I know Collier has given the Rockets nothing, but I was looking at the 2000 draft and I gotta tell you, there's maybe no draft class in history that has provided so little impact the first 2 years in the NBA, yet many of the players are still considered valuable prospects. The only players that have had a marginable impact might be: #1 K. Martin (and that came pretty late), #16 Turkoglu, #17 Desmond Mason, and #21 MoPete. Of the other players taken before Collier, there's not a single starter on their teams, but many are still considered to have future. For #3, D. Miles, that is obvious but the rest? #2 Stro Swift #4 M. Fizer #5 M. Miller (maybe one of the worst ROYs ever) #6 DeMarr Johnson #7 Chris Mihm #8 J. Crawford #9 J Przibila #10 K. Dooling #11 J Moiso #12 E. Thomas #13 C. Alexander #14 Mateen Cleeves Collier really had bad luck with injuries, but do you think he can still put it together and get to the level of a Tod McCulogh? He may have a nice Luc Longley-type of career. Unfortunately for him, with Ming coming I don't see the playing time. Maybe he can have really nice summer league games and the Rockets could trade him for something in return. For example a possible S&T for Rashard. The Sonics are really desperate upfront...
Collier would be a 4th string center for Seattle. Collie will fetch you nothing in trade, his only value is his expiring contract which can be thrown in to help trades match salaries. that's it.
I'm sorry, but you msised several players on that draft list. Mike Miller does start for the Magic and if I'm not mistaken, a 15ppg scorer amidst injuries is much more than a marginable impact. Call him what you may, but the fact remains he beat out all of those players with an impact for ROY. Stromile Swift had an impact...before Gasol came in over him. Ditto for Fixer before Chandler came in - both players are still very talented. Mihm is a very servicable center for the Cavs and were Zydrunas to go down again (likely), he'd step in and provide 12 and 8 on a nightly basis, easily among the top centers in the league. Pryzbilla started for the Bucks much of the year at center, providing a big shot blocking presence. Everyone knew he was raw and would take time to develop, and he's proceeding at that pace. Dooling and E. Thomas have been injured much of their first two years. Courtney Alexander has been buried on the bench behind players like MJ and Michael Finley, but when given the time to play, he's excelled. The common thread among almost ALL of the top picks in that draft: underclassmen who should've stayed in school. They will continue to improve and develop into a decent draft class of players. Now for Collier - he was one of the few seniors in that draft, and on a team like Houston that needed a center he should've been able to make an impact. Yes, he was injured too, but hasn't shown that much. One good season, though, and he'll fetch a lot more than what he's worth.
Yes, that draft was a total joke with only one future star in Miles. On the bright side at least we were able to trade down so we were able to get EG in a stronger draft the following year. Good move by the Rockets. However, drafting Collier was not. He brings nothing to the table and probably will be out of the league in a few years IMO.
Odds are, Collier will be out of the league when his deal is up at the end of next season. Who knows, the Rockets may even cut him before then. However, I think they should still keep him around for awhile, at least until the trade deadline in February, because if MoT comes around and the Rockets decide to trade KT, they will need Collier to package as cap fodder to get a higher-salaried (and presumably better) player in exchange.
How can you say that? Mihm has not proved anything yet. Shotblocking Presence? Ha! Practically any center in the NBA could start in center for the Milaukee Bucks. The rest of the draft was just hideous. This was a pathetic draft.
ohh, I thought Bucks were a very good team with a lot potential. They have two draft #1 players like clippers? I forget.
Maybe because he's buried behind one of the better centers in the league in Ilgauskas and still manages to produce in the limited time he plays? Pryzbilla - in 16 minutes per game, he blocked 1.7 shots. I'd say that's a shotblocking presence, considering that's 2nd in the NBA for blocks per 48 min and few other players can even get that many blocks in a week. Teams knew what they were getting with Pryzbilla - exactly that - and it would take time for the rest of his game to develop. If any other center in the NBA could start for the Bucks, then why didn't they? There were a lot of bad players in the draft...but that holds true for a lot of other drafts as well.
"Pryzbilla - in 16 minutes per game, he blocked 1.7 shots. I'd say that's a shotblocking presence, considering that's 2nd in the NBA for blocks per 48 min and few other players can even get that many blocks in a week. Teams knew what they were getting with Pryzbilla - exactly that - and it would take time for the rest of his game to develop. If any other center in the NBA could start for the Bucks, then why didn't they? " Stats per 48 min are complete BS for most situations. Few other players getting 2 blocks in a week? If you're talking about centers, that's pretty funny. No other center starts for the Bucks because THEY DON'T HAVE ANY
Fine, ignore the 5 blocks per 48 minutes. 1.7 blocks per game is still among league leaders for all players, and there are a number of players who do not block that many shots in a week - including some centers...remember that's an average of .66 blocks per game. If the Bucks don't have any centers....then a) what do you call Ervin Johnson and a player they traded away in Scott Williams and b) why, in the East, would they not play a small lineup considering the backcourt talent they have? Like I said...many of the players in the draft are busts, like Jerome Moiso. But don't judge the draft as a whole for a few more years, because whether accurate or not, many of the players still have high trade value and may simply be in the wrong situation, like Jermaine O'Neal was in Portland.
