smrattler
06-27-2009, 05:55 PM
I read this article written in 1997, just before Tim Duncan went #1 to the good guys in black.
The headline reads:
Even if your team gets a stellar player like Tim Duncan in the NBA draft, it probably won't make any difference in the long run
Mostly it talks about how most #1 overall picks were not staying with their teams much, a lot of moving around. Mentions Shaq and Mourning as specific examples back then. Gave the Spurs the advice:
tell the folks who draft Duncan, enjoy him while you can
It also threw out a fact that was surprising to me.
Consider the drafts of 1987 through '94. Only two of the eight No. 1 picks from those years remain with the clubs that drafted them (chart, page 54): San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, a seven-time All-Star and the league's '95 MVP; and Milwaukee Bucks forward Glenn Robinson, a mildly disappointing performer whom the Bucks have considered trading.
So, among those, DRob was the only one that finished his career with the same club.
I looked up what's happened since 1994, the trend continued (except for Duncan) until the past few years.
2006 - Andrea Bargnani, Toronto
2005 - Andrew Bogut, Milwaukee
2004 - Dwight Howard, Orlando
2003 - LeBron James, Cleveland
2002 - Yao Ming, Houston
2001 - Kwame Brown, Washington
2000 - Kenyon Martin, New Jersey
1999 - Elton Brand, Chicago
1998 - Michael Olowokandi, L.A. Clippers
1997 - Tim Duncan, The Super Spurs
1996 - Allen Iverson, Philadelphia
1995 - Joe Smith, Golden State
The last thing that really stood out to me was a very nice prediction about the lack of great big men over the next few years after Duncan:
The player almost certain to be taken first next week, Tim Duncan of Wake Forest, is not only considered far superior to the rest of his class but also might be the only topflight big man available for the next several years. "People ask me who the next great big man will be behind Duncan, and I'm racking my brain to give them an answer," says new Celtics general manager Chris Wallace. "I've been to all the major high school and college camps, all the all-star games, and there's just nobody out there. By default, teams are going to have to play small in the future."
http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1010279/index.htm?eref=sisf
The headline reads:
Even if your team gets a stellar player like Tim Duncan in the NBA draft, it probably won't make any difference in the long run
Mostly it talks about how most #1 overall picks were not staying with their teams much, a lot of moving around. Mentions Shaq and Mourning as specific examples back then. Gave the Spurs the advice:
tell the folks who draft Duncan, enjoy him while you can
It also threw out a fact that was surprising to me.
Consider the drafts of 1987 through '94. Only two of the eight No. 1 picks from those years remain with the clubs that drafted them (chart, page 54): San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, a seven-time All-Star and the league's '95 MVP; and Milwaukee Bucks forward Glenn Robinson, a mildly disappointing performer whom the Bucks have considered trading.
So, among those, DRob was the only one that finished his career with the same club.
I looked up what's happened since 1994, the trend continued (except for Duncan) until the past few years.
2006 - Andrea Bargnani, Toronto
2005 - Andrew Bogut, Milwaukee
2004 - Dwight Howard, Orlando
2003 - LeBron James, Cleveland
2002 - Yao Ming, Houston
2001 - Kwame Brown, Washington
2000 - Kenyon Martin, New Jersey
1999 - Elton Brand, Chicago
1998 - Michael Olowokandi, L.A. Clippers
1997 - Tim Duncan, The Super Spurs
1996 - Allen Iverson, Philadelphia
1995 - Joe Smith, Golden State
The last thing that really stood out to me was a very nice prediction about the lack of great big men over the next few years after Duncan:
The player almost certain to be taken first next week, Tim Duncan of Wake Forest, is not only considered far superior to the rest of his class but also might be the only topflight big man available for the next several years. "People ask me who the next great big man will be behind Duncan, and I'm racking my brain to give them an answer," says new Celtics general manager Chris Wallace. "I've been to all the major high school and college camps, all the all-star games, and there's just nobody out there. By default, teams are going to have to play small in the future."
http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1010279/index.htm?eref=sisf