Nba Draft Is Suddenly Child’s Play

He was leaning on the hotel reception desk, wearing long denim shorts and a baseball cap turned backward. He was laughing and giggling with a friend from his Chicago neighborhood.

As the only American high school senior who will play Sega on Tuesday night and be able to purchase the nation of Senegal by tonight, Kevin Garnett is understandably excited.

“I can’t even explain the feeling, going pro, you know,” the graduate of Farragut Academy in Chicago said. “It’s … just … unbelievable.”

The National Basketball Association draft tonight at the Skydome has become a field trip for young future millionaires. It features four 20-year-old college sophomores, who will most likely become the first four selections, and the 19-year-old Garnett, expected to go no lower than eighth.

It is a kiddie-corps year for the NBA. Eighteen underclassmen made themselves eligible for the draft, including Joe Smith of Maryland, who is expected to be drafted No. 1 by the Golden State Warriors.

“It’s funny. I do remember playing in the McDonald’s game with some of these guys only two years ago,” said North Carolina sophomore Rasheed Wallace, referring to the affair that showcases high school All-Americans. “I don’t think any of us thought we’d be coming out this early. Obviously, we think we’re ready.”

Unless Philadelphia trades a player and its No. 3 pick to the Los Angeles Clippers, who hold the second selection, the Clippers will take Jerry Stackhouse, Wallace’s former teammate. The 76ers would choose Alabama sophomore Antonio McDyess with the third selection and Wallace would probably go to the Washington Bullets at No. 4. The first senior selected may not even be one of the first five picks.

“I feel old,” said Cherokee Parks, 22, the Duke senior who was married two and a half weeks ago. “A lot of these guys can’t even go gambling next year or to a bar. It’s going to be different, the lifestyle especially, for all of them.”

If projections hold, Parks, Oklahoma State’s Bryant Reeves, UCLA’s Ed O’Bannon and Michigan State’s Shawn Respert will go anywhere from No. 5 to No. 9. Yet last-minute jockeying made for some interesting mock drafts Tuesday after the Detroit Pistons swapped their No. 8 pick to Portland for the Blazers’ picks at 18, 19 and 58.

The Blazers may not be done dealing. Speculation centered on the Blazers trying to secure the fourth pick from Washington so they could draft Garnett and the Bullets possibly obtaining Portland point guard Rod Strickland to upgrade their backcourt.

Portland’s president, Bob Whitsitt, who as Seattle’s general manager was partly responsible for drafting Shawn Kemp out of high school, has not hedged on how much he believes Garnett can bring to a team.

“Basketball-wise, he has great potential, but you’ve got to look at everything,” he said. “It’s an exciting, scary, risky, rewarding proposition, which makes our job fun.”

Aside from the young faces, two other issues arose during the interview session with players Tuesday: O’Bannon’s arthritic knee and Stackhouse’s lack of desire to play for the Clippers.

Stackhouse, who would like to go to Golden State or Philadelphia, said he’s not thrilled about the prospect of the Clippers drafting him. “If it’s the Clippers, I go,” Stackhouse said. “But I’d like to step in and be a part of a winning situation. Right at this point, they’re not ready for that. That’s OK. God tests strong people. That would be a test.”

O’Bannon, meanwhile, dismissed reports that his arthritic knee, which raised major concerns at the predraft camp earlier this month in Chicago, would keep him from having a successful career. He underwent surgery five years ago and has played more than 100 college games since then. “My knee is stronger than most people’s in this room,” he said.

The Nets should have a shot at Respert at No. 9, but may be forced to pass on the shooting guard if either O’Bannon or Parks becomes available.

Not all of Garnett’s peers were convinced he is ready for the NBA grind, but given their own decisions, all respected the one made by the high school senior.

“Kevin’s a good ballplayer,” said Wallace. “I’m not knocking that. But he hasn’t really experienced that real physical battle down low. This year in high school he probably went up against two guys that were his height. So it’s definitely going to be a big change. But he’s his own man, and obviously he thinks the decision he’s made is the best one for him.”

“It’s your decision and it’s your life,” Stackhouse said. “I would never put myself in a position to judge that. I think if a guy has an opportunity to set his family up for life, he should. Ready or not, he should. There is going to be a maturation process regardless.”

MEMO: For a list of players, see the story with the headline: The top of the 1995 NBA draft crop