Published: May 01, 2009 10:47 pm      

BEAS: NBA draft offers little excitement

Pacers probably are stuck in middle of first round

Attempts to keep a secure lid on your excitement will be difficult when reminded, as I was recently, that the 2009 NBA Draft is less than two months away.

Yes, that was sarcasm. A thick layer of it to be sure. In truth, I’m more pumped by the college football beginning around these parts the night of Sept. 3 (Indiana hosts Eastern Kentucky) and the Colts kicking off their season 10 days later than I am this draft.

At the moment the start of the playoffs in Major League Baseball is more enticing. Same holds true for the 2013 Masters, the 2017 Indianapolis 500 and Notre Dame’s field hockey season a decade from now. However, if the Indiana Pacers can just defy the percentages at the May 19 draft lottery and put themselves in a position to draft Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin or Connecticut’s windmill, 7-3 Hasheem Thabeet, this immediately becomes a larger deal.

As it stands, the Pacers are sitting at No. 13. Not great, but not terrible, either. Some kid named Danny Granger went No. 17 back in 2005 and he’s now the franchise posterboy. Eighteen years prior to that, Indiana used the 11th overall selection to take UCLA motormouth Reggie Miller, who after stockpiling 25,279 points and numerous enemies, retired in 2005. Dale Davis was a 13 in 1991. So was another defensive stalwart, Dudley Bradley, in 1979.

Who Pacers president Larry Bird is targeting is anyone’s guess — maybe even Bird’s — but my thinking is that Indiana needs a glass- and space-eater beneath the rim. Someone packing a whole lot of nasty who gives the franchise that air of interior intimidation it hasn’t had since … well, ever.

Someone like DeJuan Blair, a 6-7, 260-pound of granite out of Pitt who might be the second coming of Charles Oakley only with better offensive skills. If the Pacers wind up selecting 10th or worse, Blair would be a great choice. If fortunate to be in the fifth-through-ninth category, either 6-9 Arizona forward Jordan Hill or 6-9 Wake Forest product James Johnson could be in blue and gold. Neither is the wide-body Blair is, but Hill, Granger-esque in his ability to play the ‘3’ or the ‘4’, could be a steal.

Indiana — OK, Granger — needs help down low. Jeff Foster can pogo-stick his way to all the rebounds he wants; he remains an offensive liability. Troy Murphy stands 6-11 and averaged a double-double. Problem is, the Pacers need more bona fide scoring inside 10 feet with swingman Mike Dunleavy sidelined until who knows when and 7-2 center Roy Hibbert coming off a hot-cold rookie season.

Bird needs to think big. Griffin or Thabeet would be great, but the chances are slim. Maybe the Pacers catch a break on May 19. Lord knows they deserve one.

Parting shot

In 2008-2009, the Butler men’s basketball roster carried 14 names. Nine of those players hailed from Indiana high schools. Conversely, Ball State’s Hoosier connections numbered four out of 15. Butler, which carried no seniors, has one incoming recruit and he’s from Indianapolis. BSU recruited three young men; one is from in-state.

Butler’s record over the past three seasons is 85-17 (.833), Ball State’s 29-63 (.315).

Yes, there is a correlation. You figure it out.

Mike Beas is a freelance writer/columnist and Kokomo native who resides in Carmel. He may be reached at mbeas@att.net.