LSU coach: Bulls will draft Thomas

[ducks]

LSU coach: Bulls will draft Thomas

By Mike McGraw
Daily Herald Sports Writer
Posted Saturday, June 03, 2006

LSU coach John Brady is convinced the Bulls will select former Tigers power forward Tyrus Thomas with the No. 2 selection in the NBA draft June 28.

Speaking at the Southeastern Conference Spring Meeting in Destin, Fla., Brady told the Baton Rouge Advocate that he hasn’t heard from Toronto, which owns the top pick, in regard to Thomas. But Brady believes the Bulls have strong interest.

“If he’s sitting at No. 2, I think Chicago will take him,” Brady said, echoing the sentiment of many NBA observers.

The LSU coach was also happy that Thomas might have the chance to join a team that made the playoffs last season. The Bulls finished 41-41, but they acquired the No. 2 pick from New York in the Eddy Curry trade.

“He’s coming out of maybe the closest college basketball team in the country,” Brady said. “He’s known those guys since he was 6 or 7 years old.

“With the Knicks, the players don’t like the coach (Larry Brown), the coach doesn’t like the players and the players don’t like each other. Tyrus doesn’t need that.

“I like that (the Bulls) are a young team, and (coach) Scott Skiles challenges his guys. Tyrus’ personality fits all of that. I think he’ll be an NBA all-star in four years.”

The 6-foot-9 Thomas, a redshirt freshman from Baton Rouge, averaged 12.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.1 blocks while helping lead LSU to the Final Four.

Bulls get a breather: The Bulls will take a break from working out draft prospects at the Berto Center as NBA teams attend the Orlando predraft camp beginning Tuesday.

This is the event that was held in Chicago at the Moody Bible Ins ute for years before being switched to Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. Disney is the parent company of NBA broadcast partners ABC and ESPN.

As usual, most of the players who are convinced they’ll be first-round selections will not participate in the Orlando camp. Illinois guard Dee Brown is not expected to play, while forward James Augustine may pull out. Both players are projected as possible late first-round picks.

[ALVAREZ6]

Tyrus Thomas is an animal, but this dude is putting a lot of hype on him...he's gonna be an all-star in 4 years?

[Leetonidas]

No LeMarcus Aldridge then?

[pussyface]

i think i would probably take lamarcus aldridge...

for my comfort, too much of Thomas' stock has come from his outstanding play in that one particular game against ut/aldridge, who obviously had his worst game of the tourney.

aldrige is a surebet to be a real player in this league.