Big Chance Gets Past a Baffled Engelstad

The 1988 National Basketball Assn. draft has come and gone--all three rounds of it--and left standing on the corner still waiting for his team bus is none other than UC Irvine’s Wayne Engelstad, the original Chunk of Dunk . . . Post with the Most.

Twenty-five NBA teams. Seventy-five picks. Zero Engelstads.

He was supposed to have been selected by the end of the second round and certainly no later than the middle of the third. At least that’s what everyone said: NBA scouts, college coaches, Engelstad.

A recently as last Sunday, the Clippers had him audition in front of Coach Gene Shue and assorted assistants and scouts. A comprehensive physical had been conducted, and video and other reports submitted. According to Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan, the Clippers told Engelstad to expect a phone call from them on draft day.

“Second round,” Mulligan said.

Unless Engelstad just recently changed his name, transferred to Rhode Island, shrank 5 inches and played guard instead of post man, the Clippers chose Tom Garrick in the second round.

As for the third round, the Clippers selected Kentucky’s Rob Lock, a lug of a guy who is similar to Engelstad in almost every way except the one that apparently counted most: He’s 2 inches taller.

So instead of spending his Tuesday evening with his girlfriend and a bottle of, say, his favorite bubbly, Engelstad found himself in the darkness of a movie theater, watching, of all things, “Big.”

You’ve heard about it: 12-year-old wishes he was, well, big. Magical carnival machine grants wish, and the fun begins soon afterward.

Engelstad should be so lucky. Right now, he’s probably looking for a machine to make him Rob Lock. Anything for the chance to do what he loves best, which is play basketball.

As college resumes go, Engelstad’s seemed in order, beginning with this season’s honorable mention All-American status, his first-team All-Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. selection, his PCAA tournament most valuable player award, moving then to his 23-plus point average and ending with his standing as Irvine’s No. 3 career scorer and No. 4 career rebounder. And although the numbers weren’t blinding or Manning-esque in stature, they still had a certain gleam to them, which explained Engelstad’s draft day mood.

“I just had my fingers crossed,” he said later. “I figured mid-second round . . . early third.”

He got late-nothing.

Engelstad watched the first round on the tube. He saw Danny Manning, then Rik Smits, then Charles Smith, then college star after college star walk to the podium dressed in the obligatory Italian-cut, double-breasted suit. He saw them shake hands with NBA Commissioner David Stern, have photos taken, don team hats. He saw the smiles and the relief in their faces. Their ordeal was over. Engelstad’s was just beginning.

After that, he waited by the phone at his mom’s house. Nothing. So he left, hurt, angry and confused.

“Not to go at all is kind of disappointing,” he said. “But it’s not the end of the world. The important thing is to get invited to a camp.”

But then some of the emotion started to leak out. Soon, Engelstad was talking about last summer and the countless hours and jump shots he took to improve his outside shooting. “I thought if you put in that much time, eventually you’d be rewarded,” he said.

He talked about the scouting combine camps he attended, how he thought he had impressed enough people to earn a place in the draft.

He talked about the frustration of seeing other players--players he thought he outperformed--chosen instead of him.

“But this is good for me,” Engelstad said. “It will make me hungrier. I know I can play. Now it’s a matter of proving it to someone else.”

About that hungrier business. Engelstad has a reputation of never meeting a meal he didn’t like. There was a question of what he enjoyed more: dunking doughnuts or basketballs. Could that have swayed a scout’s mind?

As Domino’s large pizza with sausage and pepperoni is his witness, a resounding no.

“I just took a test that gives you your percentage of body fat,” he said. “I weighed 247. They said not to go under 235. The 235 would put me at 8% body fat. It’s the old thing: You’re big-boned and have a lot of muscle.

“They said the same thing about Charles (Barkley, of the Philadelphia 76ers),” he said. “Now look at him. He’s kicking everyone’s butt. I thought I would have settled it this year. I did well.”

OK, so much for fat. How about a position? Where exactly do you put a 6-7 college post-up guy on a pro team?

Big guard? The possible, nightmarish matchups: Engelstad vs. Michael Jordan. Engelstad vs. Rolando Blackman. Engelstad vs. Byron Scott. Engelstad vs. Just About Anyone. So much for the Big Guard Theory.

In his own defense, Engelstad offered this: “I’m versatile. I think I can play more than one position, maybe power or small forward. I shoot well enough to play off guard. I don’t know if I can guard an off guard. But look at Michael Jordan. Has anyone stopped him yet?”

No. Then again, don’t ever look for this headline, should Engelstad make his way to the NBA: Jordan Held to 4 Points by Rookie Engelstad; ‘I Should Have Blocked The Other Two Shots’--Engelstad.

Small forward? Power forward? Maybe. Possibly. Who knows?

That’s the dilemma here. Nobody knows how Engelstad projects . Isn’t that the word scouts use? It isn’t enough to play well anymore--like an Engelstad. Or to prove you have a legitimate outside shot--like an Engelstad. Or show you can maneuver just fine with your back to the basket--like an Engelstad. These days, you generally have to prove you’re a pro player before playing a moment in the pros.

“Hey, since they didn’t take (former UC Irvine star Kevin) Magee six years ago, I quit trying to figure it out,” Mulligan said.

Maybe that’s what Engelstad should do. The Golden State Warriors and Denver Nuggets have called about signing him as a free agent. The Nuggets would be my choice. Just think of the advantages: No set plays. They run. Defense isn’t the top priority. And Doug Moe is the coach.

And so what if Moe yells at his players? Engelstad listened to Mulligan’s rantings for four years. He saw Mulligan almost pop a blood vessel or two. Moe schmoe.

Engelstad deserved better, most notably the chance to say he was drafted. He wasn’t, though, and I’m guessing the NBA isn’t losing sleep about its oversight.

“In the end, it may help him,” Mulligan said. “He might realize how far he has to go.”

Said Engelstad: “I just happened to be overlooked.”

Overlooked, but not forgotten. Make like the movie: Think big.