'' he said. ''I think that's the biggest thing with a lot of guys is their body is not accustomed to taking that pounding. I'm big and strong enough. And I'm old enough. I've got a lot of experience with four years of college, I'm mature and I can come in and help a team right away. ''I'm going to come in and be humble and work hard. Whatever it takes for me to be on a team and lead that team and be a winning franchise, that's all that matters to me. It doesn't matter to me about scoring and getting all the attention. It's a matter of winning and winning championships. That's what I want to do and that's the attitude I'm going to bring to whatever franchise I go to.'' [More
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