Draft Is Younger Man’s Game

If Shaquille O’Neal, Tracy McGrady and Steve Francis are in the process of being traded, a draft loaded with post-teen prospects is a sideshow, but, ready or not, here it is.

The draft is now a developmental exercise with little star power. It’s no less important, because it’s still how almost all players enter the league, but it’s a lot wilder.

There was never a class as young as this one. This mock draft has eight preps, one junior college player and eight foreign players. Barring upsets, this will be the first time that most of the first-rounders aren’t from college.

The projected star of the class, however far away his day may be, is Dwight Howard, a

6-foot-9, 18-year-old prodigy from Atlanta, who was praised for his poise as well as his gifts ... before he started comparing himself to all the all-time greats.

“A young KG [Kevin Garnett] and Tim Duncan mixed together,” Howard said. “That’s me.”

Good luck. Duncan and Garnett knew they had enough problems without creating more for themselves, but maybe it’s a generational thing.

If it is, this promises to be some generation.

It’s hard to project an 18-year-old five years down the line, and teams already have missed, as when Washington took Kwame Brown No. 1 in 2001, and when Chicago traded Elton Brand the same year to stake its rebuilding program on Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry, the Nos. 2 and 4 picks.

General managers are now spooked, intent on identifying players who are ready now, or at least won’t just molder on the bench like Darko Milicic, last season’s No. 2 pick.

Thus, players such as Ben Gordon, Devin Harris and Josh Childress, who weren’t considered lottery picks two months ago, shot into the top 10 of this draft.

The foreign prospects, especially the big men, are like ours -- children. If a European 7-footer who’s any good is 23, he probably has been in the NBA for three seasons, like Pau Gasol.

Of the 38 foreign players who entered this draft, 28 didn’t get the coveted first-round promise and withdrew. Some, such as the reedy 7-3 Lithuanian Martynas Andriuskevicius, were hailed as lottery picks one day and on their way home the next.

ESPN Insider’s Chad Ford praised Andriuskevicius one day for “ballhandling and passing skill that rivaled Dirk Nowitzki,” noting he’s “not the next [Arvydas] Sabonis, he’s much closer to the next Nowitzki or Pau Gasol. And at 7-3, that’s impressive.”

The next day Ford wrote: “Everyone liked his effort, but as we said on Wednesday, he’s probably not strong enough to make it into the league. My guess is he’ll pull out of the draft.”

The good news is, we don’t have to learn how to pronounce Andriuskevicius for another year, at least.

Here goes nothing:

1. Orlando -- Dwight Howard, 6-9, 240, Atlanta Southwest Christian Academy. After three years of Grant Hill, all the Magic had to hear was that Emeka Okafor had back problems.

2. Charlotte -- Emeka Okafor, 6-8 1/4, 250, Jr., Connecticut. His back’s not that bad, and even if he isn’t very big, he’s good.

3. Chicago -- Ben Gordon, 6-1, 192, Jr., Connecticut. Shot up late after great workouts. Tough guy, good shooter and pros think he can play the point.

4. Clippers -- Shaun Livingston, 6-6 1/4, 186, Peoria (Ill.) Central High. Rail-thin, can’t shoot and won’t be ready for years, but they think he’s a special young playmaker. Personally, I think they should have held on to No. 2 and taken Howard or Okafor.

5. Washington -- Andris Biedrins, 6-10, 240, Skonta Riga (Latvia). This pick actually may belong to the Mavericks, who reportedly traded Antawn Jamison for it. Of course, Biedrins also could go to the Lakers as part of a deal for O’Neal.

6. Atlanta -- Devin Harris, 6-1 3/4, 170, Jr., Wisconsin. Major athlete who also rocketed late.

7. Phoenix -- Luke Jackson, 6-6, 212, Sr., Oregon. This pick is reportedly going to Chicago for a future No. 1. The Bulls will then trade it to Indiana for Al Harrington. The Pacers will then take Jackson, whom Larry Bird compares to Chris Mullin.

8. Toronto -- Jameer Nelson, 5-11, 190, Sr., St. Joseph’s. He’s small but tough, and the Raptors need a point guard.

9. Philadelphia -- Josh Childress, 6-5 3/4, 196, Jr., Stanford. Admirers see the Mayfair High grad as a better-shooting Tayshaun Prince. Skeptics think he’s soft.

10. Cleveland -- Andre Igoudala, 6-5 3/4, 217, So., Arizona. This versatile athlete could have gone in the top five but drops to Cavaliers.

11. Golden State -- Rafael Araujo, 6-10, 280, Sr., Brigham Young. This is high for a Brazilian plodder, but the Warriors may lose Erick Dampier.

12. Seattle -- Robert Swift, 6-11, 245, Bakersfield High. Signed with USC but went NBA. His stock took off this spring while the other centers were being marked down to stick-a-fork-in-him.

13. Portland -- Luol Deng, 6-7, 220, Fr., Duke. Supposedly slated for the Bulls at No. 3, he drops because of concern about speed and athleticism, but he’s a good, tough player.

14. Utah -- Pavel Podkolzine, 7-4, 300, Metis Varese (Italy). Huge, good hands, but he’s slow and has little experience or feel for the game. Lots of scouts think he’s way overrated, but the Jazz is used to Greg Ostertag.

15. Boston -- Josh Smith, 6-7, 221, (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) Oak Hill Academy. Exciting athlete with so much upside, you once heard his name as high as No. 3. Not a hard worker, which means his head is a question mark.

16. Utah -- Sergey Monya, 6-6, 220, CSKA (Russia). Everybody keeps asking Andrei Kirilenko, “Are there any more at home like you?” Monya is the best Russian prospect since.

17. Atlanta -- Kris Humphries, 6-8 1/4, 238, Fr., Minnesota. Little bull who put up major numbers for the Gophers.

18. New Orleans -- Kirk Snyder, 6-5, 219, Jr., Nevada. Upland High grad who took off last season.

19. Miami -- Peter Ramos, 7-2, 260, Criollos de Caugas (Puerto Rico). They’re dying for size, and he’s the best on the board.

20. Denver -- J.R. Smith, 6-6, 227 (Clarksburg, N.J.) St. Benedict’s Prep. The Nuggets like athletes for their wide-open game, and he’s that.

21. Utah -- Al Jefferson 6-8 3/4, 263, Prentiss (Miss.) High. Young widebody for a team that needs to get bigger.

22. New Jersey -- Dorell Wright, 6-6, 190, South Kent (Conn.) Prep. New owner Bruce Ratner is on an economy drive, so this pick will wind up being traded to Portland, just to avoid adding $800,000 in salary.

23. Portland -- Sebastian Telfair, 5-11, 170, (New York) Lincoln High. The most hyped prep of his class turned out to be way small and not much of a shooter, but he’s still a prospect. Remind you of Omar Cook, anyone?

24. Boston -- Donta Smith, 6-6, 230, So., SE Illinois JC. Came out of left field, but he’s an exciting athlete.

25. Boston -- Anderson Varejao, 6-9, 230, FC Barcelona (Spain). Raw, energy player, could be a Chris Andersen.

26. Sacramento -- Kevin Martin, 6-6, 190, Jr., Western Carolina. The sharpshooters want another sharpshooter.

27. Lakers -- Sasha Vujacic, 6-6, 193, Snaidero Udine (Slovenia). Big point guard who can shoot.

28. San Antonio -- Victor Khyrapa, 6-8, 210, CSKA (Russia). Not as good as Monya but good enough to be a first-rounder.

29. Indiana -- Beno Udrih, 6-4, 185, Avtodor Saratov (Slovenia). Point guard who, in the European fashion, can shoot, which would be a nice change for the Pacers.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Growing Up Fast

Thirty-one basketball players have skipped college to make themselves eligible for the NBA draft.

*--* ENTERED SELECTED 1975 2 2 1989 1 1 1995 1 1 1996 3 2 1997 1 1 1998 4 3 1999 2 2 2000 2 2 2001 6 5 2002 4 1 2003 5 5 BY ROUND * First Round 26 * Second Round 5

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Note: Moses Malone was drafted by the Utah Stars of the ABA in 1974 and later played in the NBA.

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Pick ‘Em Thursday

Order for today’s NBA draft in New York, 4:30 PDT on ESPN:

*--* FIRST ROUND 1. Orlando 2. Charlotte (from Clippers) 3. Chicago 4. Clippers (from Charlotte) 5. Washington 6. Atlanta 7. Phoenix 8. Toronto 9. Philadelphia 10. Cleveland 11. Golden State 12. Seattle 13. Portland 14. Utah 15. Boston 16. Utah (from New York through Phoenix) 17. Atlanta (from Milwaukee through Denver and Detroit) 18. New Orleans 19. Miami 20. Denver 21. Utah (from Houston) 22. New Jersey 23. Portland (from Memphis) 24. Boston (from Dallas) 25. Boston (from Detroit) 26. Sacramento 27. Lakers 28. San Antonio 29. Indiana Note: Minnesota’s first-round pick has been forfeited.

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*--* SECOND ROUND 30. Orlando (pick may be conveyed to Atlanta) 31. Chicago 32. Washington 33. Clippers (from Charlotte) 34. Atlanta 35. Seattle (from Clippers) 36. Phoenix (to Orlando or to Atlanta through Orlando) 37. Atlanta (from Philadelphia) 38. Chicago (from Toronto) 39. Toronto (from Cleveland) 40. Boston 41. Seattle 42. Golden State (to Orlando through Philadelphia or to Atlanta through Orlando and Philadelphia) 43. New York 44. New Orleans 45. Charlotte (from Milwaukee) 46. Portland 47. Miami 48. Sacramento (from Utah) 49. Memphis (from Denver through Orlando) 50. Dallas (from Houston through Denver) 51. New Jersey 52. San Antonio (from Memphis) 53. Miami (from Dallas) 54. Detroit 55. Houston (from Sacramento through Utah) 56. Lakers 57. San Antonio 58. Minnesota 59. Indiana

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