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Inside the NBA Draft:

Okafor's Hot, Cook's Not

by Chad Ford

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Also Below: In and out of the NBA Draft | Mock-draft mania | Jordan running out of steam? | Peep Show

NBA Scouting Report: Better late than never

Inside the NBA Draft: Draft Watch

From 64 to 16 in four days. If only the NBA playoffs put us out of our misery so quickly. While David Stern's idea of excitement is to increase the length of the playoffs by stretching the opening round to a best-of-seven series, the NCAA Tournament creates maximum excitement by the simple formula of one and done.

Would any of us be drooling over the prospects of a Kentucky-Utah seven-game series?

While playing in the tournament normally won't hurt a player's pro stock, it can help. Here's Insider's March Madness edition of who's hot and who's not in the NBA draft.

HOT

UConn's Emeka Okafor dunks over BYU's Rafael Araujo

Last year, Emeka Okafor's name was listed second on this list behind teammate Caron Butler. We said then, "Give him another year or two to polish his skills and we're probably talking lottery pick." Well, one year later Okafor's stock continues to soar. His dominating performances against BYU and Stanford (both stocked with husky big men) got scouts in a lather. The comparisons between Okafor (6-foot-9, 240 pounds) and Alonzo Mourning are inescapable. His presence dramatically changes the course of the game on both ends of the floor. Virtually every scout I talked to had moved him up a couple of notches on their list. Combine his athleticism, toughness, intelligence, rebounding, shot blocking and emerging offense, and he's now projected as the third-best NBA prospect, ahead of Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh. Will he actually come out of school this year? Okafor has insisted in the past that he'll return for his junior season. However, as his stock continues to grow, he might change his mind.

Speaking of Huskies, UConn's Ben Gordon also is making a name for himself. His 29-point performance against Stanford on Saturday, (including shooting 4 of 5 from beyond the arc) was impressive. So was the way Gordon was able to blow by Stanford point guard Julius Barnes (considered one of the better and quicker defenders in college hoops). But the most important thing scouts saw was the way UConn responded when Gordon, not Talik Brown, was running the point. Said one scout, "He's a big-time prospect if he's a point guard. There's a lot of combo guards out there who are talented college players but just don't have a position in the pros. If he continues to show that he can run a team like he did Saturday, his stock will go way up."

Missouri's Rickey Paulding got a huge boost after his scintillating, 36-point performance against Marquette. The biggest knock on Paulding, a super athlete who's been compared to Desmond Mason, has been his consistency on the perimeter. After struggling in the first round against Southern Illinois, he lit up Marquette, going 9-for-15 from beyond the arc. Paulding is already considered a superior slasher and finisher on the break. He definitely seems like one of those guys whose game is better suited for the NBA than college. If he can prove to scouts that he can consistently hit the NBA 3, his stock rises from late first round into the lottery. No wonder he's starting to waver on his commitment to return to Missouri for his senior season

There's still no consensus on Louisville's Reece Gaines, but his courageous performance against Butler on Sunday will help him. Most NBA scouts now project him as a point guard with two-guard skills. While no one is claiming he's a pure point, he does have excellent instincts, seems comfortable getting his teammates involved in the game, and his ability to get to the basket and dish is rare for someone his size (6-6, 205). His perimeter skills (he went 6-for-10 from 3-point range against Butler) will also help him. Based on interviews with numerous scouts and NBA executives over the last few days, it looks like he's in the late lottery right now. A team with a small two guard would likely opt for Gaines over Kirk Hinrich or T.J. Ford. Depending on where the chips fall, that could make him the first point guard selected in this year's draft.

Get used to hearing Chris Kaman's name. His 25-point, 10-rebound performance against Duke on Saturday wasn't enough to propel the Chippewas into the Sweet 16. But Kaman's stock is hotter than just about anyone in college hoops right now. Teams love his quickness and relative athleticism for someone that size (7-0, 255). His scoring ability around the basket has led to the inevitable Zydrunas Ilgauskas comparisons. Look for him to declare for the draft and go in the mid lottery.

NOT

It wasn't a rosy tournament for everyone, though a bad performance in one or two games rarely hurts a player's stock. Here's a look at few guys who certainly didn't help their cause.

Illinois' Brian Cook put up decent numbers in the tournament. But still, scouts were concerned with Cook's lackluster play, at times, during Illinois' surprising loss to Notre Dame. Cook (6-10, 240) did end up with 16 rebounds, but he shot just 26 percent from the field and had four turnovers. Scouts still love his skills, but I can't count the number of times his name and Billy Owens' have come up in the same sentence this week. That's not a good thing.

Wake Forest's Josh Howard may be the ACC Player of the Year, but his lackluster performance in the tournament not only cost the Demon Deacons a trip to the Sweet 16, but it may also have tanked Howard's stock a bit. Howard didn't play horribly. He just seemed to disappear for long stretches against both East Tennessee State and Auburn. While his rebounding numbers were impressive, scouts want to see how he handles double teams and whether he has the ability to create his own shot. Howard missed a big opportunity to improve his stock this weekend.

Indiana freshman Bracey Wright also seems to be flirting with the draft. But a so-so performance in a second-round loss for the Hoosiers, combined with talk of offseason back surgery, probably isn't the magic formula for Wright to make the bolt to the next level.

Cal's Amit Tamir may have dreams of bolting school for the NBA, but his 3-of-21 shooting from the field is screaming "one more year."

LUKEWARM

After Florida's miserable second-round loss to Michigan State on Sunday, coach Billy Donovan said that based on the way the Gators played, nobody should consider going pro. However, don't be surprised to see David Lee at least test the waters. He had a solid tournament, showed a lot of toughness this season playing out of position at center, and scouts are still enamored with his athleticism for someone that size (6-9, 224). However, until he develops a perimeter game (right now almost all of his points come off dunks), where does he play in the NBA? Scouts haven't figured it out, meaning that despite Lee's upside he's only a mid-to-late first-round pick at this point.

Stanford's Josh Childress followed up a stellar first-round effort with a dud against UConn. The shooting, rebounds and assists all evaporated behind the strong defense of freshman Denham Brown. Any ground Childress gained on Thursday was lost on Saturday. He's better off returning to school and becoming Stanford's go-to guy next season.

The same goes for Arizona State super freshman Ike Diogu. He might have dominated Memphis, but he couldn't get anything going against Kansas on Saturday. Considering that KU has one of the weaker front lines of anyone in the tournament, that's not a good thing. Diogu (6-8, 242) is still raw. Another strong season or two in the Pac-10, and he's looking at the lottery. If he comes out now, he'll be mired somewhere in the late first round.

Channing Frye's two big games for Arizona against Vermont and Gonzaga may be impressive to the untrained eye. But we'd just like to remind everyone at they were against Vermont and Gonzaga. Frye's still too thin and fragile to put up those numbers against NBA competition.

Arizona's Luke Walton can regain some of his former glory if he keeps up his hot streak in the tournament. His nine assists against Gonzaga reinforce what scouts have been saying all along -- the big man can pass. But several key misses on mid-range jumpers down the stretch also reinforced the other thing scouts have been saying all along -- the big man can't shoot.

In and out of the NBA Draft

With 48 of the top 64 college teams now eliminated, Insider takes a look at who's in or out of the upcoming draft.

Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony could be the No. 3 pick in the draft if he declares.

Is Carmelo Anthony seriously thinking about returning for his sophomore season at Syracuse? His mother sure thinks so.

''I know what people are thinking, but you have to go by what Carmelo says,'' Mary Anthony told the Syracuse Post Standard. ''Everyone's looking for him to go to the NBA, but I'm not. And he hasn't given me a reason to think different. He hasn't ever said, 'Mom, I'm thinking about leaving.' Not once.

''What the media says and what the people say doesn't really matter. I haven't heard it from my son. I haven't heard the words come out of Carmelo's mouth. So, from my knowledge, he's going back to Syracuse. Until he tells me otherwise, I believe he'll be in college next year.''

His mother said that if Anthony asks her, she'll tell him to stay in school.

''If it was my decision, I'd like to see Carmelo finish up at Syracuse,'' Anthony said. ''But it's Carmelo's life and he has to live his life way beyond me. He was very agreeable with me when I told him I wanted him to try college for at least one year. He did what I asked, and we didn't fight about it at all. And it's worked out great.

''Carmelo loves it at Syracuse. He's very happy there. And the way the town has treated him has been unbelievable. It seems like everybody loves him up there. If he wants to go, though, I won't stand in his way. But if he asks me what I think, I'll tell him, 'Go back for another year.' And if he asks me again next year, I'll say, 'Go back for another year.' I'll keep telling him to go back for another year for as many years as I can.''

Anthony has been much quieter on the subject. When asked about his pro future, he told Newsday simply that he's focused on what his team is doing in the tournament.

"I'm not anxious for this to end anytime soon," he said.

Central Michigan big man Chris Kaman confirmed on Saturday what NBA scouts and Insider have been hearing for the last month. He'll put his name in the NBA draft.

"I am probably going to put my name in the draft and do some research," Kaman told the Denver Post. "Dude, I think I am capable of it. I know I am not going to walk in and be a great ballplayer. It's a different game. I understand that. ... I've got to make the right decision. I don't want to be back home working at a (toll) booth."

Kaman said he'd sit down with friends, family, coach Jay Smith and his high school coach before making a final decision whether to stay in the draft.

Maybe you can chalk up to disappointment at Missouri's overtime loss to Marquette. Or maybe Missouri's Rickey Paulding has changed his mind about returning to MU for his senior season.

When asked if he planned to be part of Missouri basketball next season, Paulding said only, "We're going to address that when we get back to Columbia. Right now, I'm just thinking about the game, not thinking about that."

"(It's) just something I have to talk about with my family and the coaching staff," he told the Kansas City Star. "Right now, it's the furthest thing from my mind."

Missouri's other top junior, Arthur Johnson, reiterated that he would return for his senior season.

Their future may, however, rest on the future of coach Quin Snyder. Snyder has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the UCLA job. If he left, Paulding and Johnson could follow him out the door.

"We want them to do the best thing for them," Snyder said. "It changes week to week. It changes month to month, year to year. I want what they and their families want. They'll have to sit down and talk about it."

Just a few days after Florida freshman point guard Anthony Roberson promised reporters that all of the Gator underclassmen were returning next season, sophomore David Lee and freshman Christian Drejer threw a small wrench in the plan.

While neither of them said they were definitely going pro, both of them said they'd like to explore their options.

"Nothing is for sure right now," Lee told the Orlando Sentinel. "I'm going to talk things over with my family and make that decision."

Coach Billy Donovan said he'd talk to Lee about the decision. "If David meets with his family and decides the best thing for him to do is go pro, then I will fully support him and wish the best for him."

Drejer also said he was looking at his options. "I think I will be back," Drejer said. "That's the plan. But nothing is for sure."

St. Joseph's Jameer Nelson is considering bolting for the NBA draft a year early. But his coach, Phil Martelli, thinks it might be a mistake. Martelli has submitted Nelson's name to the NBA underclassmen advisory board, and he doesn't like what he's hearing.

"All three guys have told me he's not a first-round pick," Martelli told the Philadelphia Daily News. "They can't guarantee anything, because of his size. I can't believe it. ... The things that they want him to change, he can't change. He's not going to get bigger."

Arizona big man Channing Frye told the Tuscon Citizen he'll return for his junior season.

"No doubt. I am definitely going to come back, because next year I am going to be that much stronger," Frye said. "I feel I still need to prove myself and make a name for myself in college before I take it to the next level."

Cal's Amit Tamir also indicated he'd return for his junior season after a miserable tournament performance.

"The way I played today showed that I have some stuff I need to work on," Tamir told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I have to look at my positioning (in the draft), but there's a big, big chance that I'll be back. It's about 80-90 percent that I'm coming back."

Carmelo's mom hopes son returns to SU

Bud Poliquin / Syracuse Post-Standard

College life suits Anthony, for now

Shaun Powell / Newsday

Chippewas' Kaman faces draft decision

Marc J. Spears / Denver Post

Are Paulding or Johnson wavering about coming back?

Mike DeArmond / Kansas City Star

Lee, Drejer will weigh options

Joe Schad / Orlando Sentinel

Nelson has incentives to return, but NBA is quite an incentive,

[censored] Jerardi / Philadelphia Daily News

Frye: Taking game to next level can wait

John Moredich / Tucson Citizen

Tamir says he's pretty sure he'll be back

Jake Curtis and David Steele / San Francisco Chronicle

Mock-draft mania

In what has become a yearly tradition, Chicago Tribune columnist Sam Smith and L.A. Times columnist Mark Heisler have fired the first shots across the bow, unveiling their early projections for the 2003 NBA Draft.

The mock drafts, which Smith and Heisler have been doing for the last few years, always appear after the second round of the NCAA Tournament and usually set the baseline for discussion about who's in and who's out of the first round. Both writers interview league executives and scouts before compiling their lists.

The drafts themselves can be influential. Two years ago Clemson's Will Solomon cited Smith's mock draft (which had him going in the first round) as evidence that his decision to enter the NBA draft early was a good one (Solomon ultimately slipped to the second round). That has led to criticism that only seniors or players who have declared should be included. But that wouldn't give either writer very much to talk about. Smith and Heisler have only six seniors listed in their first round.

LeBron is still No. 1

With that said, if you've been reading Insider you won't see any revelations on their lists. Both drafts have LeBron James and Darko Milicic going No. 1 and No. 2. Carmelo Anthony, Emeka Okafor and Chris Bosh round out both writer's top fives.

Both have seven international players going in the first round. Interestingly, they both have France's Mickael Pietrus moving into the lottery (Insider had him projected as a lottery pick in December) and Greece's Sofoklis Schortsianitis falling out of it (Insider reported last month that scouts were cooling to "Baby Shaq" because he's closer to 6-foot-8 than 6-11). However, both writers left several likely first rounders off their lists entirely, including Yugoslavia's Alexsander Pavlovic and Slavko Vranes, Croatia's Zoran Planinic, Georgia's Zaur Pachulia and Brazil's Leandrinho Bambosa.

Smith has just two high school players being taken in round one (LeBron and Kedrick Perkins). Heisler has three (LeBron, Perkins and Travis Outlaw).

As far as interesting reads go, it doesn't get much better than this.

Best of a sparse draft lot

Sam Smith / Chicago Tribune

A More Abroad-Minded Draft

Mark Heisler / Los Angeles Times

Jordan running out of steam?

A month ago, a passionate speech from Michael Jordan rallied his teammates and sent the Wizards on a nice mini run.

Michael Jordan

Shooting Guard

Washington Wizards

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

69 19.7 5.9 3.7 .440 .819

With the Wizards back in the gutter, Jordan tried to get away with the same trick again on Saturday after the Wizards were blown out by the Suns.

"I'm not going to try to save this team," Jordan told the Washington Post. "It's not my job. My job is not to try to carry this team like I did in '84 for the Bulls. We've got young, talented players on this team. If they're going to sit back and expect that I'm going to score 50 points they got a nice little awakening coming up. I told them at halftime, I'm not going to try to carry the team.

"I'm going to move the ball, draw the attention and get you guys the ball. You shoot it. You score it. I'll go rebound and try to play defense but don't expect me to try to put an 'S' on my chest and go out and play for these guys. We've got 14 games left. I'm going to try to enjoy myself. If you guys want to play hard basketball, we'll play hard basketball. If you guys want to take it off, I could be playing golf somewhere."

Unfortunately, Jordan's remarks weren't enough to push the Wizards to victory on Sunday. The Wizards have now lost eight of their last 11 and are a game and a half behind the Bucks for the last playoff spot in the East.

After a loss to the Warriors, Jordan sounded like he's running out of steam.

"Physically I feel good," Jordan said. "Mentally, I'm a little shaky in terms of what we need to do as a team to get ourselves back in a good focus and a good understanding for playing good basketball."

However, Jordan plans on keeping up the pressure on his teammates, even if the losing continues.

"It's something where you have to look at yourself in the mirror and say, 'Is that true, am I part of that?' " Jordan said. "Everybody's got to soul search and look themselves in the mirror and say, 'What can I be doing differently to help this situation turn around?' Especially with my comments and with the way we played the last game. We all need to say, 'What can we be doing differently?' "

Jordan's fire always burns red hot

Scott Ostler / San Francisco Chronicle

Jordan Is Tiring Of Pressing Team

Steve Wyche / Washington Post

Angry Jordan Blasts Wizards

Steve Wyche / Washington Post

Jordan looks for another Jordan -- at least in spirit

Geoffrey C. Arnold / The Oregonian

Peep Show

Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin Garnett sounds like he's still on the fence regarding that contract extension the Wolves are offering. "You need a core to go forward," Garnett told the Minnesota Star Tribune. "I've lost everybody from Steph [Marbury], to Googs [Tom Gugliotta], to Malik [sealy, who was killed in an auto accident in May 2000] to Terrell Brandon [who is out because of a career-threatening injury]. . . . Am I loyal to the point where I don't get a ring and I'm miserable and I'm going out in the first round every year?" Owner Glen Taylor, however, believes that KG will re-sign. "We were close to a deal this past summer," Taylor said. "No doubt Kevin and his agent are willing to accept less money . . . something that is necessary if we are to add that extra good player we need to win a championship."

Los Angeles Lakers: Is Kobe Bryant blaming Shaquille O'Neal for his and the Lakers' recent slump? The Lakers have been trying to work the ball inside to Shaq more. According to Kobe, the new offensive plan has taken something away from his game. "It's a huge adjustment personally," Bryant told the L.A. Times. "It's a big adjustment as a team. It's a tougher challenge than I anticipated. If you're looking for shaken-up confidence, you've come to the wrong place. It's about getting our rhythm back. It's about establishing our inside presence, and everything will fall around that.... There are a lot of games left, over a month, to get it back and get rolling."

New Jersey Nets: Time to panic in New Jersey. A loss on Sunday to the Cavs can't be a good thing. "I'm a little worried about that," coach Byron Scott told the N.Y. Post. "When you get to the postseason you can't play like this. You can't be up and down. If you don't have consistency in the postseason, you'll be out in the first round." The Nets have played 11 sub-.500 teams and are 4-7 in those games. "We've had our problems against teams that are below .500," Jason Kidd said. "We need to find a way to answer that call. We've got a ton of teams that are below .500 coming up."

Indiana Pacers: Coach Isiah Thomas says he still hasn't given up on Ron Artest. "The only thing people know about Ron is what they read and what they see," Thomas told the Indianapolis Star. "They only know what they read and see, and that's just 2 percent of the man. What I'll keep doing and what we'll keep doing as an organization is try and help him, because he's worth the effort. If he was somebody that wasn't worth the effort, then you'd do what you have to do. But he's worth the effort." Artest has been suspended for 12 games this season due to various infractions.

Golden State Warriors: Gilbert Arenas' career-high 41 points against the Wizards on Sunday had coach Eric Musselman gushing again. "I've stated that I think he can be one of the best point guards in the NBA, if not the top point guard in the NBA, within a couple of years," Musselman told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I think he's established himself right now as the premier young point guard in the league."

Denver Nuggets: Will the team be able to lure free agents with their $26 million in cap room this summer? The Denver Post's Jim Armstrong does a nice job getting into the head of GM Kiki Vandeweghe. A good read if you want to know how the Nuggets plan on rebuilding this summer.

Wolves owner confident Garnett will stay

Sid Hartman / Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Wolves shouldn't wait on Garnett contract

Steve Aschburner / Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Losses Become Risky Business

Tim Brown / Los Angeles Times

Cavs Whip Nets' 'Hyde'

Fred Kerber / New York Post

Thomas takes Artest in stride

Sekou Smith / Indianapolis Star

Arenas steals the show

Brad Weinstein / San Francisco Chronicle

Hidden gold rush

Jim Armstrong / Denver Post