The NBA Draft is this Thursday? Doesn’t it seem like there has been much less press/hype/coverage leading up to this year’s draft? There are no LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, or Dwyane Wade caliber players in this year’s draft pool, but there are plenty of guys ready to contribute strong minutes in the NBA.
Even though there are less opportunities for players to showcase their skills in front of NBA teams, it seems like the athletes don’t mind. In fact, many players are opting out of invitations to work out in front of scouts and GMs. Some teams have taken a worse media backlash than others. Chad Ford of ESPN.com thinks that the Memphis Grizzlies, in particular, are struggling with some image problems. He quotes an unnamed person as saying,
“[The Grizzlies] don’t spend any money anymore. They don’t have a commitment to put a winning team on the floor right now. It’s not where an agent wants to send his star pick.”
Agents do have a lot of sway when it comes to where their superstar clients are picked. A lot of that decision often revolves around the market of the city that the team plays in, the players already on the team, and the money that teams ordinarily dish out. For rookies, though, that first contract is pretty much set in stone depending on the slot you get selected.
Memphis isn’t all that bad! There is good BBQ, and it’s home of the Memphis Redbirds, where Pete Parise is tearing it up.
