2006 NBA Draft Preview

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NBA Draft 2006: Raptors on the hot seat

The Toronto Raptors will make the first selection at the NBA Draft for the first time in franchise history on Wednesday, June 28, a dubious honor that comes along with finishing near the bottom of the standings once again. So who will the Raptors chose with that high pick when the draft gets underway on Wednesday?

We’re going to have to wait and see. With no consensus No. 1 pick on the board this year, new Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo has a ton of options to weigh over the next few days. Does he trade down a few spots and get an extra asset, trade out of the first round entirely and pick up an impact player in return, or grab one of the many intriguing players available with the draft’s top selection?

The two players rumored to be in the draft-day picture for Colangelo and the Raptors are Texas F/C LaMarcus Aldridge and Euroleague F Andrea Bargnani. Both are big bodies (Aldridge is 6’10”, while Bargnani is 7’0”) who could play in between Toronto’s two best players, namely Chris Bosh and Charlie Villanueva. Complicating that scenario is the announcement Wednesday that the Raptors had acquired 7’0” center Rasho Nesterovic from San Antonio.

Neither Aldridge nor Bargnani fills the Raptors’ needs at the guard position, and the team could decide to deal down a few spots and grab both a solid prospect and a veteran player to fill two holes at once. To do that, though, Colangelo would need to find a fit with a team in the upper-half of the draft, which might not be possible.

Other potential high picks on draft day include Gonzaga F Adam Morrision, LSU F Tyrus Thomas, Washington G Brandon Roy, Connecticut G Marcus Williams, Connecticut F Rudy Gay, Arkansas G Ronnie Brewer, Duke G J.J. Redick, Duke F Shelden Williams, Villanova G Randy Foye, and Bradley C Patrick O’Bryant.

And while those players should all be solid pros, there isn’t a LeBron James in the bunch. In fact, the league’s new draft rules now prevent high school players from entering the draft; they must now wait a year after graduation to get picked. That move made Greg Oden, the country’s top high school player, ineligible for this year’s draft; instead, the 7’0” center will spend at least one year at Ohio State.

So with no James, and no Oden, the Raptors will have to make do with what’s on the board. Bargnani might have the edge because the Raptors have scouted him extensively, and Mauricio Gherardini, the general manager of his Italian club team (Benetton Treviso), was hired on Thursday as the Raps’ new VP and assistant GM.

But the selection of Bargnani isn’t without its risks. If the Italian star develops into an NBA force he’ll become a big celebrity in multicultural Toronto. If he turns out to be a bust, though, Colangelo will be widely criticized for reaching with the first-overall choice and screwing up a chance for the team to take a big step forward.

The Chicago Bulls, who have the second overall choice at the draft, are expected to take Thomas with the pick. He’d help Chicago up front, which is where their talent is most lacking. The Bulls also own the No. 16 pick in the draft, and could end up taking another big man with that pick - assuming they don’t make a deal.

Morrison might be the best-known name in the draft, and he’s likely to go at some point in the Top 5. The Bobcats, who pick third, might snap up the Zags forward to give their lackluster offense a boost. Another offensive player, Gay, is on Charlotte’s radar too, along with Roy, with MJ now making that final decision.

And if Morrison falls to No. 4, it’s hard to believe that Portland would pass on him. The Trail Blazers are in desperate need of an image makeover, and adding the hyper-competitive Morrison, who played his college ball not too far away, would be popular with the fan base. Of course, with the Blazers you just never know.

A draft-day wild card is Redick, the shooting specialist who was just recently arrested on a drunken-driving charge. How that incident will affect his draft stock has yet to be determined, but it certainly can’t help. However, a team with a pressing need for outside scoring will likely take him in the middle of Round 1.

After the Raptors, Bulls, Bobcats, and Trail Blazers make their selections, the rest of the Top 10 will feature picks by the Hawks, Timberwolves, Celtics, Rockets, Warriors, and SuperSonics. That’s barring any deals between now and Wednesday night - and there has been plenty of trade talk in the last two weeks.

The 2006 NBA Draft is set to get underway at Madison Square Garden in New York at 7:00pm ET on Wednesday. ESPN will be providing coverage of the draft.

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