CALM BEFORE THE DRAFT
Kevin Huerter anxious, ready for his name to be called during the NBA Draft Thursday
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. » When the NBA Draft broadcast begins at 7 p.m. tonight from the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn thousands and millions of eyes will be watching the screen to see this year’s selections and how they will impact ‘their’ team.
With each announcement of ‘With the (blank) selection in the 2018 NBA Draft the (team) selects (player.)
For many this is not must-see TV, but if you are a Clifton Park resident, a Shenendehowa grad, a Maryland University alum or fan, you heart could be expected to beat a little faster as the evening moves on from the top lottery picks into the heart of the first round draft.
No one’s heart may be beating faster, harder and have more on the line than Shenendehowa graduate, and Maryland University two-year starter, Kevin Huerter.
The Mr. NY Basketball selection made himself eligible for the draft process shortly after his sophomore year at Maryland concluded, wowed scouts at the NBA Combine and on the final morning, made the decision to retain an agent and make himself officially eligible for Thursday night’s NBA Draft.
“Anxious,” Kevin Huerter said
from his parent’s home in Clifton Park Wednesday night, the eve of the night that will change his life forever.
“I’m just ready to wrap up this process, figure out where I’m going, figure out what city I’m going to be going to,” Huerter said. “It feels like it’s been a long two months.
“I don’t even know when I declared at first, but it’s been a long process and something I’m happy that I’m only going through once.”
Huerter is familiar with the draft process and the night’s flow and watched Shenendehowa baseball teammate Ian Anderson announced as the Atlanta Braves No. 3 selection in the 2016 MLB draft. Anderson was on site in New Jersey in the MLB studio, Huerter made the choice to stay locally for the momentous occasion.
“I think they invited the first 15 and I think they were trying to figure out who would decline, who would stay in (the draft) and invite the next 10 or so to go,” Huerter said. “I was invited pretty late, but at that point I think we had a lot of plans to do stuff here and just where I think the range where I would be I think it would be more fun to be around people here, back home and Friday I’m expecting to go out to the new city. I have no problem being here for the draft.”
Various mock drafts have Huerter in the late teens, early 20s with verbal commitments from the Los Angeles Laker to take him if he should drop to the 25th spot.
Everyone near Kevin Huerter, the future NBA Rookie and the free world will have to wait until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announces his name.
“We asked our agent that yesterday, it really comes down to when the team is on the clock, they figure who they are going to pick,” Huerter said. “The only team that probably knows who they are going to pick right now is the (Phoenix) Suns and they might not even know.
“I think when I’m on the clock he may hear about it first, probably moments before we will and I’m interested to see to whether I get a text from him. You get a call from the teams after you’re picked, so I don’t expect to get a call from a team (prior), or a text from him saying ‘Make sure you’re watching.’ We’ll see how it plays out.”
Huerter will have to watch and see familiar names selected by teams before his name is called, do his own analysis of any draft day trades as teams may move up or down the draft board.
“If there is some movement you start to make different assumptions, but a lot of this doesn’t really matter where you get picked, it really kind of matters what team you go to,” Huerter said. “I think you’ve learned pretty quickly at this level you try to be happy for everybody because a lot of people have worked just as hard to get to the same position so you never try to be mad or jealous for someone else for going somewhere.
“A lot of these guys, you are happy for them, that they’re living out their dream too and just can’t wait to compete against them and wherever I fall, I fall.”
Huerter’s bags are packed, ready to take a flight presumably out of Albany International Airport to his future NBA city, but before that there will be many anxious moments followed by deafening cheers and a few tears around the former Shenendehowa star.
The NBA draft will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2 and the NBA network beginning at 7 p.m.