The New Jersey Nets have made the playoffs two years in a row now
(which must be some kind of record).  Anyway, the net GM for the Nets
is:
   
  Matthew Mitchell


and he uses the 14th pick for:

  Dontonio Wingfield, PF, 6-9. Cincinnati

=========================================================================
TEAM ANALYSIS
-------------
The Nets struggled this year to adjust to life without Drazen
Petrovic.  Left with only two positions reasonably solid, Chuck Daly
managed to guide the team into the first round of the playoffs. All
season long the team showed amazing inconsistency, beating the Knicks
and other top Eastern Conference teams regularly but still managing
only a mediocre record.  On offense, the two leading scores shot only
.447 and .417, leading to cold streaks. Defensively, the center
position was a problem. Fortunately, Derrick Coleman will be back
despite some early season contract troubles; however, this only
reinforces the inconsistent nature of the team. Kenny Anderson
underwent surgery following the season to repair a re-broken wrist
which apparantly was broken for some time toward the end of the
season. Most of the important contributors are fairly young, so this
team can expect to improve in the next few years.  Outside of PF and
PG, all starting positions could be open to new blood.  Here's how it
shapes up:

CENTER: Benoit Benjamin was brought in in a trade for Sam Bowie that I
never understood.  Bowie was beginning to fit in while Benjamin has
never fit in anywhere.  The biggest problem with Benjamin is that, as
a role player, he seems to lose interest in the game.  At one point
during the playoffs, Hubie Brown pointed out (rightly) that "there are
already 20,000 spectators here; the Nets don't need to have another
one of them on the court."  Benjamin's standing around made it
difficult for Coleman to display his solid passing skills.  When
Benjamin left, he usually was replaced by a true power forward (see
below).  This was essential since outside of a slight haircut
improvement, Dwayne Schintzius showed no progress whatsoever, and by
the end of the season was seeing little PT.  _Any_ help here would
benefit the team greatly, but the best thing would be to get a legit
center who is willing to move without the ball and play D.

POWER FORWARD: Derrick Coleman is the franchise player.  He made third
team all-NBA and has the potential to be the best in the game.  When
he's on, he can post up nearly any PF, take it outside and shoot the
three or drive, run the break, and rebound.  He was inconsistent, but
partly that was due to two factors: first, he had very little help on
the offensive end, and second, sometimes it seemed like only Kenny
Anderson realized that getting DC the ball was a high priority.
Sometimes Coleman was frustrated by this, and took some bad shots.
His .447 shooting percentatge (38-121 on 3's) needs to improve, and
could if another offensive option arises.  Depth was not a problem
here.  Jayson Williams had a solid season and looks like a fine role
player, as does rookie PJ Brown.  Both of them were pleasant surprises
and contributed solid minutes.  Neither, however, have much on the
offensive end.  Armon Gilliam had a fine year, shooting .510.  He
played a lot of center, however, which was a defensive nightmare.
Rick Mahorn split time between taking up space on the bench and making
Nets fans wish he would return there.

SMALL FORWARD: After Johnny Newman was traded for, it looked like
things would be OK here; however, he never worked into the lineup, and
might be better at SG.  Chris Morris had a mediocre year, scoring just
over 10 ppg.  As he struggled offensively, Daly employed bigger
lineups more often, teaming two PF's with Benjamin or playing three
PF's at once.  This is admissable in the East, where you can never
have too many big bodies on the court.  This flexibility allowed the
Nets to match up with bigger teams, however, a true scoring SF,
preferably one who could play a few minutes at SG, would be valuable.
I think it would also help against lesser EC teams who the Nets
struggled against. By the end of the season I was convinced that
Morris was purely a gunner, and not a particularly good one.

SHOOTING GUARD: Rookie Rex Walters was supposed to step into
Petrovic's shoes here, but he looked tenative at times, and, although
he shot .522 and made 50% of his threes in very limited time, he could
never take over the spot from Kevin Edwards, who had a good year, but
is not a go-to guy.  I'm willing to be patient with Walters, though,
so maybe this isn't the year to draft a SG.  Eventually, though, a
premier shooter at SG or SF is going to have to emerge for the Nets to
be successful.  Barring that, a Pete Myers type would be a plus, but
I'm not sure one is available.

POINT GUARD: Kenny Anderson was an All-Star.  If he stays healthy,
this position will be solid in New Jersey as long as he is around.
After Rumeal Robinson was traded, David Wesley emerged as a capable
but inexperienced backup.  The biggest problem here is that Special K
was forced to take too many shots.  He's a great creator whose biggest
strength on offense is that he can score 10-15 points off the dribble
and still dish out a load of assists.  Unfortunately, when he's forced
to score more, he takes too many shots and shows his range.  Until he
develops his jumper, the best way for him to improve on offense would
be to get someone else (a good SG or SF) to take some of his shots.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

MY PICK
-------

Dontonio Wingfield, F, Cincinnati.  This was an agonizing pick.  I
thought there was a clear top 12 (exactly the top 12 players taken in
the Usenet Draft), but after that it was very iffy.  I decided that
the Nets needed to take a chance, since I think they are only one real
quality player away from being an elite team.  Wingfield has the
versatility to play SF, which is why I selected him.  He can also bang
inside and play PF.  He makes Gilliam expendable.  He's young, and I
think Daly (if he stays around) can get him to mature.  Basically, I
think he has the best chance of being a star of the remaining picks,
and the Nets need another go to guy, which I think Wingfield will be
in 2-3 years.  I realize that this may only make the inconsistency
problem worse, but in a few years, a starting frontcourt of Wingfield,
Coleman, and a decent center sounds *great* to me.

OTHERS CONSIDERED 
----------------- 
Four other guys were high on my list.  I like Aaron McKie, but I've
seen his height listed all over the place, and having seen him once, I
think he's closer to 6'4" than 6'6"-6'7", which makes him purely a SG,
and this team has greater needs.  Monty Williams is impressive, but
the combination of the Nets recent loss of Petrovic and his heart
condition scared me.  Also, I'm concerned about his size at SF (I'd
like him a lot better in the WC).  Kendrick Warren is a solid inside
guy, but basically he just doesn't have the upside potential of
Wingfield, and another simply decent inside player doesn't do the Nets
much good.  Finally, and most difficult, I passed on Eric Montross.  I
just don't know how mobile he is, and I just can't see him being able
to guard centers like Ewing, Mourning, or even Seikaly in the EC.

IF I WERE IN CHARGE
-------------------
I might be inclined to trade this pick for a young center (like Eric
Riley, off the top of my head) and a later pick (late 1st/early
second) since I think the draft is fairly deep a SG/SF, and a guy like
Arturas Karnishovas might be there.  I also like Eric Mobley, because
he, Wright, and Dare are the only three guys in the draft I think have
a chance to be better than average in the NBA, and I think Mobley will
be around for a little while, so I might be inclined to trade down,
get a decent SF, and go from there.  This, of course, depends on
Mobley's stock with other GM's, which I'd know better if I was an
actual GM.  I'd also put as much distance as I could between myself
and Mahorn and Schinz.  If anyone would give up something for Morris
I'd consider it, but I think his value is minimal, and the Nets would
really have no SF without him, unless they pick one.

WHO THEY WILL PROBABLY PICK
---------------------------
Eric Montross' stock is falling, and NJ needs a center badly.
However, he may turn out to be just a big oaf, and the Nets already
have Benoit.  If Aaron McKie or Wes Person is available, they might
not be able to pass them up.  I think a better pick would be Kendrick
Warren or Monty Williams, since this draft has some decent perimeter
players deep enough to be found in the second round or as free agents.
Warren brings some more size to the table, all important in the
EC/WWF.  I think Wingfield will be here, but I'm not sure the Nets
will be willing to roll the dice.

====================================================================
Draft Summary:
1.  Milwaukee Bucks
    GM:   Bobby Davis 
    Pick: Glenn Robinson, PF, 6-8.  Purdue University.
2.  Dallas Mavericks
    GM:   Theo Wendt 
    Pick: Jason Kidd, PG, 6-4.  Cal.
3.  Detroit Pistons
    GM:   Eric Iverson 
    Pick: Grant Hill, SF, 6-8. Duke.
4.  Minnesota Timberwolves
    GM's: Kevin Hansen 
          Toni Morgan 
    Pick: Donyell Marshall, SF, 6-9. Connecticut
5.  Washington Bullets
    GM's: Jim Nagle 
          The Crossjammer 
    Pick: Juwan Howard, PF, 6-10. Michigan
6.  Philadelphia 76ers
    GM's: Brent Halliburton 
    Pick: Yinka Dare, C, 7-0. George Washington
7.  Los Angeles Clippers
    GM:   Paul Osmond 
    Pick: Carlos Rogers, PF, 6-11. Tennessee State
8.  Sacramento Kings
    GM's: Don Hearth 
          Daniel W. Huang 
    Pick: Clifford Rozier, PF, 6-9.  Louisville
9.  Boston Celtics
    GM:   Ellie Cutler 
    Pick: Lamond Murray, SF, 6-7.  Cal
10. Los Angeles Lakers
    GM:   Kosh 
    Pick: Jalen Rose, SG, 6-8. Michigan
11. Seattle Sonics
    GM:   Aaron Gill 
    Pick: Wesley Person, SG, 6-6.  Auburn
12. Miami Heat              
    GM:   Rob Clough 
    Pick: Sharone Wright, C, 6-11. Clemson
13. Denver Nuggets
    GM's: Rick Grubin 
          John Exby 
    Pick: B.J. Tyler, PG, 6-1. Texas
14. New Jersey Nets
    GM:   Matthew Mitchell 
    Pick: Dontonio Wingfield, PF, 6-9. Cincinnati

Next up:
15. Indiana Pacers          
    GM:   Richard Burton