Later today, Adam Morrison will be at a news conference, announcing that he’s going to hire an agent and declare for the NBA draft. Every year at the draft, there’s someone who inevitably slides… and then ESPN will spent the next two hours delighting in their agony and shoving a camera in their face at every opportunity. I hope that doesn’t happen to Adam Morrison. There aren’t enough tissues.
I know a lot of you disagree, but… I’m still holding the crying against him. If I was a GM with a top-5 pick, it would be a factor. It’s not that he cried after losing. That wouldn’t even register as a blip on the radar. I have no problem with crying. But the fact that he cried while losing, i.e., before he lost… I think that’s a sign of some emotional immaturity. And that’s fine, he certainly wouldn’t be the first slightly immature guy drafted in the NBA. And I’m not saying he won’t be a good player, but I do believe the tears are a legitimate red flag. How’s he going to handle it if he’s drafted by Charlotte or Atlanta, and he’s losing 7 or 8 out of every 10 games?
That said, though, physically, he’s got the body and the skill to justify a top-10 or even top-5 pick. He’s shown a good understanding of the game, the ability to hit contested shots, a willingness to fight for tough rebounds and to work hard without the ball. Those things should be enough to make him a good NBA player. Whether or not he can be great will depend on whether or not he can improve his defense, and how he can expand his offensive repetoire. A lot of the shots he got in college, he just put up over a defender because he was bigger and stronger. Those shots aren’t going to be there against, oh, say… Bruce Bowen or Tayshaun Prince.
brettskean Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 8:10 am
Not to make excuses for the guy, but one of my friends in college was a Type I diabetic and there were times that he would just lose control of his emotions when his blood sugar got too low. I am not saying that Morrison should be given some sort of sympathy but, come on guys, so he cried, big deal.
Adam Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 8:54 am
I don’t know if I’d hold the crying against him (although it probably doesn’t help) but the diabetes would scare the shit out of me. He’s done well with it so far (and bravo to him for doing so), but it’s going to catch up to him eventually, especially playing 82 games an year and with the party lifestyle that’s so common in the NBA. Even if he does continue to manage it well, it’s going to shorten his career, and knowing that I’m not sure I’d want to spend a Top 5 pick on him. We’ll see how it goes.
the mighty mjd Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
I hadn’t considered the diabetes/low blood sugar being part of the reason he cried… that makes perfect sense. Good point. And again, it’s not a big deal that he cried… it’s a big deal that he cried while his team still had a chance to win.
The Big Picture Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 2:20 pm
all the mock drafts still seem to have AMMO (yeah, weird nickname) going top-5. i think some team is gonna end up pretty dissapointed in a few years.
DookieStyle Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 2:53 pm
If Ben Wallace cried, it’d be okay…cause he’s Ben Wallace.
Just kidding. I wouldn’t draft this kid at all. Too many problems.
Doug Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 3:30 pm
I could pretty much care less about him crying. Shit happens. I understand questioning character when drafting someone, but he’s not Laurence Phillips or something. He just lost control for one second. The guy is 21, not 31. He’ll learn.
The only questions teams need to be asking themselves is can he play, can he help our team.
the mighty mjd Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 7:54 pm
You don’t think teams should ask any questions about character?
Doug Says:
April 19th, 2006 at 8:33 pm
Well I said yeah, if they are like killers or drug addicts or something like that. But I don’t think shedding a few tears is all that bad. He’s a kid.
HuangKong Says:
April 20th, 2006 at 9:17 am
Larry Brown cries every day, no? He’s still a great coach.