and with the 31st pick the Charlotte Hornets select:
Shea Seals

 



I. Team Needs/History
Center:  GM Bob Bass pulled the trigger on draft day last season and swapped
kobe Bryant for Vlade Divac. After several mercurial seasons, Divac finally had
a banner year this year. Behind Divac the ranks are desperately thin. Matt
Geiger, who is a little smallish at 245 pounds, is the teams' lone true post
man.

Power Forward: One word: Mase. Anthony Mason had languished in New York under
Jeff Van Gundy and Don Nelson, and the swap of Mason for Larry Jophnson
continues to look brilliant. Mason's considerable bulk lends itself to playing
anywhere from the 3 spot to the 4 or the 5. His offense is steady, but his real
contributions come on the boards. Behind Mason, Dave Cowens like to bring in
either Geiger or Drexel newcomer Malik Rose. Also, Rafael Addison sees limited
use.

Small Forward: Glen Rice stepped up last year and showed that he is one the
premiere players in the NBA. His height allows him to shoot over anyone, and
he's changed his mindset to one of a scorer. Backing up Rice, the Hornets
acquired Donald Royal from the Warriors midway through the year. Royal's
driving style of play is a nice complement to Rice's outside game.

Shooting Guard: Dell Curry, formerly the 6th man of the year, was the Hornet's
2-guard for the bulk of the season. Curry played pretty well, but he seemed
like a better fit off the bench. Like most NBA teams, the Hornets had to dip
into the NBA's older players' pool and snag a retread to back-up at off-guard.
Ricky Pierce did a commendable job, but his age is creeping up on him quickly,
and it showed during the playoffs last year. I think the Hornets could use a
2-guard from this year's pool.

Point Guard: Another Hornet problem spot. Muggsy Bogues is the fan favorite,
but he can't seem to overcome the leg problems that have saddled him the last 2
years. Tony Delk's transition to the point from the off guard took longer than
expected, but by playoff time Delk was logging considerable time. Behind Delk
the Hornets have journeyman Tony Smith.

Rotation:
C: V. Divac, M. Geiger, A. Mason, M. Rose
PF: A. Mason, M. Rose, M. Geiger, R. Addison
SF: G. Rice, D. Royal
SG: D. Curry, R. Pierce
PG: M. Bogues, T. Delk, T. Smith

II. The Draft
Bob
Bass has been brilliant the last two years, and I'm sure that if Dave Cowens
wanted a pick, Bass could get him one. I figured that Shea Seals would be a
good pick for Charlotte, because Cowens seems to be able to get a lot of the
younger guys (Delk, Rose), and I think Seals will need to come in and be used
in order to gain confidence throughout the season.

Seals is the Danny Wuerffel of college basketball. Physically he looks average,
but he is undeniably a winner. Seals is average one-on-one, and he also has
trouble with shot selection. However, Seals' defensive abilities have gone
largely unnoticed. Being on the same team as Rice and Mason, Seals will have
mostly spot-up jumpers and flashes at the basket, so creating his shots will
not be a problem.

Other players considered:
Charles O'Bannon: O'Bannon's a good athlete, but I was scared off by Ed's track
record

Gordon Malone:  Another big body to help fill the vacuum behind Divac.

Others: Serge Zwikker(Picked), Dedric Willoughby