How important are NBA workouts?

5/25/2006

With the lottery activity completed, the NBA draft really begins to pick up steam now.  Rumours run rampant, the media chases down each one of them, and everyone loving the NBA is left wondering "who is my team really going to draft?".  That answer may be different every day between now and June 28, but there is one constant that truly has an impact at all levels of the draft process. 

The NBA workouts.

Every team hosts them, some more than others.  And many agents host their own, inviting teams and sometimes the media to come and admire their players' talents.  Some teams bring in many players between May 1 and the draft-I had one team tell me the other day that they brought in 60 players last year, while others look at far fewer players.  The teams' number of draft picks has some influence on all of this, as does their draft positioning. The Denver Nuggets, for example, will not be expected to bring in many guys because they do not have a first round pick.  So even though K-Mart seems a likely trade candidate, and could indeed bring a first round pick in 2006, many agents of potential first rounders will fear sending their players to Denver because of their belief that NBA GM's will hear about who showed up in Denver and make the assumption that their player will be rated as a "second round guy".  Seems crazy, right?  But it's true.  Since the draft is so mired in secrecy, no one really knows who is bluffing and who is holding pocket aces.  Personally, I like dealing with agents and players who have a firm belief in themselves and want to show teams what they are made of.  Certainly I train them to do just that. 

Though there is lots of hype and mystery behind the draft and the workouts, there is no denying the significance of these gatherings.  Chris Wilcox outplays Amare Stoudemire in LA and gets drafted ahead of him.  Penny Hardaway puts up a legendary effort in front of the Magic and gets them to trade for him with their #1 pick C-Web.  Personally, I've seen what a great workout can do for a draft pick, 2 years in a row.

In 2004, one of my players, Kevin Martin, was considered a longshot for the 2nd round.  None other than Marty Blake, the NBA guru, called Martin's decision to pull out of the Chicago
pre-draft camp "a horrific mistake".  But we knew something he did not know; Martin was wowing NBA execs, who were telling us that he is a definite first round talent.  The only question was-who would pull the trigger and make him the only mid-major player to go in round 1.  After the pre-draft camp, Kevin flew to Sacramento to work out for the Kings.  That night, we got the word that Kevin was phenomenal in the workout.  GM Geoff Petrie loved his talent and upside.  After the draft, when Kevin became the 26th pick of the first round for the Kings, we found out just how phenomenal he was.  Petrie told me that they chart every shot a player shoots, from warm-ups to the 1 on 1 games.  Kevin shot an eye-popping 83%!!  Even better than the previous record holder for Kings' workouts, some guy named Peja.  Add Kevin's amazing quickness and 42 inch vertical, and you've got yourself a first round draft pick.  I think Kevin's play this year when Bonzi went down justified Petrie's selection, and his future looks very bright.

Last year, we had a similar situation with Orien Greene, who as a senior point guard at a small school shot only 28% from 3 and was not invited to Portsmouth or Chicago for the pre-draft camps.  But having known Greene for 7 years, I knew what he was capable of in an NBA workout.  We trained hard at improving his shooting mechanics and ball skills, and spent a  lot of time on his body and conditioning.  But after only 3 days with me, Danny Ainge wanted to see him.  Greene's agent, Jason Levien, agreed to send him as long as Ainge assured him of a return trip in a few weeks time so Greene could improve his game in between.  Green's first workout went ok, and finished with him running 21 full court sprints in 2 minutes-a very average performance. Almost a month later, Greene returned to Boston matched up with 2 likely first-round hopefuls, including Jarrett Jack. 

Boston had the #18 pick, plus picks at 51 and 53.  We told Orien that if he could crush Jack and the others, he would go a long way towards convincing Ainge that he can draft another position at #17 and still get a good player late in the 2nd round.  Greene called me after the workout from the airport and said "Mr. Ainge told me they would draft me at 53, so I guess I played great". He did, according to a conversation I had with Ainge last summer.  And he completed 26 full court sprints in 2 minutes, a huge improvement from his first effort, showing his willingness to work.  10 days later they drafted him at 53 after taking Gerald Green at 17, and Orien was in the Celtics rotation all season after beating out former first rounders Dan Dickau and Marcus Banks.

So when mock drafts in May are projecting your favorite player to go late in the 2nd round, keep in mind that a strong workout can make a huge impact on that projection.  And when ESPN or DraftExpress predict that Tyrus Thomas will go ahead of Lamarcus Aldridge, they do so knowing that either player can help or hurt his chances with how they perform in front of the NBA decision-makers.

Tomorrow-we'll tackle the question of "what really happens?". 

Comments

[Brandon]

I've been trying to get your email or contact info can you please shoot it to me in an email. I'd like to discuss you working with a couple players in the big ten.

[S. Lawrence]

Would you please email me your email or contact information? I would like to discuss the possibility of you working out with a player. Thank you.

[Latoya Williams]

Good afternoon, what are some good workouts for somone trying to pursue professional basketball?