reflections
June 10th, 2007 Hornets Draft Workouts June 8

by noballer07

The final day of the Hornets’ abbreviated workout schedule wrapped up on Friday, as forwards Thaddeus Young (6′8) and Marcus Williams (6′7) and guards Zabian Dowell (6′2) and Ron Lewis (6′4) showed their skills to Byron Scott and the rest of the staff. All of these players are solid possibilities for the Hornets in the first and second rounds, but my main gripe is the fact that they haven’t even tried out a two-guard such as Nick Young and Derrick Byars. Despite this, both Byron Scott and GM Jeff Bower appeared to be quite impressed with the workout of Georgia Tech forward Thaddeus Young, commenting on his athleticism and mix of post up and perimeter abilities on offense. I don’t know what you all think, but I am now fully convinced that he is their guy. He’s even commented that his family is full of Hornets fans and that his uncle is a suite owner at the New Orleans Arena. Although I’m still not sold on Thad Young being the right selection on draft day, I think this might actually work out in the long run. It all depends on how much time Byron Scott is willing to put in to develop this guy, and so far it appears he is interested in putting in quite a bit.

Now, on to the rest of the prospects. I’m glad that they decided to try out Ron Lewis out of Ohio State; he took and hit a lot of big shots for them in the tournament and was one of the main reasons why they advanced to the championship game. IMO, he is too underrated; he has an NBA body (a plus defensively) and has shown time and time again that he can make shots. Yeah, he is an undersized two guard and his ball handling might not be good enough to play point, but haven’t we seen this before? Hopefully the Hornets will consider him on draft day in the second round. The other guard prospect, Zabian Dowell, has done a fair job at the Orlando Draft Camp, but possibly not enough to warrant a selection on draft day. Marcus Williams, a 6′7 guard/forward prospect out of Arizona looks extremely intriguingly offensively, and his ability to play PG, SG, and SF effectively is a plus. He may be a late first round pick and somebody the Hornets could look at if they decide to trade down (hopefully not that far).

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