|
'A great fit'
Hornets take Baron Davis with third pick
Posted: Thursday July 01, 1999 02:53 AM
| |
Davis is expected to initially back up starting point guard David Wesley. David Taylor/Allsport |
CHARLOTTE (AP) -- As far as Charlotte Hornets coach Paul Silas is
concerned, Baron Davis is stepping into the perfect situation.
The Hornets used the third overall selection in Wednesday
night's draft to select Davis, a 20-year-old point guard who played
less than two full seasons at UCLA.
Davis comes to a team that already has David Wesley at point
guard. Wesley, 28, just finished the second season of a seven-year,
$22 million contract, so Silas said Davis shouldn't feel any
pressing need to make major contributions right away.
"If you look at some players who have been thrown right into
the fire and have failed, it has played havoc on their career long
term," Silas said. "Getting to come in on a veteran club and
working your way in slowly is going to benefit this kid."
The selection of Davis was not a surprise at the Hornets'
headquarters, where team officials had expected Elton Brand to be
taken by Chicago with the first pick and Steve Francis to be
selected by Vancouver with the second. Those two selections went as
anticipated.
Charlotte general manager Bob Bass had said in the days leading
up to the draft that he had no plans to either trade up or down,
opting instead to use the selection on the 6-foot-2, 210-pound
Davis.
"I think he's somebody who fits here," Bass said. "We just
add him to the team and let him develop."
That's fine with Davis, who said he's happy to be going to a
team that has posted three consecutive winning records and missed
the playoffs by one game last season.
"I think it's a great opportunity," he said. "You're on a
team that made a tremendous run toward the playoffs last season and
they have a lot of seasoned veterans, guys who have been in the
playoffs, who have been around. I think with me coming in I can
bring a lot of energy, a lot of energy that they can feed off of."
Davis suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left
knee during the NCAA tournament, requiring surgery and
rehabilitation that kept him out of the first four games of the
1998-99 season. But he started the final 26 games and led UCLA with
averages of 15.9 points, 5.1 assists and 2.5 steals.
Bass said recent physicals have indicated that Davis' left knee
has gotten stronger than his right, and Hornets team physician
Glenn Perry said no long-term problems are anticipated from the
joint.
Davis said the injury helped him become a more patient person.
"It was real tough mentally more than physically," he said.
"It really took a toll psychologically."
The Hornets used their second-round selection, the No. 43
overall pick, to take power forward Lee Nailon, who scored 1,503
points in two seasons at Texas Christian. The 6-8, 230-pound Nailon
led the Western Athletic Conference in scoring in both his junior
and senior years.
Silas said the Hornets had Nailon projected to be drafted in the
first round and were pleasantly surprised to find him still
available midway through the second.
"You don't expect to get a player at that spot who can make
your team, especially our club because we're pretty solid at every
position," Silas said. "That was kind of a no-brainer pick for
us."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
| 
