Pistons’ pick

When the ESPN camera focused on Rodney Stuckey, he knew his time had come and for just a moment the Eastern Washington University basketball star got nervous.

As Commissioner David Stern was announcing that the Detroit Pistons had selected Stuckey with the 15th pick of the NBA draft at Madison Square Garden Thursday night, Stuckey was thinking, “I can’t trip walking up the stairs.”

Stuckey flawlessly handled the few steps to the traditional handshake with the commissioner and the media circus that followed.

“I’m glad it’s over,” he said in a telephone interview two hours after he became the second Eagle drafted. “This is crazy being in this situation now. I’m so excited I finally found my home.”

Stuckey, who entered the draft after his sophomore season, may not have been a lottery pick, but he couldn’t be in a much better situation. Of the 14 lottery picks before Detroit’s selection, only Chicago, at No. 9, made the playoffs this past season.

“I’m glad I’m going to Detroit,” he said. “The organization loves winning and the city loves basketball.

“Coming to an organization that has been to Eastern Conference finals five years in a row is really good. That means they don’t expect anything but the best. Knowing that, they work hard as a team, they do a good job at what they do, I’m just excited to get started.”

Although it was widely speculated he would go to Detroit, Stuckey said there was never a guarantee.

“They told me I was a good player and if I was still around at 15, I was one of the guys they would really look at to pick,” he said. “Going through this, there were a lot of teams before Detroit that liked the things I did. At the time, I didn’t know.”

Stuckey was the fourth guard chosen Thursday. He is only the second Eagle ever drafted and the second Big Sky Conference player to be a first-rounder.

Ron Cox, EWU’s all-time scoring leader, was a sixth-round pick by Cleveland in 1977. A year later, Micheal Ray Richardson of Montana went to the New York Knicks with the fourth overall pick.

Cox, who never played a regular-season game in the NBA, finished his Eastern career with 1,741 points. Stuckey is No. 4 with 1,438 after averaging more than 24 points in both of his seasons. He was an honorable mention All-American both seasons and the only freshman voted Most Valuable Player in the Big Sky.

After shaking hands with the commissioner, Stuckey was taken to a short interview with ESPN’s Stuart Scott, who went down the list of earlier draftees from big-time schools and asked him, “Who is Rodney Stuckey?”

The 6-foot-5, 205 guard from Kent, Wash., who set 10 EWU records in his short two-year career, calmly replied, “That’s me.”

ESPN analyst Jay Bilas called Stuckey a “poor man’s Dwyane Wade” – saying he was athletic “as all get out” – who can create his own shot. He also said Stuckey needed to improve his outside shot and defense.

The Pistons added a second guard in the first round, UCLA’s Arron Afflalo, at No. 27. Afflalo is known for his defense and outside shot.

“I think Afflalo and I are different type of players,” Stuckey said. “He’s got game, but we have different types of game. I’m a combo guard. I can play the one or two. Afflalo is a two guard. He can really spot up and play defense. I’m happy to have a player like that with me.”

First-round draft picks receive guaranteed three-year contracts and the salary is predetermined. Stuckey should get in excess of $1.3 million a year.

Stuckey goes to Detroit today. Then he plans to relax for a couple of days before getting back to work to prepare for summer league.

The Pistons also took a guard, Sammy Mejia of DePaul, with their second-round pick, 57th overall.