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Mavs' draft list down to four Jamison, Carter, LaFrentz, Hughes on Nelson's wishlist
Posted: Sunday June 21, 1998 09:22 PM
DALLAS (AP) -- The Dallas Mavericks could hardly go wrong with the No. 6 pick in this year's NBA draft. Of course, that's never stopped them in the past. The list of Mavericks first-round picks in recent years is a laundry list of players who never lived up to their potential -- at least not while they remained in Dallas. Of their first-round picks in the 1990s, only Samaki Walker (1996) and Chris Anstey (1997 through a trade) remain. Long gone are the Mavericks' highest and most highly touted selections: Doug Smith (No. 6, 1991), Jim Jackson (No. 4, 1992), Jamal Mashburn (No. 4, 1993) and Jason Kidd (No. 2, 1994). Kidd is the only genuine star among them. Don't blame general manager Don Nelson for all the busts. He wasn't even here. But he hopes to reverse the trend Wednesday with one of four players on his Draft Day wishlist. Which of the four falls to him doesn't much matter, Nelson said, adding, "We need help everywhere." "We'd be happy with any of those four," he said. The four include teammates from North Carolina, forward Antawn Jamison and guard Vince Carter, along with Kansas forward Raef LaFrentz and Saint Louis guard Larry Hughes. Nelson expects at least two of them to remain when his pick comes around. The 6-foot-5 Hughes finished second among the nation's freshmen in scoring last season, averaging 20.9 points. He set conference and school records with 670 points, scoring average and steals (69), and was named national freshman of the year by four organizations. "He has star potential, but he's very young, so we've got to wait on him a while until his body fills out," Nelson said. "He hasn't proven that he's a great shooter yet, but athletically and all the rest of it ... he can do a lot of things." Jamison averaged 22.4 points and 10.5 rebounds this season and joined Michael Jordan as the only Tar Heel to be named the player of the year by The Associated Press. Nelson said Jamison, at 6-9, is undersized for a power forward but has the makings of a dominant NBA player. Carter, at 6-6, has an inconsistent jumper, but Nelson called him "probably the best athlete in the draft." LaFrentz, a 6-11 first-team AP All-America pick, is a polished player from one of the nation's best programs. "He played against the best competition in the country for four straight years," Nelson said. "He has size and experience and maturity, and he's ready to play in the NBA." Nelson, who swapped No. 15 pick Kelvin Cato to Portland for the rights to Anstey, wouldn't say if he has any Draft Day trades up his sleeve this time. But he added, "I'm on the phone a lot." The best bet for any trades might involve Dallas' second pick -- first in the second round and 30th overall -- which Nelson calls "the best pick in the draft." That's because second-round picks don't get the high-dollar, three-year guaranteed contracts that go to first-rounders. "It's a very popular pick," he said. "Everybody in the league has called me about it, so we'll see what we do with it." Dallas also has the 35th and 53rd overall picks. "Our roster is basically full," Nelson said. "We only have room for one guy. So you never know what I'm going to do with those."
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