Muhammad’s stock shaky
Ex-gorman, UCLA star suffers sudden fall from grace
NEW YORK — In a room of familiar faces, Shabazz Muhammad was nowhere to be found. His VIP spot on the NBA Draft guest list, essentially reserved five years ago, was erased.
Thirteen players were invited to meet with the media Wednesday at The Westin at Times Square, and Muhammad, once considered the nation’s No. 1 high school player in his class, was not one.
“I know Shabazz pretty well,” said Ben McLemore, a freshman guard from Kansas. “I can feel where he’s coming from, with all the publicity and the people criticizing him. He’s a guy who can handle it.”
Muhammad, a former Bishop Gorman and UCLA star, has fallen from grace and likely out of the top 10 in the draft, which begins at 4:30 p.m. PDT today at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
McLemore is among several candidates who could go No. 1 overall to Cleveland, if the Cavaliers keep the pick. The forecast for draft day is cloudy with a chance of trades.
“This draft is up in the air. Nobody knows what’s going to happen,” McLemore said. “I know all you guys are wondering, and that’s how I’m thinking. Who’s going where and who’s going to be the No. 1 pick?”
Three other freshmen — UNLV’s Anthony Bennett, Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel and Maryland’s Alex Len — might wind up as the top pick. Or it could be Georgetown sophomore Otto Porter Jr.
“No one is even sure who should be the No. 1 pick,” ESPN.com draft analyst Chad Ford said. “And while the Cavs have not told me who they’re going to draft No. 1, and I don’t think they’ve told anybody, I’m not even 100 percent sure that they know yet. I think they’re narrowing down and getting close to that decision. Noel has been the guy that’s been on the top of their big board all year.
“Now, could it be Alex Len or Anthony Bennett? I think those are the three players that they’ve narrowed this list down to, perhaps. But-
Back then, the Rebels training staff said Bennett had suffered no structural damage to the shoulder and was being treated for something called “brachial neuritis,” a condition few around the program seemed to have any clue about.
We were told he might have slept on the shoulder wrong.
Yeah. That sounded weird at the time.
Maybe they were too busy wondering about the asthma Bennett suffered from ... or not ... or did ... or not.
It matters little. In a stronger draft, Bennett’s health and propensity to pack on pounds might hurt him dearly. Not this year. His name is called quickly. It was even reported Wednesday that Cleveland coach Mike Brown is pushing the Cavaliers to take Bennett with the No. 1 pick. That really would be phat. 2. What happened to Shabazz?
Easy. The more time general managers have had to analyze his game, the more potential flaws they see at the next level. It doesn’t mean the former Bishop Gorman High star will follow some predictions and fall out of the lottery, but Shabazz Muhammad today is a player with far more to prove than not.
Scouts wonder about his passing skill, or lack of it. They wonder about the 10 percent body fat he measured at the draft combine, one of the worst of those attending. They wonder if he can create and finish in the NBA, if he can guard anyone. They wonder if he is as selfish as his college numbers suggest.
But they also covet guys who can score, and Muhammad has been terrific at finding the basket since he first dribbled a ball.
His father lied about Shabazz’s age (he’s 20 ... we think), just another red flag thrown in the path of interested teams. But general managers have this habit of explaining away certain issues if they believe a player is worth drafting.
I have a feeling one will tonight before the lottery portion of the draft has concluded.
3. Jamaal Franklin or Tony Snell?
Once Bennett has been chosen, two other Mountain West players probably will join him in the first round.
Which one projects to be a better pro?
There is not a better playmaker in the draft from the wing position as Franklin, whose 21.6 assist percentage as a junior at San Diego State has pro scouts thinking he can impact the game in a variety of ways.
If he had any sort of consistent jumper, Franklin is a lottery pick.
But he shot just 22 percent on 3-pointers last season, and that enough has scouts projecting him anywhere from the high teens to the mid-20s.
One draft report points Franklin’s NBA ceiling as that of Andre Iguodala and his potential floor as Marquis Daniels.
I think he ultimately offers a career that falls somewhere in the middle.
Snell is different. He could be the most underrated player in the draft.
Did you watch Danny Green emerge for the Spurs during the NBA Finals? Snell eventually can be that sort of player.
He probably will be drafted low enough in the first round that the New Mexico product goes to a playoff team, an ideal place for a 6-foot-7-inch shooting guard whose ability off catch-and-shoots from distance and outstanding quickness as an on-ball defender could carve him a nice supporting role around ample talent.
Oklahoma City has the 29th pick in the first round, and if Snell is still on the board, the Thunder should grab him quicker than Kevin Durant’s shot release.
Happy drafting.