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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Sonics not likely to get quick fix


Emeka Okafor, the likely No. 1 pick Thursday, dunks on Rafael Araujo, who may be the Sonics' selection at No. 12. 
 (File/ / The Spokesman-Review)
Frank Hughes Tacoma News Tribune

SEATTLE — As the Seattle SuperSonics prepare for Thursday’s NBA draft, they are attempting to weigh the long-term value of the 12th pick against the immediate help that could be gained from doing something else with it.

Because, in truth, in a draft that features mostly unproven players coming out of high school and from different areas of Europe, whomever the Sonics may select at No. 12 for the second consecutive season is not going to elevate them from their current malaise.

What the team’s management would prefer to do is trade the pick for a veteran player who could provide much-needed leadership, guidance and skill while at the same time getting out from under the three-year guaranteed contract that a first-round draft pick commands.

But what Seattle is discovering as general manager Rick Sund makes calls to his counterparts around the league is that this draft is considered so suspect that few teams want to make deals to move into the Sonics’ spot.

And so the Sonics probably will be stuck with their pick — as well as the 35th and 41st picks of the second round, adding more youth to a team already laden with it — unless, of course, the Sonics take a European player who would be willing to stay overseas for another season.

With teams always trying to outfox and outmaneuver one another, either through the media or by floating false rumors amongst themselves, there never is a certain structure to the draft once it gets past the top five.

But that is even more the case this season, when draft selections will be made more on projections and “future upsides” than in any other draft in history.

“I think, at the end of the day, it’s probably going to be known as the draft of high school players,” Miami Heat general manager Randy Pfund said. “I think there are going to be seven or eight high school players drafted in the top 20.”

Orlando has the first pick in the draft and is likely to take Connecticut junior Emeka Okafor, while prep star Dwight Howard will likely go second to the expansion Charlotte Bobcats — though there already are rumors that Atlanta, at No. 6, is trying to trade up to get the home-grown forward.

Duke sophomore Luol Deng should go third, and after that it’s anybody’s guess as to what teams will keep their position and which players will be selected.

There is 7-foot-5 Russian center Pavel Podkolzine, an intriguing prospect who could go fourth or could drop out of the lottery altogether — though the Sonics are said to be eyeing him if he drops to 12.

There is Jameer Nelson, the best point guard in college from St. Joseph’s, who may or may not be among the top 15. And then there are a lot of players with whom few are familiar.

In their attempt to canvas the talent spectrum, the Sonics have released the names of 35 players they have brought in for workouts — though, interestingly, they say they have not brought in any players considered among the top nine, which would seem to eliminate the notion that they may try to trade up.

When it’s all said and done, though they say they will take the best player available, the Sonics likely will draft a front-court player.