ducks
06-30-2005, 11:31 PM
Pistons thrilled by draft results
BY PERRY A. FARRELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
June 30, 2005
It's important to Joe Dumars, the man in charge of keeping the Pistons a championship contender, that new fresh legs continue to bolster the roster while the core remains intact.
MEET THE NEW PISTONS
F JASON MAXIELL
Ht/Wt: 6-7, 260.
Age: 22
Pick: 1st round, 26th overall.
School: Cincinnati.
Notable: Nicknamed J-Max. Earned a psychology degree. Averaged 15.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocked shots last season.
F AMIR JOHNSON
Ht/Wt: 6-9, 210.
Age: 18
Pick: 2nd round, 56th overall.
School: Westchester H.S. (Calif.)
Notable: California Mr. Basketball has "tremendous upside," Joe Dumars says. Ineligible during freshman and junior seasons and enrolled in three different high schools. Had signed to play at Louisville. Averaged 21 points, 15 rebounds last season.
G ALEX ACKER
Ht/Wt: 6-5, 185.
Age: 22.
Pick: 2nd round, 60th overall.
School: Pepperdine.
Notable: Can play point or off guard. Struggled at Chicago draft camp. Averaged 16.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists as a junior.
That's why he's excited about the possibility that all three of Tuesday's draft choices will make the roster come opening night.
Jason Maxiell, 22, a first-round pick at No. 26, is a tough guy whose size, at 6-feet-7, may have been a question to other teams, but his heart captured Dumars' attention throughout the season.
"This guy here is a beast," Dumars said. "It doesn't matter how tall he is. When he gets out there, you'll see. He's cut out of that same mold" as Ben Wallace.
Maxiell was introduced to the media on Wednesday at the Palace Atrium, and Dumars said he expects him to make the Pistons' roster for next season.
But the surprise of the post-draft analysis was the visible glee and excitement John Hammond, vice president of basketball operations, and Scott Perry, director of player personnel, had when discussing the second-round picks, Amir Johnson and Alex Acker.
"These guys weren't throw-ins," Dumars said.
Johnson, 18, is 6-feet-10 and California's prep player of the year, from battle-tested Westchester High. Acker, a 6-5 combo guard, left Pepperdine a year early.
Perry said Dumars probably watched more film of Acker than he did of Maxiell, whom the organization tabbed early in the year as a possible Piston.
"I was telling Jason over at the practice facility, the other two kids we drafted, Amir Johnson at 56 and Alex Acker at 60, we're very excited about both of those kids as well," Dumars said. "You have to add youth and new energy and new blood into the system, or it runs the risk of getting stale. You have to continue to do that with the way we play and the level we're playing at.
"Amir is a high school kid that's 6-10 and has a tremendous upside. Alex Acker is a guy that I've been watching all season long. ...
"I just want to say we're very, very excited about both of those kids as well. Those weren't just guys we picked just because we had to pick at 56 and 60. Those were guys we liked an awful lot. There's a very good chance you could see those guys here next year as well."
Acker and Johnson were still in California and couldn't get to Detroit in time for the news conference.
Acker probably was near and dear to Dumars' heart because the Pistons' president of basketball operations played both guard positions in his franchise-record 14 years as a Piston.
"I'm really excited about him," Dumars said. "I think he can really play."
Perry said Johnson was a slimmer, less experienced version of Antonio McDyess, the team's backup power forward.
One Johnson stat that stands out was his eight blocked shots a game in a high school program that played across the country.
"When you see him play you'll see why we're excited," Perry said. "Westchester has had one of the top high school programs the last 10 years. Antoine Wright, who was drafted by New Jersey, went there. Both of those kids are very athletic."
Maxiell, who averaged 15.3 points and had 91 blocks as a senior at Cincinnati, listed himself at 6-5, although the organization lists him at 6-7.
A man of few words, Maxiell has long arms and a barrel chest and should fit in well with the likes of Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace and McDyess.
"I have a work ethic, and I'm not going to take a play off," Maxiell said. "I have a wingspan of 7-3, but also I'm strong, and I'm not going to take a day off. Of course I kind of patterned myself after Ben Wallace. I'm a Malik Rose-type player. At one point it was Kevin Garnett, but Kevin Garnett's a little too tall for me. Besides those three, the old Charles Barkley somewhat -- undersized but works hard."
Ben Wallace and Maxiell have something else in common: both are model car fanatics.
NOTEBOOK: Dumars said he had a long talk with swingman Carlos Delfino in San Antonio about his future. Delfino has told the Argentine press that if Larry Brown returned as coach, he'd like to play somewhere else. "I tend to get right to the point; I don't beat around the bush," Dumars said. "I said if you want to be here, let me know. If you don't, let me know. He said, 'I don't want to go anywhere, and I want to be here.' It's that simple. I said if you don't, give me a holler." ...
Delfino, Darko Milicic, Rickey Paulding, Andreas Glyniadakis and the latest draft picks are expected to play in the Las Vegas summer league, which starts next week.
Contact PERRY A. FARRELL at 313-222-2555 or [email protected].
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BY PERRY A. FARRELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
June 30, 2005
It's important to Joe Dumars, the man in charge of keeping the Pistons a championship contender, that new fresh legs continue to bolster the roster while the core remains intact.
MEET THE NEW PISTONS
F JASON MAXIELL
Ht/Wt: 6-7, 260.
Age: 22
Pick: 1st round, 26th overall.
School: Cincinnati.
Notable: Nicknamed J-Max. Earned a psychology degree. Averaged 15.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocked shots last season.
F AMIR JOHNSON
Ht/Wt: 6-9, 210.
Age: 18
Pick: 2nd round, 56th overall.
School: Westchester H.S. (Calif.)
Notable: California Mr. Basketball has "tremendous upside," Joe Dumars says. Ineligible during freshman and junior seasons and enrolled in three different high schools. Had signed to play at Louisville. Averaged 21 points, 15 rebounds last season.
G ALEX ACKER
Ht/Wt: 6-5, 185.
Age: 22.
Pick: 2nd round, 60th overall.
School: Pepperdine.
Notable: Can play point or off guard. Struggled at Chicago draft camp. Averaged 16.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists as a junior.
That's why he's excited about the possibility that all three of Tuesday's draft choices will make the roster come opening night.
Jason Maxiell, 22, a first-round pick at No. 26, is a tough guy whose size, at 6-feet-7, may have been a question to other teams, but his heart captured Dumars' attention throughout the season.
"This guy here is a beast," Dumars said. "It doesn't matter how tall he is. When he gets out there, you'll see. He's cut out of that same mold" as Ben Wallace.
Maxiell was introduced to the media on Wednesday at the Palace Atrium, and Dumars said he expects him to make the Pistons' roster for next season.
But the surprise of the post-draft analysis was the visible glee and excitement John Hammond, vice president of basketball operations, and Scott Perry, director of player personnel, had when discussing the second-round picks, Amir Johnson and Alex Acker.
"These guys weren't throw-ins," Dumars said.
Johnson, 18, is 6-feet-10 and California's prep player of the year, from battle-tested Westchester High. Acker, a 6-5 combo guard, left Pepperdine a year early.
Perry said Dumars probably watched more film of Acker than he did of Maxiell, whom the organization tabbed early in the year as a possible Piston.
"I was telling Jason over at the practice facility, the other two kids we drafted, Amir Johnson at 56 and Alex Acker at 60, we're very excited about both of those kids as well," Dumars said. "You have to add youth and new energy and new blood into the system, or it runs the risk of getting stale. You have to continue to do that with the way we play and the level we're playing at.
"Amir is a high school kid that's 6-10 and has a tremendous upside. Alex Acker is a guy that I've been watching all season long. ...
"I just want to say we're very, very excited about both of those kids as well. Those weren't just guys we picked just because we had to pick at 56 and 60. Those were guys we liked an awful lot. There's a very good chance you could see those guys here next year as well."
Acker and Johnson were still in California and couldn't get to Detroit in time for the news conference.
Acker probably was near and dear to Dumars' heart because the Pistons' president of basketball operations played both guard positions in his franchise-record 14 years as a Piston.
"I'm really excited about him," Dumars said. "I think he can really play."
Perry said Johnson was a slimmer, less experienced version of Antonio McDyess, the team's backup power forward.
One Johnson stat that stands out was his eight blocked shots a game in a high school program that played across the country.
"When you see him play you'll see why we're excited," Perry said. "Westchester has had one of the top high school programs the last 10 years. Antoine Wright, who was drafted by New Jersey, went there. Both of those kids are very athletic."
Maxiell, who averaged 15.3 points and had 91 blocks as a senior at Cincinnati, listed himself at 6-5, although the organization lists him at 6-7.
A man of few words, Maxiell has long arms and a barrel chest and should fit in well with the likes of Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace and McDyess.
"I have a work ethic, and I'm not going to take a play off," Maxiell said. "I have a wingspan of 7-3, but also I'm strong, and I'm not going to take a day off. Of course I kind of patterned myself after Ben Wallace. I'm a Malik Rose-type player. At one point it was Kevin Garnett, but Kevin Garnett's a little too tall for me. Besides those three, the old Charles Barkley somewhat -- undersized but works hard."
Ben Wallace and Maxiell have something else in common: both are model car fanatics.
NOTEBOOK: Dumars said he had a long talk with swingman Carlos Delfino in San Antonio about his future. Delfino has told the Argentine press that if Larry Brown returned as coach, he'd like to play somewhere else. "I tend to get right to the point; I don't beat around the bush," Dumars said. "I said if you want to be here, let me know. If you don't, let me know. He said, 'I don't want to go anywhere, and I want to be here.' It's that simple. I said if you don't, give me a holler." ...
Delfino, Darko Milicic, Rickey Paulding, Andreas Glyniadakis and the latest draft picks are expected to play in the Las Vegas summer league, which starts next week.
Contact PERRY A. FARRELL at 313-222-2555 or [email protected].
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