NBA Draft goes young

7 of first 14 are freshmen

[Comment Below]

By Brad Esta

The Chicago Bulls drafted Derrick Rose, of Memphis, first in the NBA Draft last Thursday night. Rose averaged 14.9 points and 4.7 assists per game as a freshman. The Miami Heat then drafted Michael Beasley, from Kansas State, 2nd; Beasley averaged 26.2 points (third in the NCAA) and 12.4 rebounds per game (1st in the NCAA), all as a freshmen.

With the third pick, the Minnesota Timberwolves drafted O.J. Mayo, of Southern California; Mayo, also a freshman, averaged 20.7 points and 3.3 assists per game. The Seattle Supersonics drafted Russell Westbrook, of UCLA, fourth overall as a sophomore Westbrook accumulated 12.7 points and 4.3 assists per game. To round out the top 5, the Memphis Grizzlies drafted Kevin Love, of UCLA; Love compiled 17.5 points and 10.6 rebounds per game as a freshman.

The biggest trade of the night was an 8 player swap between the Timberwolves and Grizzlies. The Grizzlies received: O.J. Mayo, Marko Jaric, Antoine Walker, and Greg Buckner. The Timberwolves got: Kevin Love, Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal, and Jason Collins.

Darrel Arthur, part of the Kansas Jayhawks 2008 National Championship, was drafted 27th overall by the New Orleans Hornets. Arthur averaged 12.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field. Such play earned him a First Team All-Big 12 selection during his sophomore year.

However, Arthur’s night was just beginning as the New Orleans Hornets would trade him to the Portland Trail Blazers for cash considerations. The Trailblazers would later trade him to the Houston Rockets along with Joey Dorsey, 33rd draft pick, for Nicolas Batum the 25th overall draft pick. Finally Arthur would end up with the Memphis Grizzlies in a deal in which the Rockets would acquire Donté Greene, the 28th pick, along with a 2009 second round pick. Hornets head basketball coach Byron Scott along with General Manager Jeff Bower, feel that the future is now for the Hornets, and that no draft pick filled that need at the 27th spot, but will use the money they received towards a veteran who will hopefully be able help the team get further then they did this past year.

Two local players were drafted in the first round of the NBA draft. D.J. Augustin was drafted 9th overall by the Charlotte Bobcats. Augustin played his high school basketball in New Orleans for the Brother Martin Crusaders, until Hurricane Katrina sent him to Texas for his senior year. Augustin played his college ball for the Texas Longhorns, in his sophomore year Augustin averaged 19.2 points and 5.8 assists per game.

He also earned Consensus First Team All-American honors and was a finalist for the Naismith and Wooden Awards while winning the Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard.

Anthony Randolph, former Louisiana State University freshman, was drafted 14th overall by the Golden State Warriors.

Randolph averaged 15.6 points and 8.5 rebounds per game for the Tigers. He earned Honorable Mention All-SEC honors as a freshman, he was named to the league All-Freshmen Team, and earned SEC Freshmen of the Week honors four times during the season. Since leaving the Tigers Randolph has gained some extra muscle moving up from 190 pounds to 205. Randolph was the seventh freshman drafted and the first SEC player overall.

In related local basketball news, New Orleans Hornets reserve guard Rasual Butler was arrested Monday morning by Miami Beach Police and charged with carrying a concealed firearm without a permit and wrongful display of a firearm. Witnesses said Butler removed a firearm form his waistband, cocked it and pointed it at a man, who he had gotten into an argument with earlier. The Hornets will wait until investigations are done to decide what kind of action they will take on behalf of Butler.

Originally Published: Issue 691 - July 2, 2008

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