County Prospects Facing an Uphill Battle : NBA draft: Ceballos no sure bet to make the Suns; Mitchell and Fryer are not chosen.

Cedric Ceballos was chosen by the Phoenix Suns late in the second round of Wednesday night’s NBA draft--not particularly encouraging news for the former Cal State Fullerton forward.

Jeff Fryer wasn’t among the 54 players chosen in the NBA draft--not particularly discouraging news for the former Loyola Marymount University and Corona del Mar High School guard.

Mike Mitchell also wasn’t selected in the two-round draft--devastating news for the former Mater Dei High forward who was the Western Athletic Conference player of the year this past season at Colorado State.

So it went for Orange County’s NBA hopefuls Wednesday night.

Ceballos, who averaged 23.1 points and 12.5 rebounds this past season, was projected by many as a first-round selection, but his name wasn’t called until the 48th pick Wednesday night.

NBA scouts like the way Ceballos runs the court, and they like his offensive tenacity, but it appears many teams were concerned with his questionable outside shooting skills.

“If he was a better shooter, he would have gone in the bottom of the first round,” Phoenix assistant Lionel Hollins said. “We like his athletic ability--he’s an active guy, he goes after the rebounds, and he gets his hands on a lot of loose balls. But the question is whether he can get to the basket as a professional.”

There also is the question of whether Ceballos will be able to make the team. He’s certainly not a lock.

The Suns, who lost to Portland in the Western Conference finals this past season, already have a solid nucleus of nine players, including a starting lineup of point guard Kevin Johnson, shooting guard Jeff Hornacek, center Mark West, small forward Tom Chambers and power forward Kurt Rambis.

Swingmen Dan Majerle and Eddie Johnson are the first two players off the bench, Andrew Lang is West’s backup at center, and Tim Perry can play the forward or center position.

The Suns procured some front-line reinforcement with their first-round selection Wednesday, choosing Jayson Williams, a 6-10, 240-pound forward from St. John’s with the 21st pick. Williams averaged 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds for 13 games this past season until he broke his right foot against Georgetown in January. He missed the Redmen’s remaining 21 games.

Phoenix used its first pick of the second round (31st overall) to choose Dayton point guard Negele Knight, who was projected by some as a first-round choice. Knight, who averaged 22.8 points and 6.8 assists this past season, is expected to back up Kevin Johnson.

The Suns also had the 50th pick, which they used to select Milos Babic, a 7-0 center from Yugoslavia who played at Tennessee Tech. But the team then traded the rights to Babic to the Cleveland Cavaliers for the rights to Stefano Rusconi, a 6-9 forward from Italy.

However, the 22-year-old Rusconi recently signed a five-year, $10 million contract with Antifurti Ranger Varese of the Italian Professional League and won’t be eligible to play in the NBA until 1995.

That puts Rusconi out of the picture next season, and Perry has been the subject of trade rumors in Phoenix. So it appears Ceballos will have to beat out Kenny Battle for a spot on the 12-man roster. Battle, a 6-6 forward, was a first-round selection last year but didn’t play much this past season.

“It doesn’t hurt to get picked by a great team,” said Tony Bryant, Ceballos’ agent. “It gives you an opportunity to see if you have what it takes to play on the next level. You have to deal with the cards you’re dealt.”

Mitchell was feeling a bit discarded Wednesday night. The 6-8 swingman, who averaged 19.4 points and 6.8 rebounds this past season, was projected by many as a second-round pick.

But Mitchell had to endure a long night, seeing 54 other players selected.

“I’d like to forget the whole evening,” Mitchell said. “I was surprised that I wasn’t picked, and I’m a little bit down about it. It was hard seeing guys from overseas who aren’t even eligible to play get picked instead of me.”

Mitchell said about six NBA teams had shown interest in him before the draft, and he plans to try out with several teams as a free agent. If he doesn’t make it, Mitchell said he would go overseas to play before he would play in the Continental Basketball League.

Fryer, who averaged 23 points a game at Loyola Marymount, considered himself a longshot to be drafted, so he wasn’t too disappointed Wednesday.

“I’m kind of glad I didn’t get drafted,” Fryer said. “That’s great for the ego, but this is better because I can try out for two or three teams now. I think my chances of making a team are good. If I don’t make it, I’ll either play in the CBA or go overseas.”