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March Madness: Who NBA scouts are watching

by Chad Ford

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Also Below: Who they're watching in the East | Raps ready to fire Lenny? | Bulls point guard battle takes a weird turn | Ricky Davis' punishment | Peep Show

ESPN Insider talked to multiple NBA scouts and GMs to give you a look at the Top 5 NBA prospects they'll be watching in each NCAA region.

Today, Insider will take a look at the East bracket. Wednesday, we'll tackle the Midwest.

Also see: South bracket prospects | Tournament Guide | March Madness Sitelines

Who they're watching in the East

1. Carmelo Anthony, G/F, Syracuse

The Skinny: 6-foot-8, 225 lbs, Freshman. 22.7 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 45 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: The complete package. Every time scouts begin talking about him, the names of Tracy McGrady, Paul Pierce, Shawn Marion and even Grant Hill are evoked. That's not bad company. He's a fluid scorer. Can score off the dribble or stick the mid-range jumper. Is very creative when he slashes to the basket. Does a good job of getting to the line. Good ball handler, above average passer. Excellent finisher on the break. Likes to post up smaller guards. Can score with his back to the basket. A superb rebounder for someone his size thanks to long arms and a willingness to get in the paint.

The Bad: A good but not great athlete. Doesn't have the hops of Vince Carter or the quickness of Kobe Bryant. His defense needs work. He needs to hit the weight room. Is a decent long-range shooter, but doesn't really have the range right now to hit the NBA 3. At times he dominates the ball too much and doesn't get his teammates involved in the flow of the game.

The Ugly: He's the consensus No. 3 pick in this year's draft if he declares. His improvement this year combined with his work ethic and professional off-the-court behavior have teams sold. Anthony has all of the trappings of an NBA star.

Austin

2. Mario Austin, PF, Mississippi State

The Skinny: 6-foot-8, 260 lbs, Junior. 15.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 55 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: Austin has made a big impression on scouts since his breakout year last season. "He's not totally different from Elton Brand," one NBA executive told Insider. "He's in great shape, works really hard in the paint, has very long arms. He's not as tall or athletic as you'd like, but I think he has the chance to be real good." Austin is a beast in the paint. Likes to play on the block. He can either back his defender down, or use his quickness to spin around him. Really throws his weight around. Has added a nice mid-range jumper to his game this year.

The Bad: The biggest knocks on Austin are his size -- some scouts claim he's closer to 6-7 than 6-9 -- and his lack of athleticism. He's not a leaper, which hurts him on the boards and when trying to block shots. He gets his shot blocked a lot and can disappear when playing against other big men.

The Ugly: Despite all the hand wringing, every scout Insider talked to feels Austin is a late lottery or mid first-round pick if he comes out after the season. However, Austin recently announced he'd be returning for his senior season. Some scouts, however, are skeptical. Austin went back and forth on his decision last season. If he has a good tournament, and is assured of his place in the lottery, they believe he'll declare for the draft.

3. Reece Gaines, PG/SG, Louisville

The Skinny: 6-foot-6, 205 lbs, Senior. 17.7 ppg, 5.0 apg, 46 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: He's 6-6, has legitimate point guard skills, is a great athlete and has developed into a legit 3-point marksman. Has a real knack for getting to the basket. Several scouts used words like "slick" and "savvy" to describe his play. Great athlete. Coach Rick Pitino has told several scouts that Gaines is one of the most intelligent players he's ever coached.

The Bad: Some teams still aren't sold on the proposition that he's a point guard. While Gaines has excellent passing skills, they don't believe he sees the floor or finds his teammates like a "pure" point guard. While every scout conceded that he's improved, some teams still feel he plays too out of control and makes too many poor decisions to be a point guard in the pros. Others aren't worried at all.

The Ugly: A good tournament and strong workouts are key for Gaines. If teams become convinced he's starting a point guard, he's going in the lottery. Teams put a premium on big guards who can handle and shoot the ball. If teams are convinced he's more of a "combo" guard, then he's probably looking at the mid first round.

Howard

4. Josh Howard, SG/SF, Wake Forest

The Skinny: 6-foot-6, 205 lbs, Senior. 20.0 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 2.0 spg, 48 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: Reliable. While Howard doesn't do anything extraordinary, he seems to do everything well. Scouts love his maturity and patience on the court. He has a solid mid-range jumper, is great on the offensive glass, has solid handles and always seems to play in control. Above-average defender.

The Bad: He doesn't have deep range on his jumper, but his 3-ball is improving. Needs to get physically stronger. Is a good athlete, but not an explosive one. Doesn't really play above the rim.

The Ugly: He's done a lot to improve his draft stock this season. At the start of the year, scouts had him penciled in as a borderline second-round pick. Now, several teams say they wouldn't be surprised if he slips into the late first round. While Howard doesn't project to be a star in the league, he has the potential to be a solid rotation player. You know what you're getting with him.

5. Julius Hodge, SG/SF, North Carolina State

The Skinny: 6-foot-6, 180 lbs, Sophomore. 17.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.6 apg, 45 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: Freak athlete with good handles and a fearless drive to the basket. Has good speed and is an excellent finisher on the break. He's a good rebounder for someone his size. Gets most of his points breaking his man down off the dribble.

The Bad: His jumper is very inconsistent. He doesn't shoot with a lot of range. He's very thin. Needs lots of work in the weight room. His defense is just so-so.

The Ugly: Hodge was a top prospect coming out of high school. While his game has definitely improved this season, scouts feel he's still a year or two away from being a pro prospect. If he goes back to school, fills out a little bit and learns how to stick the jumper, he has the physical tools to be a lottery pick down the road.

Sleeper: Hakim Warrick, SF, Syracuse

The Skinny: 6-foot-8, 205 lbs, Sophomore. 15.3 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 55 percent shooting from the field.

The Good: This slender forward has been compared to Darius Miles. That's both a good thing and a bad thing. Like Miles, Warrick is a great athlete who delivers unbelievable hops and rim rattling dunks. He's an accomplished rebounder who uses his leaping ability and long arms to sky over his opponents. He hit the weight room hard last summer and improved his bench press by 80 pounds. He also added 20 pounds to his big frame and developed a sweet 10- to 12-foot jumper.

The Bad: Teams worry about his outside jumper and his strength -- the same two knocks Miles hasn't been able to shake. His ball handling can also be shaky at times.

The Ugly: Warrick wasn't a big-time recruit and has played in Anthony's shadow all season. If he were to declare for the draft now, scouts see him as a mid-to-late first-round pick. However, if he spends next year outside Anthony's shadow, teams feel he could go in the lottery.

Others to watch: Jameer Nelson, G, St. Joseph's; Hollis Price, G, Oklahoma; Amit Tamir, F, Cal; Josh Powell, F, North Carolina State; Derrick Zimmerman, G, Mississippi State; Ugonna Onyekwe, F, Penn

Raps ready to fire Lenny?

The Raptors are in the toilet and a "very concerned" GM Glen Grunwald is about to flush.

Lenny Wilkens entered the season with 1,268 coaching victories, most in NBA history.

After the Raptors' loss to the Suns on Monday night, Grunwald told the Toronto Star that he's seen enough. Changes have to be made now to give fans some hope for next season.

Trades are impossible. There isn't a free agent out there worth signing. Read between the lines and it looks like the coach is on the chopping block.

Grunwald refused to give Lenny Wilkens a vote of confidence after last night's loss. He said there are no guarantees that he'll last the season.

"No, it's under evaluation, like it's always under evaluation," he said of the coaching situation. "But nothing's changed on that front right now."

While the players and coaches deny it, the team basically has given up. They've allowed 114 ppg over their last five games and has lost six straight and seven of their last eight.

"I'm very concerned," Grunwald told the Star. "When you lose by those amounts to those teams, although we did play better (Sunday night), it's very concerning. Obviously now, we're looking at next year. We have to get back on track. We're in a turnaround situation; if we can't get it turned around now, we'll have to make some big decisions in the off-season."

Whether Wilkens sticks around or not, expect Grunwald to push for his young players to get more minutes. First-round picks like Chris Jeffries and Michael Bradley, along with free agent point guard Rafer Alston, are only getting marginal minutes right now.

If nothing else, Grunwald would like to see what the young kids can bring to the table next season.

"We still have 18 games to go; that's a lot of basketball to play," he said. "With 18 games, there are a lot of things we can find out. It's a difficult time, but I'm confident that if we make the right couple of changes, we'll be OK."

Raptors vow changes

Doug Smith / Toronto Star

Raps disappoint their GM

Bill Harris / Toronto Sun

Bulls point guard battle takes a weird turn

Jamal Crawford (along with some of his teammates) insisted at the start of the season that he, not hot shot rookie Jay Williams, was best equipped to be the Bulls' starting point guard.

Jamal Crawford

Point Guard

Chicago Bulls

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

66 8.8 2.0 3.7 .394 .775

After months of platooning, dishevel, harassment by Crawford's agent, Aaron Goodwin, and Williams' brick throwing, the Bulls finally threw their hands in the air and handed the starting job back to Crawford in March.

Crawford, who had career highs of 24 points and 10 assists against the Lakers last week, has responded big time. He's averaging 15.8 ppg and 6.8 apg this month. He's played under control, showed lots of energy and has generally won over his teammates who claim that the offense flows better when Crawford is in the game.

Even coach Bill Cartwright is giving Crawford praise. "Jamal stepped up, made some big plays and carried us at times" during the road trip.

Crawford, of course, knew it all along.

"I think I surprised a lot of people," Crawford told the Chicago Sun Times. "At the start of the year, people lost confidence and hope in me. But adversity builds character. I haven't won as much as I've wanted. But I've matured a lot as a player and as a person, and I want to continue to get better."

Crawford has won friends in the organization because of the professional manner in which he handled his benching. While Crawford's agent made a few waves, Crawford rarely complained. Williams, on the other hand, took shots at his coach, the organization and the offense as he struggled to rekindle the fire that made his the No. 2 pick in the draft.

While the situation appears to be set for the remainder of the season, some in the organization are already wondering what happens next season. While everyone has pegged Williams as a "franchise" player, some feel that Crawford may be the better long-term solution at the point. He has a height advantage over just about every point guard in the league and has shown a willingness to put his teammates' game ahead of his own.

Jay Williams

Point Guard

Chicago Bulls

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

61 9.3 2.7 4.8 .380 .619

Could that lead to a Williams trade? Unlikely, according to one source inside the Bulls. Instead, GM Jerry Krause is pushing Cartwright to try to work on sets that have both Crawford and Williams playing in the backcourt together. Now here's the twist. Cartwright has told Krause he's willing to entertain the idea if Crawford is the one running the point. Williams would essentially play the off-guard position. (Ironically, the same thing happened to Williams during his junior season at Duke when Chris Duhon came in and ran the point.)

Krause may not be able to live with that scenario. Krause still believes that Williams, who stands at just 6-foot-1, is the team's point guard of the future. If Cartwright holds his ground, the Bulls may be forced to trade Crawford this summer just to end the controversy. That may explain why the Bulls, with the season clearly over, are giving all the minutes to Crawford now. The better he plays, the more his stock goes up.

Bulls quick to go from high to low

Lacy J. Banks / Chicago Sun-Times

Ricky Davis' punishment

Ricky Davis' pathetic attempt to land a triple double against the Jazz on Sunday night was the talk of the NBA on Monday.

Ricky Davis

Guard-Forward

Cleveland Cavaliers

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

63 20.8 4.8 5.0 .408 .755

Some called for the Cavs to suspend him. Others called for the league to stick a dunce cap on his head and sit him in the corner.

Personally, I'd like commissioner David Stern to extend Davis' contract with the Cavs indefinately and ban the team from trading him. I can think of no worse punishment than a life sentence on Cadavalier row.

While such drastic actions are highly unlikely, being a Cav for life might be the ultimate fallout for Davis. Cleveland had been quietly planning to put him on the trading block this summer. His trade value, already shaky, may have suffered a death blow.

Ricky Davis may be stuck in Cleveland for the next five seasons.

Coach Keith Smart explains. "Nobody's going to remember the 28, 12 and nine," Smart told the Cleveland Plain Dealer when asked why the Cavs didn't discipline Davis. "We didn't do anything with Ricky because there's not a whole lot you can do. The damage has been done. It's locked in time, and slapping him on the hand isn't going to change that. He'll get enough fining by being talked about and criticized publicly. Of course Ricky feels bad about it. We all do. Now he's got to deal with the consequences."

Davis took a shot at the Jazz's basket with six seconds left in an attempt to collect the first triple double of his career. After the game, Cavs assistant Clifford Ray tried to put the boneheaded move into perspective for Davis.

"I told him, 'Ricky, that triple-double you were so desperately trying to get -- the one you've been trying to get all year -- you had to cheat to get it,' " Ray told the Morning Journal. " 'Look how far you have to go to be a command player that can do that 10, 15 times a year, like (Kevin) Garnett, (Tim) Duncan and (Chris) Webber.' When you think you're so good, I can show you another area where you have to go back to the drawing board and continue to work."

GM Jim Paxson, who was hoping Smart could do what John Lucas couldn't (keep Davis's ego in check), should be forced to sit in the corner too. While the humiliation Davis will have to suffer through should be punishment enough, Davis, who's had a wonderful statistical season, probably doesn't get it. He's an All-Star in his own mind. His ability to drop 20 points a night and a SportsCenter highlight, win or lose, makes him the man. Until the Cavs forcefully tell him differently, does anyone think this won't happen again?

Shot going over like ton of bricks

Dennis Manoloff / Cleveland Plain Dealer

Davis' punishment: being remembered

Bob Finnan / Lorain Morning Journal

Davis takes a wrong turn on the path to stardom

Bud Shaw / Cleveland Plain Dealer

Peep Show

Milwaukee Bucks: Is Gary Payton considering returning the Bucks next season. It sounds like it. "Everybody knows that George is my guy," Payton told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "He's going to get the first shot at giving me an opportunity to come back here. George told me to relax, play this season out and after the season is over, take two or three weeks off and take my kids somewhere on vacation. Then I'm going to come back, we're going to meet and we're going to talk. We'll see what the future holds." Payton says his family will come first in any decision. "I'm not worried about money. I'm worried about if my family is going to be happy, if I'm going to be happy. Is this going to be a good situation as far as winning, and winning a championship?"

Orlando Magic: Grant Hill will undergo a fourth surgery on his left ankle today. The procedure will include breaking his heel to help realign his ankle. The surgery will likely include another long rehabilitation period, putting Hill's availability at the start of next season in doubt. "It's very likely that this will be the toughest rehabilitation that he's had," GM John Gabriel told the Orlando Sentinel. If this surgery fails? "Obviously, you're hoping this is the surgery that works, but if it isn't, then that's not a good sign for his future," coach Doc Rivers told Florida Today. "I talked to him Saturday and he was upbeat from the fact that he finally knew where he was going and what direction this was turning. Even though it's not the news you want to get, at least it gave him some closure as to where he was going with this. That was probably a good thing for him mentally."

San Antonio Spurs: Tim Duncan's sprained ankle will be just fine. An MRI taken Monday morning was negative, and Spurs officials said he is questionable to play tonight against New York. "It's not serious and that's good," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told the San Antonio Express News. "An injury to a guy like that can make or break your season."

New Jersey Nets: Jason Kidd thinks the media is over reacting to the Nets' recent woes. "We are on the verge of having another winning season and everybody is talking about being disorganized," Kidd told the N.Y. Daily News. "You've got to remember, this team was at the bottom of the barrel, and for some odd reason you guys (the media) are jumping the gun on all the success. So let's be realistic here and not harp about being unorganized for one game."

Detroit Pistons: Zeljko Rebraca, who's been out since mid December with a heart problem, said Monday he's planning on being ready to play in the playoffs. "I need to play four or five games before the playoffs," Rebraca told the Detroit News. "I will be ready for the playoffs. I'm starting with a little bit of running and shooting and some drills with the ball. (I'm going) a little bit slow because I haven't done anything for almost three months. I want to start practicing with the team and get in the lineup if everything's good."

Seattle SuperSonics: Vladimir Radmanovic and his agent, David Bauman, are beginning to wonder about his role on the team. "Vladimir was given the expectation that he would be a much bigger part of this team this year than he has been," Bauman told the Seattle Post Intelligencer. "As his agent, I'm concerned that he's kind of being stifled here. I know he's young. I know he can be impatient, but he just needs to be given a chance." Coach Nate McMillan said that Radmanovic needs to be patient. "He's a second-year guy," McMillan said. "I think you've got to let him play. I think (he) learns from this year, you give him a summer, then you bring him back next year and give him a little more. And two years from now is when you're going to have expectations of delivering, I think. You don't put that on him right now."

Atlanta Hawks: Shareef Abdur-Rahim is averaging 25.4 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists and is shooting 56.8 percent (79-139) from the floor this month. No wonder the Hawks are a respectable 5-3 in March. "I think the team needs me to be a big-time offensive threat --- that's scoring or getting other guys shots," Abdur-Rahim told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "I'm aggressive, and I'm confident, and it's working out."

Denver Nuggets: Assistant GM Dave Fredman, who worked for the Jazz for 20 years, said rookie Nene Hilario reminds him a lot of a young Karl Malone. "He's very aggressive, he's not afraid," Fredman told the Denver Post. "He's competitive. On the negative side, he shoots free throws like Karl did his rookie year. On the flip side, I don't worry about it because Karl improved and Nene has the same type of work ethic."

Los Angeles Lakers: Seldom used power forward Mark Madsen is finally getting a chance to prove himself in L.A. Madsen is getting over 20 minutes a game now and has put up 4.8 ppg and 4.8 rpg in the month of March. "I prefer a guy that really feels good to the team he's playing with, that they can meld their talents around," coach Phil Jackson told the L.A. Times. "Mark really understands this offense and his ability to function perhaps as well as anybody in it. He can handle the ball, he can bring the ball up the court, he can do a lot more things than he's shown. We know his capabilities. We keep watching them emerge, like he's coming out from under a rock a little bit. His skeletal game is pretty raw and energetic when you first see it, but you know he's got more game than he's shown right now."

Payton is holding the key to defense, future with Bucks

Gary D'Amato / Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

More surgery for Hill

Jerry Brewer / Orlando Sentinel

Magic's Hill will undergo arduous surgery

John Denton / Florida Today

Duncan's ankle OK after scare

Johnny Ludden / San Antonio Express-News

Nets stalling in clutch

Ohm Youngmisuk / New York Daily News

Rebraca: I'll be ready for playoffs

Jim Spadafore / Detroit News

Substitution patterns concern Radmanovic

Danny O'Neil / Seattle Post-Intelligencer

20 or more routine for Shareef

Michael Lee / Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Comparisons of Mailman and Hilario

Marc J. Spears / Denver Post

Madsen Has an Impact

Tim Brown and Elliott Teaford / Los Angeles Times

[cyman3]

"I'd like commissioner David Stern to extend Davis' contract with the Cavs indefinately and ban the team from trading him. I can think of no worse punishment than a life sentence on Cadavalier row."

- it cant get any worse than that!!! if i was Davis, i'd rather get suspended or fined...