Interview with: Da Beat and T.S.I
Well, now that the National Basketball Association has done it’s lottery pick show and we know how the picks are going to go this coming NBA draft I decided to get a hold of “Da Beat of N.Y.”, a good friend of this blog and ask him some questions regarding the four players from North Carolina. As we were getting ready to do the interview (we usually chit chat back and forth on YM) another good friend of this blog, The Southern Informer, also YM’ed me and so we did this as a double interview. So, sit back and relax, and read what two people who have followed college sports for over 4 decades combined say about Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green. And it’s all right here on the next edition of “Interview with:”…
A.E.M.: Most of the mocks have Ty Lawson going in the lottery, but some don’t, and in all the junior point guard seems to edging closer and closer to the mid teens. What do you guys think, is Lawson going to be a lottery pick or not?
Da Beat: I truly like Lawson going into the single digits, with either Golden State taking him at the seventh spot or New York one pick later. I know some people are believing the conspiracy of LeBron James pushing Flynn to come out and to have the Knicks take him because he wants to play with him when he leaves the Cavaliers. I truly doubt that is going to happen, and while Flynn can be as good as Lawson in years to come right now there is no way you can put the two together as Lawson’s A/TO ratio is unbelievable, he plays within himself a lot more than the sophomore out of Syracuse, and most of all has played under the spotlight, since UNC is as much of a pressure cooker as you can find when it comes to college basketball.
T.S.I.:When it comes to Lawson I am going to say this, be happy that the Phoenix Suns are picking 14th, because that is exactly where he is going to go. Steve Nash isn’t getting any older, and that means that while Tywon Lawson isn’t going to start he will still get plenty of playing time for the Suns. Once Nash is gone Lawson will be able to step right in as he knows the system and will do a great job. So, to answer your question, Tywon Lawson will go in the lottery, just at the end of it.
A.E.M.: Moving to the other guard, where do you guys see Wayne Ellington going in this draft?
T.S.I: This is a very big draft when it comes to point guards and combo guards. Meaning that a lot of those type of players are going to go before the halfway mark of round one. Add a couple of what the scouts and/or teams regard as darlings, for example Gerald Henderson, and you are filled up with picks up to number 20. My destination for Wayne Ellington is the New Orleans Hornets. I think they can use someone that the second guard and with someone like Chris Paul feeding him he would have plenty of set shots.
Da Beat: When I look at Ellington I think of New York, and by that I don’t mean him going to the Knicks, I mean Wall Street. Ellington to me is a Dow Joners (sorry Dick Vitale love that word). The reason why I mention this is because if Ellington has a good work out period, like his last two months at Chapel Hill he could go in the teens, to a team such as Charlotte, but if he shoots like he did at the beginning of the season teams can easily pass on him, especially when you look at his defense, and he could easily end up all the way to Chicago (26th) or Cleveland (30th).
A.E.M.: Moving up to senior swing man Danny Green, who two years ago was the conference’s best sixth man and this year stepped it up even more as a starter. Somehow the mocks aren’t sold on him, are either of you?
Da Beat: As you have said to me on the phone and I have said to others, if Green goes after the 31st or 33rd pick of the draft he is going to be a steal. Both Sacramento and Washington could use someone with Green’s high powered offense and tenacity on defense coming off the bench. One thing that could make Green fall below is because some scouts do believe he gets cheap fouls, but coming off the bench should kind of avoid him fouling out. Let’s never forget that in the stretch that everyone was giving up on Roy Williams’ club it was Danny Green leading the charge to keep his team going.
T.S.I: I see Danny Green going a bit lower, so I guess to “Da Beat of N.Y.” this is going to be a steal, maybe it will be, and maybe it might be a huge one. I think that Detroit will pick up Danny Green, either at the 39th pick, or if he is still there a couple of picks later at the 44th pick. I truly think that the Pistons are going to revamp the team sooner or later and a good off the bench scorer isn’t something that can be left out when rebuilding a team. I truly believe that Green could have been a first rounder if not the fourth option on a team loaded with talent.
A.E.M.: And lastly, the man who two years ago everyone loved and had as the National Player of the Year and now a lot are wondering if he could be a bust in the NBA, Tyler Hansbrough. What do you think of the senior big man?
T.S.I: I will go on the record now as saying this. I believe that if his head coach, Roy Williams, told him don’t go pro come work for me at North Carolina he would jump at the opportunity instantly, because he loves that college and that atmosphere. Having said that I also believe that while he isn’t going to have the productivity that he had on tobacco road, he is going to be one of those players that will get double doubles because of his want and determination. My pick for him in the NBA in this draft is the Utah Jazz, who pick 20th, and if not them, the Portland TrailBlazers, who pick 24th. If the Jazz know for sure to lose either Carlos Boozer or Paul Milsap I say that they will not pass up on a player who can give them 100% each and every night.
Da Beat: I agree with the predictions from The Southern Informer, believing that both Utah and Portland could use someone with Hansbrough’s talent. However I think that Hansbrough will end up in Portland, if not lower, because the way that scouts and teams have something they just do not see in him. I will also state something about Hansbrough, and that is I believe whomever takes him is bringing in a seventh man that will not stop until he has exhausted every ounce of energy in his body. In time where a lot of athletes are being marked by their bad attitudes you have in Hansbrough the total opposite, he has shown the committment he has, he has shown he will play even hurt, he has shown that he can be the leader or the side kick on a team and never complain. What more can you truly have? Unfortunately all of those things are great for second rounders and not first 20-25 picks of the NBA Draft.
And there you have it, a two for, with great some of the most knowledgeable people I know when it comes to college sports (both football and basketball). Da Beat of N.Y. and The Southern Informer have more than four decades of following those sports as reporters. When it comes to talking hardwood or gridiron they are hard to top. Once again thanks to both of them for taking time out for doing this and hopefully I will be able to get them on this site on a more frequent basis.
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