Deron Williams Article

[KB21]

http://www.ajc.com/thursday/content/epaper...8721e3000d.html

He is certainly drawing high praise from Rick Majerus. Majerus coached Andre Miller at Utah, and he says that he has always tried to bring a player that can do what Deron does to Utah. Rick says he is a cross between Rod Strickland and Jason Kidd.

As tempting as Marvin Williams is, taking Deron would give us our point guard for the next ten years or so.

[Lascar78]

He seems to be going out of his way to praise anyone but Bogut.

[Admin]

I wonder why that is. Maybe he is bitter about Bogut, or bitter about Utah? I can understand his praise for Deron and Marvin, but his lack of praise for Bogut is questionable.

[KB21]

I posted an article on here a while back where Majerus was giving Bogut good praise. I'll see if I can find that article.

[Packfill]

I know this runs contrary to what most people here think, but I absolutely would not be disappointed of the Hawks drafted Deron at 2 or traded down to get him at 4 or 5.

[cyman3]

Quote:

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He seems to be going out of his way to praise anyone but Bogut.

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maybe its b/c he knows that BOGUT will go 1 or 2 in the draft... and knows that he doesnt need any more high praise or watnot

as for the others, he feels like he wants to help them (the ones he likes of course) get an edge/advantage of some sort. some good press... u know?

[Lascar78]

actually one of the things I was thinking about was that he had supposedly told others that he had eye problems. But that turned out to be a BS rumor.

So yeah, I guess he's just praising everyone

[KB21]

Majerus compared Bogut to Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Jack Sikma. He said that Bogut isn't quite the shooter Sikma was though.

[Diesel]

Basketball's big white myth

By Tim Gutowski

I have one simple piece of advice for all Milwaukee Bucks fans: don't be afraid of the big white guy.

I know this runs counter to everything you've ever read or heard about the NBA. And it goes against all you know about the team's history, one dotted with Randy Breuers, Paul Mokeskis and -- yes -- Kent Bensons, a former No. 1 overall pick himself. The lesson is simple: never draft a big white guy in the first round, and certainly not with the top selection.

But I'm asking you to expand your mind. Do not shun the big white guy -- embrace him.

The Bucks, as you know, own the top selection in the 2005 NBA Draft next month. Among the possible selections are forward Marvin Williams of North Carolina, guard Chris Paul of Wake Forest and large, Caucasian center Andrew Bogut of (predictably) Utah.

Yes, Bogut is a big white guy. But that doesn't mean he can't play, or that his style is limited to plodding, fouling and shooting a decent free-throw percentage. Bogut is very big (7-0, 245) and remarkably agile. He was a double-digit scorer (20.4) and rebounder (12.2) or a traditional NCAA power (the Utes reached the Sweet 16 this year). He's also an experienced Olympian (Australia), a worthwhile consideration in a globalized sport. He scores, passes and defends. Is he Shaquille O'Neal? Probably not. But he's not Joel Przybilla, either.

The big white guy lament was a popular refrain among Bucks fans on talk radio after Milwaukee won the lottery. Yes, Williams is young and will take time to develop, but he's better than a big white guy. No, the Bucks probably don't want to spend another top pick on a point guard like Paul, but you must admit -- he's not a big white guy. And why not UNC center Sean May. Big? Yes. White? No. And truly, isn't big and non-white a combination we can all support?

Later in the week, former Marquette assistant and Utah coach Rick Majerus weighed in on Bogut. While stating that Williams will most likely be the best pro from this year's draft, he compared Bogut to ex-Bucks center Jack Sikma and current Cavs pivot Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Hmmm. What do these three players have in common?

Majerus himself admitted that Bogut didn't compare favorably to Sikma as a shooter. So why compare him to someone who was known as a great jump shooter? Oh, right, the big white thing.

Is there anybody else whom we can compare Bogut to on current or past NBA rosters? How about Eddy Curry, Rasheed Wallace or ex-Celtics star Robert Parish? All these players share(d) attributes with Bogut -- they're offensive-minded, they're good passers and they provide a solid, if not overwhelming, defensive presence in the paint. But they're not white -- so there's no possible way Bogut could be like them, right?

Instead of focusing on Bogut's pigmentation, fixate on his size. All-Star big men are no longer an essential component for title contenders, but looking at this year's final four teams, it's clear they're important. San Antonio (Tim Duncan -- who has a lot of big, white attributes to his game), Miami (O'Neal), Detroit (Ben Wallace) and Phoenix (Amare Stoudemire) all have studs in the paint. The Bucks do not, and they haven't for some time.

Let's also look at the four teams that were most recently eliminated from the playoffs. Of Indiana, Washington, Dallas and Seattle, only the Pacers had a star post player (Jermaine O'Neal). Notice how none of them are still around.

Have the Bucks had a legitimate center since Bob Lanier? I don't think so. Was Ervin Johnson the answer? Is Dan Gadzuric? It would be nice to have a big man with star potential, something the Bucks haven't had since Kareem left town.

If you think Williams is going to be a superstar, that's one thing. And if you think Paul may be the second coming of Jason Kidd or (ahem) Steve Nash, that's another. But if you're relying solely on the big white defense for wanting ABB (anyone but Bogut), I would ask you to think again.