Who Are You?

"Well, who are you?
I really wanna know
Tell me, who are you?
'Cause I really wanna know"
Who Are You, The Who

Watched the first half of the first round of the NBA Draft on Thursday evening at work and I have no idea who's being drafted. Okafor, Gordon, Childress, Iguodala, Deng, Jackson, cool. Foreigner 1, High Schooler 6. Come on now. It's so sad how far that great evening has fallen in the past few years.
It honestly used to rival NFL Draft day, not for endurance and for Mel Kiper Jr., but for excitement and anticipation about who was going where. I can vividly remember watching drafts through the 90's and seeing people I recognized at almost every pick. I could honestly say I had seen 90% of these guys play at some point in there college careers, and those I hadn't seen (Frankie King of Western Carolina, drafted by the Lakers one year), I had at least heard of and was aware of their "sleeper" nature.
Thursday night's first round consisted of a mere 11 players I had seen play at any point in time, four more college players I hadn't seen play, six foreigners I've obviously never seen and eight high-schoolers who played in the McDonald's game--another institution of the past that I've essentially given up.
That's a terrible percentage of foreknowledge, and I consider myself a pretty avid basketball fan. If I'm only going to know 11 (13 if you include Dwight Howard and Sebastian Telfair, because I've heard enough pre-draft talk about the two of them to have some idea what they're about), that's a telecast not worth watching.
Even going back to 1999, considered the most recent great draft, the recognition factor in the lottery is awesome. Elton Brand, Steve Francis, Baron Davis and Lamar Odom--picks one through four--were all watched numerous times on tv competing for their respective college squads. Jonathan Bender was the fifth pick out of high school and I at least got to watch him in the McDonald's game and the three-point contest. Wally Szczerbiak, Richard Hamilton, Andre Miller, Shawn Marion, Jason Terry, Trajan Langdon and Corey Maggette--picks six through 11 and 13--were also viewed quite a bit in college, generating plenty of excitement about their eventual destinations. Pick 12 was Aleksandar Radojevic from a JC in Kansas, so he's the one in the whole group that was a "Huh?" pick, but the remainder were actual stars.
Other names in that year's first round included Ron Artest, James Posey, Quincy Lewis, Dion Glover, Kenny Thomas, Tim James, Vonteego Cummings, Jumaine Jones and Scott Padgett, again providing recognizability. There were a few weirdos in there, some of which turned out--Andrei Kirilenko, Devean George, Jeff Foster--and some that didn't--Frederic Weis and Leon Smith.
Unfortunately, college basketball has been so decimated by the high school and freshman exodus that the draft can no longer consist of those guys that have been around the college game for a few years. Even Emeka Okafor, a three-year player at UConn, was considered old by this year's standards.
The NFL has a lot of things right, not the least of which is its policy about underclassmen. Keeping kids in school for at least three years keeps the college game attractive and keeps the league from introducing too many young busts every year. I feel bad for Mike Williams (not so bad for Maurice Clarett), but it's a good thing that their appeals have been denied, because it keeps in place a system that provides quality competition across the board and provides a draft day like no other.
David Stern has to be looking at such a limit, not only for his own interests, but for the greater good of the game of basketball.
Now that was more of a sermon than a blog, so a few more tids and bits before bedtime...
Vladimir Guerrero might be the sickest player in the American League, but he also might not be the best outfielder on his own team. Garrett Anderson is back from injury and hit two bombs yesterday (one off Lima time) on Fox that have me believing he's one of the best around. Vlad also crushed one--honestly the loudest homer I've ever heard on television--in a rout of the Dodgers, but the Halos got bounced today.
Pads are rolling--another strong outing from Adam Eaton today--but the Giants and Dodgers keep winning as well, so the margin remains three games (a half-game ahead of LA), but good things have been happening with my boys. Hopefully I'll be able to get down there this weekend or next for one game before the All-Star break.
Padre talk must dominate this blog because I doubt I'll have the courage to write anything about the Chargers once football starts. Long day tomorrow, starting at 5 and probably ending around 11:30. Good wishes.