There is the post scoring of Stanford’s 7-foot Brook Lopez. There is the potential of 6-foot-9 Italian Danilo Gallinari. There is the size of Texas A&M’s 7-0 DeAndre Jordan. There is the athleticism of West Virginia’s 6-8 Joe Alexander.
And there is just no way of knowing yet who is going to be available to the Nets at the No. 10 spot.
So don’t even bring up 21. Or 40 on the second round.
“You just don’t know,” team president Rod Thorn said. “After maybe four guys, anybody could be there at 10. There really could. There are some real good smaller players in this draft who could be there at 10. Some bigger players that are rated highly. I couldn’t tell you who’s going four. I couldn’t tell you who’s going three. I don’t think those teams have made up their minds.”
Yeah, OK, so who’s going 10? And 21?
“Ideally, you’re looking for a player who can have an immediate influence,” general manager Kiki Vandeweghe said. “Generally, you take the best player available. But who you pick at 10, it will have influence on who you take at 21.”
So if you take a center at 10, you tend to take a smaller type at 21. But Thorn said position likely will not matter. The Nets want help at the rim, defensively and offensively. And they would like some shooting but Thorn said “there may be two bigs so you take them or there may be two small so you take them.”
Does that clear it up for you? Figure they want Brook Lopez. But figure he’s gone and they take Gallinari.
Thorn and Vandeweghe said they are locked into no one at No. 10, and deny reports they have given Gallinari a guarantee. But he still may turn out to be the pick at 10, especially if Lopez is gone (and Charlotte may grab him at No. 9). The Nets might also trade back a few spots in order to take Robin Lopez, Brook’s twin – and don’t you want to be at that season ticket-holder meeting when they tell the folks they drafted a twin from Stanford?
“Brook, we’ve seen a lot of him,” said Thorn, whose club had Robin in for a workout, but not Brook so far. “He’s obviously a guy we’d certainly consider.”
Jordan is another guy who intrigues because of his potential. The consensus is he is very raw and not likely to help right away. But he is enormously athletic with a wingspan that might stretch across Route 3.
“You always prefer a guy who can help right away, obviously,” Vandeweghe said. “But if you see a guy with extraordinary talent who eventually can have the better career you often go that way.”
As far as trading the pick, the Nets have received numerous calls, but the volume and seriousness of the calls – so far – have been “normal,” Thorn said.
At 21, the Nets might opt for 6-9 J.J. Hickson from North Carolina State, a player they had in twice.
“We like him,” Thorn said. “A post-up guy inside, got lift, young, enthusiastic. He has got potential.”
Hickson said he tries to do one thing when he takes the floor: dominate.
“Be dominant in whatever I do, whether it’s scoring or rebounding. If it’s passing, be dominant in passing. Just dominate,” Hickson said.