| Warriors Draft O’Bryant, Could Trade Murphy Authored by Payam Jahromi - July 4, 2006 - 3:47 pm
The Warriors shocked no one with the selection of Bradley 7-footer Patrick O’Bryant, but that’s not a bad thing.
O’Bryant is not going to come in and make a big impact next year. If you’re expecting that, forget it. He’s only 20 years old and has a long way to go – he’s a project.
But it was still the right pick. Regardless of how good he turns out, the Warriors had to go big. Unless there was another player they felt was too good to pass, this risk was necessary. (This is off the topic, but did anyone else notice that Stuart Scott called him “Bryant” during their interview?)
How big of an impact will O’Bryant – or Bryant – have in his rookie year?
Personally, I think next season will be more about last year’s draft picks than about O’Bryant. Expect Ike Diogu, Monta Ellis and possibly Chris Taft to have a bigger impact.
And if we’re talking about the center position, I’m still very excited about Andris Biedrins.
Despite two years of NBA experience, Biedrins is only two months older than O’Bryant, who came out after his sophomore season.
If you’re willing to give O’Bryant into his early 20’s to make an impact, why not give Biedrins the same chance?
O’Bryant showed flashes at Bradley last year. He made a name for himself after he dropped 28 points and seven rebounds in a 72-66 win over Pittsburgh in the second round of the NCAA tournament. In the sweet 16, O’Bryant had eight points and 14 rebounds in a 80-64 loss to Memphis.
Earlier in the year in a game against Tennessee Tech, O’Bryant had 19 points, 16 rebounds and nine blocks. He also poured in 23 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks against Illinois State.
So although he may not be Duncan or Shaq, the kid does have potential. One thing to remember, everybody is calling O’Bryant a “late bloomer,” as his game greatly improved between this freshman and sophomore campaigns. Had he stayed in school and continued to improve, he may have been a top five pick next year.
O’Bryant is also said to have great hands. If you’re a Warriors fan who has watched Adonal Foyle over the past nine years, that alone gets you excited. (This is one of those “It’s-so-freaking-sad-being-a-Warriors-fan” moments.)
Murphy on the Block?
With the addition of O’Bryant, the Warriors now have three centers who need minutes, and that’s not counting Taft. I don’t think Chris Mullin will stand pat this summer.
Troy Murphy’s name has come up the most often in trade rumors, and he might be the odd man out.
Mullin has hinted at playing Biedrins some minutes at power forward. He also loves last year’s first-rounder, Diogu, another power forward.
Unless Mullin gets robbed, the Warriors would get an impact player in return for Murphy, who has averaged a double-double in each of the last two seasons.
If the Warriors want a better post-up game and interior defense, it’s time to trade Murphy.
The only concern in trading Murphy is losing his 10-plus rebounds a game, which led the Warriors, who ranked 25th in rebounding differential last year.
But the Warriors would likely get a rebounder in return for Murphy, and the rebounding production from Biedrins and Diogu would increase with more playing time. Based on last year’s projections, if Diogu averaged 34 minutes a game (the number of minutes Murphy averaged), he would have pulled down 7.5 rebounds a game, and Biedrins would have pulled down 9.7 boards a game.
I think it’s important for the Warriors to become more athletic in the frontcourt. A Murphy-for-Al Harrington trade or something similar would do that.
Perhaps something bigger is out there. Despite what their teams say, Jermaine O’Neal or Kevin Garnett may be available for the right price.
The summer is the time to dream.
If you have any questions or comments, you can reach me at pjahromi@sbcglobal.net |
