Rockets Steal Knicks’ Thunder

Some fix that turned out to be.

You’ve heard of willing the ball into the basket? Sunday all five boroughs of New York tried to will the Knicks’ pingpong ball to the top of the NBA lottery.

Right on time, a longshot came in, only it wasn’t theirs. Instead, it was the Houston Rockets--with the fifth-worst record and only an 8.9% chance--who hit.

Meanwhile, the Knicks’ 4.4% chance went nowhere. They’ll draft seventh.

Ironically or not, with 20 games left in the season, the Knicks were tied with Houston and Cleveland for the No. 25 slot the Rockets wound up with. Unfortunately for the Knicks, as it turned out, they finished better than the Cavaliers and Rockets. Some millenniums it goes that way for you.

Here’s how it they’ll pick, with a guess on who each team in the lottery will take:

1. Houston--Yao Ming. No-brainer. The Rockets are a small, rebuilding team in a conference dominated by huge ones, so how can they pass up a 7-foot-5, 296-pound prospect? The only other player they could consider is Duke point guard Jay Williams but as Steve Francis, who represented them at the drawing, noted, “I know we definitely don’t need help at the point guard position.” Several teams want immediate help, but the Rockets are working toward the 2003-04 season, when they move into their new arena. So Yao fits.

2. Chicago--Williams. The Bulls finally get a break. He’s the one they wanted in any case and, with a move by Tyson Chandler, they could get back in the hunt for the playoffs. The Bulls just went from wretches of the Earth to a promising young team.

3. Golden State--Out of luck again. The Warriors were dying for Williams and no other point guard in the draft is close. They might have taken Yao but can’t have him either. They may trade the pick for a point guard. Otherwise, we’ll say Kansas’ 6-10 Drew Gooden.

4. Memphis--Qyntel Woods of Northeast Mississippi Community College. The Grizzlies don’t know if Michael Dickerson will be back and Jerry West loves raw talent. Woods “has a ton of baggage you have to sort through,” says a personnel man, but he also notes the comparison to Tracy McGrady, at least on the offensive end, “is pretty valid.”

5. Denver--Mike Dunleavy Jr. of Duke. Lots of scouts are very high on him. The Nuggets can use help everywhere.

6. Cleveland--Chris Wilcox of Maryland. He’s 6-10 and athletic, compared to 7-0 Chris Mihm, the No. 7 overall draft pick in 2000 who has been a Cavalier disappointment.

7. New York--Nikoloz Tskitishvili. We’ll say they do the smart thing, gamble on a 19-year-old who could be great, rather than grab a second-echelon prospect because he’s a 7-footer.

8. Clippers--Curtis Borchardt, Stanford. Insurance against losing Michael Olowokandi. He’s a 7-footer who blocks shots and can shoot too, but he’s nowhere as strong or athletic as Olowokandi.

9. Phoenix--Marcus Haislip, Tennessee. The Suns are another of those overmatched Western smurfs trying to get bigger. He’s 6-10 and athletic.

10. Miami--Dajuan Wagner, Memphis. Pat Riley has never been a young players’ coach but he’s low on talent, not to mention point guards. Wagner could have gone five picks higher so he would represent value here.

11. Washington--Chris Marcus, Western Kentucky. The Wizards are jammed up with shooting guards so Caron Butler, whom scouts like a lot, drops past them too. Marcus isn’t athletic but at 7-0 and 275, he’s a Todd MacCulloch type, with a nice shooting touch.

12. Clippers--Butler. The Clippers are jammed up with big guards and small forwards too, but he’s good. Their entire roster is jammed so you’d think they’d be dealing but the word is both first-round draft choices will stay. This is a franchise that appreciates inexpensive help.

13. Milwaukee--Melvin Ely, Fresno State. They need size and he’s 6-10 and 255 pounds. Other possibilities would be Nene Hilario, a 6-10 Brazilian and Jared Jeffries, a 6-10 Indianan.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

The draft will be held June 26 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The first round of the two-round draft:

1. Houston

2. Chicago

3. Golden State

4. Memphis

5. Denver

6. Cleveland

7. New York

8. CLIPPERS-a

9. Phoenix

10. Miami

11. Washington

12. CLIPPERS

13. Milwaukee

14. Indiana

15. Houston-b

16. Philadelphia

17. Charlotte

18. Orlando

19. Utah

20. Toronto-c

21. Portland

22. Phoenix-d

23. Detroit

24. New Jersey

25. Denver-e

26. San Antonio

27. LAKERS

28. Sacramento

a-from Atlanta; b-from Toronto; c-from Seattle via New York; d from Boston; e-from Dallas. Note: Minnesota lost first-round pick for illegal Joe Smith contract