Packfill

Maybe, but likely not. Most people I know where done growing at 17-18. They could have a David Robinson like growth spurt but I wouldn't count on it.

Plus, both measured in at around 6'7" without shoes at their official weight-ins so they have a ways to go.

Probably, but he is does not appear to be a great prize as far as number one picks go.

Why is that? Carmelo averaged 22 at syracuse, then went on to average 21 as a rookie in the pros. Morisson averaged 28 in college, with every other team focused exclusively on stopping him, but it's impossible for him to average 20 in the pros, even if he goes to the right situation? I don't see why. The man is a natural born scorer.

Definitely worth a look in round two.

Poor Celtics fans. They gave up on Chancey Billups in his first year as well.

Utah may be over the Dominique trade by now.

There are, however, legions of examples where young guys were traded and the team that gave them away are no worse off. Think the Clippers really miss Darius Miles? Is Vancuver really pissed about jettisoning a young Antonio Daniels? Is Chicago really pissed about trading away Eddie Curry? Does Golden State regret trading Billy Owens for Mitch Richmond? Did Indiana do well by trading the Antonio Davis for a draft pick that ended up being Johnathan Bender?

This is the kind of stuff that really scares the crap out of me about Bargnani. There are so many conflicting reports from reputable and non-reputable sources it is hard to get a real feel for what his game is like. If he is a perimeter player I don't care if he is 8' tall, he makes no sense for the Hawks.

Agree completely that the NBA is all about projects these days - the marketing people should really think about contacting Home Depot since there are some obvious synergies between the two businesses.

From a fans perspective, I really do not like the idea of so many young "projects" being in the NBA. I really wish guys like Marvin Williams and Josh Smith would go to college and play at least three years before going pro. There are the obvious exceptions like LeBron, but we have to remember he is the exception and not the rule.

No question he had the better year, and really no doubt he should be picked much higher. I guess my impression of Aldridge was really affected by that LSU game.

O'Bryant is a big time project and risk pick, but he does posses the size and athleticism that the Hawks need. Whether that size and athleticism translates into some semblance of production is unknown.

My big concern with Splitter is the rumors about his buyout - will he actually be available to play next season? If not, I would pass on him in favor of O'Bryant.

I definitely liked what I saw of O'Bryant in the tournament. Granted it is very small sample set but outside of Noah, Big Baby and Thomas there wasn't a more impressive big man. Aldridge looked decidedly mediocre.

That is encouraging. If he could develop he is the player in the draft, outside of Aldridge, who best fits what the Hawks need (i.e., athletic, defensive oriented big man).

I agree that it does not make a whole lot of sense to trade for Jefferson or Marion given that the team already has depth at forward. That said, both are very good players and if we did trade them I would not be adverse to trading one of the young guys to fill the remaining holes in the roster.

Marion was an all-star before Nash showed up.

You are crazy. Ben Wallace is exactly the type of guy the Hawks need.

I would take Roy or Foye over Brewer.

I agree with Exodus. Salim can shoot and that is about it. He is looking at a Tony Delk like career.

No to Francis. He would be a franchise killer.

People said the same thing about Jason Terry before he was run out of town.

I say no. Iverson is a great talent but what is the point of adding him when it would still leave the team bereft of an inside presence?

Plus don't you think he would get a little cranky with the growing pains of the young players? Also, Josh Childress is the exact type of complimentary player you want to have playing with AI, so giving him up in the deal would not make alot of sense.

He has a max or near max contract. It would limit flexibility down the road since JJ is already inked to a big deal.

I would make that trade any day of the week as well. But I think we would need to sweeten it to make NJ even consider it so we would likely have to throw Marvin or Childress in the deal, which I would be fine with to get a player of RJ's caliber.

If the real Boston Garden was still standing I would agree with you. The new arena that replaced the garden lacks the same appeal. Remember the Bruins game with the fog?

MSG wins for me, but having been there many time it really is not all that great an arena, it is dated in comparison to the Phil. There has been some efforts to build a new one but it is unlikely at this time.

BK is like the CEO of a small start-up company. He does a good job assembling some talent but ultimately he is not the guy with the vision to get that talent to work towards a cingular goal. Nor does he poses the demeanor to be the company front man for the IPO - he would turn off too many potential investors during the road show.

Unless something drastic happens, BK will be given another year to acquire talent and then will be shown the door. The next GM will come in and hopefuly make that one key move that brings the team together and that GM will help launch the Hawks into the playoffs and beyond.

There is no question that the NBA has evolved in the last dozen years. The biggest change is the arrival of multi-skilled big men (i.e., those guys 6'10" and taller that no longer have to stay within 8 feet of the basket). Garnett is the embodiment of the new generation, but he has a host of contemporaries including Dirk, Rasheed, Odom, Kukoc, Webber, Kirilenko, etc. Essentially, these guys are all supersized small forwards who, because of their size, have the physical ability to play in the post.

There is no question that Josh Smith and Marvin Williams have the potential to develop well rounded skills, but neither have the god-given size to truly bang with the big boys. Not to say the couldn't on a limited basis, but i the grand scheme of things the front office will have to decide how to optimize their talent.

From the games I have seen, both appear to be natural small forwards. You may disagree, but outside of Josh Smith's shot blocking skills is there anything that suggests either of these guys is anything other then a small forward?

You can not pick someone like Boozer up without making some other moves - i.e., where do all the forwards play.

The foundation for what was built by BK in Memphis? That team has no chance of winning a championship. BK has one decent draft which was made possible by Babcock and he is a genius? The fact of the matter is no team has won under his watch. He can find talent but has no clue how to put an organization or team together which can work together to win games. It was not until West came in and built a "team" that they won anything.