With the 19th overall pick, the Los Angeles Lakers selected Javaris Crittenton, a freshman point guard from Georgia Tech (14.4 PPG, 1.1 3PT, 5.8 AST, 3.7 REB). Tagged as a high-risk/high-reward player, Crittenton has a ton of potential, offering a rare combination of size (6'5" 200 lbs) and athleticism at the guard position. He handles the ball extremely well and possesses NBA 3-point range on his shot. He also displayed excellent court vision, but needs to improve his decision making skills and control his flashy-ness. His size and strength will help create matchup problems for other teams, but many scouts debate whether or not he is a natural point guard (or can develop into one).
The Lakers then chose 22 year-old Sun Yue, with the tenth pick in the second round (40th overall). Yue is a 6'9" 205 pound combo guard/forward from China. Yue impressed the scouts at the NBA pre-draft camp in Orlando. Florida. He arrived at the camp tabbed slotted at forward. After a day of workouts and drills, scouts reclassified him as a guard and point guard. His size, passing skills, superior court vision and ability to handle the ball have drawn comparisons to Boris Diaw and Magic Johnson. Yue also showed good athleticism and an impressive shooting stroke. Last year, Yue played in the American Basketball Association with Beijin-Aoshen team, a team originally based in mainland China highlighting a roster full of Chinese players. He impressed NBA scouts scoring 13.5 PPG with 7 AST and 6 REB. He shot for a high percentage .655 FG%, and showed an efficient assist to turnover ratio of nearly three to one.
With their third pick in the draft, the Los Angeles Lakers selected 22 year old Marc Gasol (Pau Gasol's brother) from Spain. Marc Gasol is 7'1" and weighs 265 pounds (DOB: 1/29/85). Gasol knows how to use his size and will not shy away from contact. Gasol is a very aggressive player, always initiating contact and taking the ball right to the rim. Gasol is also strong in terms of establishing position in the post, maintaining position as a post defnder and rebounding the ball. He has surprisingly good ballhandling and passing skills for a frontcourt player. Like most European players, Gasol’s shooting range extends out to the 3-point line. Like his brother Pau, Marc has a high basketball IQ, he will not force plays, will make good decisions and will play solid defense while staying out of foul trouble. His weight and conditioning were the main concerns that kept him from becoming a first round draft choice. Also, scouts noted that he is too right-hand dominant, making his post moves somewhat predictable and easy to defend. He was impressive as a high schooler in Tennessee, but returned to Europe (playing professionally) instead of staying in the states. If he works hard to improve his conditioning and athleticism, he could become one of the steals of the 2007 draft.
With the 19th overall pick, the Los Angeles Lakers selected Javaris Crittenton, a freshman point guard from Georgia Tech (14.4 PPG, 1.1 3PT, 5.8 AST, 3.7 REB). Tagged as a high-risk/high-reward player, Crittenton has a ton of potential, offering a rare combination of size (6'5" 200 lbs) and athleticism at the guard position. He handles the ball extremely well and possesses NBA 3-point range on his shot. He also displayed excellent court vision, but needs to improve his decision making skills and control his flashy-ness. His size and strength will help create matchup problems for other teams, but many scouts debate whether or not he is a natural point guard (or can develop into one).
The Lakers then chose 22 year-old Sun Yue, with the tenth pick in the second round (40th overall). Yue is a 6'9" 205 pound combo guard/forward from China. Yue impressed the scouts at the NBA pre-draft camp in Orlando. Florida. He arrived at the camp tabbed slotted at forward. After a day of workouts and drills, scouts reclassified him as a guard and point guard. His size, passing skills, superior court vision and ability to handle the ball have drawn comparisons to Boris Diaw and Magic Johnson. Yue also showed good athleticism and an impressive shooting stroke. Last year, Yue played in the American Basketball Association with Beijin-Aoshen team, a team originally based in mainland China highlighting a roster full of Chinese players. He impressed NBA scouts scoring 13.5 PPG with 7 AST and 6 REB. He shot for a high percentage .655 FG%, and showed an efficient assist to turnover ratio of nearly three to one.
With their third pick in the draft, the Los Angeles Lakers selected 22 year old Marc Gasol (Pau Gasol's brother) from Spain. Marc Gasol is 7'1" and weighs 265 pounds (DOB: 1/29/85). Gasol knows how to use his size and will not shy away from contact. Gasol is a very aggressive player, always initiating contact and taking the ball right to the rim. Gasol is also strong in terms of establishing position in the post, maintaining position as a post defnder and rebounding the ball. He has surprisingly good ballhandling and passing skills for a frontcourt player. Like most European players, Gasol’s shooting range extends out to the 3-point line. Like his brother Pau, Marc has a high basketball IQ, he will not force plays, will make good decisions and will play solid defense while staying out of foul trouble. His weight and conditioning were the main concerns that kept him from becoming a first round draft choice. Also, scouts noted that he is too right-hand dominant, making his post moves somewhat predictable and easy to defend. He was impressive as a high schooler in Tennessee, but returned to Europe (playing professionally) instead of staying in the states. If he works hard to improve his conditioning and athleticism, he could become one of the steals of the 2007 draft.
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