| Ian Thomsen's 2003 Mock Draft |
|---|
| Pick |
Team |
Pos. |
Player |
School/Team |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Age |
|
1
|
 |
F
|
LeBron James
|
Akron, Ohio
|
6'8"
|
240
|
18
|
|
If he overcomes hype-ridden rookie year, James will become a more
athletic Magic Johnson.
|
|
2
|
 |
F/C
|
Darko Milicic
|
Serbia
|
7'0"
|
245 | 18
|
|
Will eventually complement Ben Wallace, but can he mature fast enough to
help Larry Brown?
|
|
3
|
 |
F
|
Carmelo Anthony
|
Syracuse
|
6'8"
|
220 | 19
|
| Adding a scorer
to a team desperate for one makes Anthony a favorite for Rookie of the Year.
|
|
4
|
 |
F
|
Chris Bosh
|
Ga. Tech
|
6'10"
|
210 | 19
|
|
If Raptors can’t
trade pick for immediate help, they’ll settle for Bosh’s McGrady-like upside. |
|
5
|
 |
C
|
Chris Kaman
|
Central Michigan
|
7'0"
|
255 | 21
|
| Inexpensive, athletic big man liberates
Pat Riley to pursue free-agent scorers this summer -- provided he doesn’t trade pick. |
|
6
|
 |
G
|
Dwyane Wade
|
Marquette
|
6'4"
|
210 | 21
|
| Another fine player doomed to the hopeless playground of Donald T. Sterling.
|
|
7
|
 |
G
|
Kirk Hinrich
|
Kansas
|
6'3"
|
190 | 22
|
| In the absence of Jay
Williams, the Bulls go for a strong combo guard who can defend alongside Jamal Crawford.
|
|
8
|
 |
G
|
T.J. Ford
|
Texas
|
5'10"
|
165 | 20
|
| While playing behind Sam Cassell, Ford
will have a couple of years to develop an NBA jump shot.
|
|
9
|
 |
F
|
Mike Sweetney
|
Georgetown
|
6'8"
|
260 | 20
|
| Patrick Ewing’s fellow Hoya gives the Knicks
badly needed scoring and rebounding in the low post.
|
|
10
|
 |
G/F
|
Jarvis Hayes
|
Georgia
|
6'7"
|
220 | 21
|
| Hayes is the rare college scorer who
knows how to play without the ball -- just what coach Eddie Jordan needs.
|
|
11
|
 |
F/C
|
Zarko Cabarkapa
|
Serbia
|
6'11"
|
235 | 22
|
| Surprise -- the Warriors steal this
Nowitzki-like small forward from the Suns, who covet his shooting range.
|
|
12
|
 |
F
|
Nick Collison
|
Kansas
|
6'9"
|
255 | 22
|
| Collison will contend for the NBA
All-Rookie team as the Sonics quickly exploit his array of moves in the low post.
|
|
13
|
 |
G/F
|
Mickaël Pietrus
|
France
|
6'6"
|
200 | 21
|
| Aggressive Frenchman brings instant
energy to Hubie Brown’s bench. |
|
14
|
|
F
|
Aleksander Pavlovic
|
Serbia
|
6'7"
|
210 | 21
|
| You can never have enough
shooters, and Pavlovic is among the purest in this draft.
|
|
15
|
 |
G
|
Luke Ridnour
|
Oregon
|
6'2"
|
175 | 22
|
| Tempo-pushing point guard will
eventually take over for Darrell Armstrong.
|
|
16
|
 |
G
|
Marcus Banks
|
UNLV
|
6'2"
|
220 | 21
|
| Aggressive shoot-first point guard
fits Jim O’Brien’s perimeter system. |
|
17
|
 |
F
|
Maciej Lampe
|
Spain
|
6'11"
|
240 | 18
|
| Suns preferred Cabarkapa, but they’ll
settle for versatile Lampe as a frontcourt complement to Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire.
|
|
18
|
 |
F
|
Brian Cook
|
Illinois
|
6'10"
|
240 | 22
|
| Hornets love
stockpiling big men, and Cook can help immediately if P.J. Brown departs.
|
|
19
|
 |
C
|
Kendrick Perkins
|
Beaumont, TX
|
6'10"
|
285 | 18
|
|
Worth the risk, especially for a team
that will need to eventually replace Karl Malone’s presence inside.
|
|
20
|
|
F
|
Travis Outlaw
|
Starkville, Miss.
|
6'9"
|
210 | 19
|
| Outlaw’s athletic upside is immense
-- if the Celtics can teach him to do more than block shots. |
|
21
|
 |
G
|
Reece Gaines
|
Louisville
|
6'6"
|
205 | 22
|
| Hawks need a ballhandler, and
combo-guard Gaines is big enough to play the point alongside Jason Terry.
|
|
22
|
 |
G/F
|
Boris Diaw
|
France
|
6'8"
|
203 | 21
|
|
| A highly skilled, experienced European
playmaker who will immediately contribute to Nets’ title hopes.
|
|
23
|
 |
F
|
Josh Howard
|
Wake Forest
|
6'6"
|
203 | 23
|
| The Blazers wanted Outlaw but they'll settle for
Howard, a college senior who helps the team’s image.
|
|
24
|
 |
F
|
Sofoklis Schortsanitis
|
Greece
|
6'9"
|
255 | 18
|
| Baby Shaq, meet the real
thing -- Greece’s biggest export gets a daily crash course in footwork and
medium-range shooting. |
|
25
|
|
F/C
|
Zaur Pachulia
|
Turkey
|
6'11"
|
240 | 19
|
| Georgian is developing into a
solid low-post player, but the Pistons may send him back to Europe to develop. |
|
26
|
 |
G
|
Troy Bell
|
B.C.
|
6'1'
|
180 | 22
|
| Flip Saunders will turn him into a point
guard. |
|
27
|
|
C
|
Slavko Vranes
|
Serbia
|
7'4"
|
250 | 20
|
| Raw teen with little experience, but
at 7-foot-4 he’s worth risking a three-year investment. |
|
28
|
 |
G
|
Leandro Barbosa
|
Brazil
|
6'3"
|
176 | 20
|
| Spurs
can be patient with high-upside point guard who must improve skills. |
|
29
|
 |
F/C
|
Malick Badiane
|
Germany
|
6'10'
|
230 | 19
|
| Senegalese
big man will spend the next year or two improving in Europe. |
