Tayshaun Prince, Rajon Rondo lead the charge of former Wildcats in the NBA
By Staff
The NBA is back and with it, another Wildcat joins the NBA fraternity as Jodie Meeks starts to make the transition from college stud to hopefully NBA All Star. Here is my pre-season look at the ex Cats on NBA rosters and I will keep you up to date all season on how they are representing the Big Blue.
Tayshaun Prince — Pistons: Prince, to me, is clearly the best player out of the bunch. He’s experienced both in college and the NBA, along with having the luxury of winning an NBA Championship in his first season. He’s established himself as a very good defender, utilizing his length. The Pistons are a different look team this season with the departure of players like Rasheed Wallace. They’ll be going smaller, playing more guard rotations but you can be assured that Prince will see a lot of time on the floor regardless of what kind of lineup they go with. The Pistons have an influx of new post and wing position talents, so it will be interesting to see how Prince will be affected by that. Prince hasn’t missed a game in the NBA since his rookie season, so his minutes and durability are definitely there. He’s very consistent in terms of what he will give the Pistons on a daily basis. Prince had his highest rebounding totals last season and one of his better assist years, as he’ll have to take on more work with Wallace’s departure. The arrival of Ben Gordon could eat into the production of Prince but I wouldn’t expect too much to be lost from Prince this season.
Rajon Rondo — Celtics: With this only being the third season of NBA play for Rondo, he is right up there in terms of NBA talent alongside Prince. He plays with an extremely talented team, much more so than Prince but also plays a different position. His game was put into question even during his rookie season, as he became accustomed to the faster NBA style. He thrived quickly because of his tremendous speed and ability to get to the rim. He’s got an NBA Championship of his own which is very impressive for two of our former Wildcat players. As another former Tubby Smith player, it is a testament to how good Tubby was at recruiting regardless of what happened in his later years. Rondo’s tenure with the Celtics has been up in the air recently but if there is any way to justify a team keeping you, another championship wouldn’t hurt. That is if Rondo wants to stay with the Celtics in the first place after contract extension talks have been put on hold.
A big question mark is whether Rondo can massage all the egos on the team. The Celtics are stacked with various players who want the ball in their hands all the time. Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett were his sidekicks just two years back in a championship season but the addition of others like Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels could cause friction within the team. Rondo and head coach Doc Rivers are going to have to utilize Rondo’s play-making abilities but also harness the ego of their star point guard for an entire season. Can it be done? They did it once already, so a second time isn’t out of the question. There is no question Rondo could be the Celtics best player so it will be important to keep an eye on how this situation develops throughout the season.
Nazr Mohammed — Bobcats: Mohammed was blessed with the opportunity to play under former UK head coaches Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith. He was recruited by Pitino and won a National title in 1996 and stayed long enough to feel the glory days of Tubby Smith, in winning another title in 1998. The 11th year pro out of UK has had his fair share of disappointments as well as excitements during his tenure in the NBA. He will log minutes behind newly acquired center Tyson Chandler, who was traded for then power forward/center Emeka Okafor. Chandler will get the brunt of the minutes but if he were to go down to injury, step in Mohammed. He isn’t nearly the kind of player he was earlier in his career, but like other former teammates, he’s a serviceable player that can eat up minutes. He’s not flashy but can still rebound and put up some points in the post. He saw less than ten minutes a game last year, so anything more would be a bonus from the big man out of Chicago.
Jamal Magloire — Heat: The Canadian superstar and former UK big man has travelled the NBA landscape, now having played for six NBA teams with his arrival on the Miami Heat roster. In contrast to Mohammed, Magloire has had several promising NBA seasons occurring earlier in his prime. From 2001-2006 he saw on average of 30 minutes a game, putting up some solid numbers as a center for the Charlotte and New Orleans Hornets. During the 2003-2004 seasons, he averaged a double-double on the season. His prime playing days are behind him as he will log most of his minutes in a reserve role coming off the bench. Jermaine O’Neal is the starter but Magloire should see minutes when O’Neal gets into foul trouble or goes down to injury. Don’t expect overwhelming numbers but Magloire can get it done when needed.
Keith Bogans — Spurs: Bogans could benefit in shifting to a new environment. He was a solid contributor during his days in Milwaukee but the Bucks were never good. Bogans has an opportunity to finally play with a championship caliber team and learn from playing alongside veterans Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and new acquisition and former teammate Richard Jefferson. With a heavy guard rotation, Bogans will fit the bill of a reserve/role player. It will depend also on how head coach Gregg Popovich wants to utilize Bogans’ skills. He’s a big guard, who has developed a serviceable mid-range shooting game. Bogans saw one of his better years while playing with the Orlando Magic in the ’07-’08 seasons. If given the time, he can average (8.5 pts., 3.0 rebs.) while shooting just over 73% from the charity stripe. Those totals can be realistic with 25+ minutes of play, realistic if players like Manu Ginobili and Richard Jefferson go down to injury.
Chuck Hayes — Rockets: Chuck’s NBA career hasn’t exactly been what it was during his playing days for the Wildcats. A heralded leader of the Cats, he now is a role player on the Houston Rockets. He doesn’t mind taking a back seat to players like Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady but shows his worth in a myriad of ways. He’ll be a serviceable NBA veteran for the rest of his career focusing most of his attention of defense and rebounding. He had his worst NBA season of his career during the 2008-2009 NBA seasons with teammates Luis Scola and Carl Landry getting more playing time. Hayes will garner the same role this season, but his attitude is his best attribute going forward and being a solid teammate and locker room guy can be as important as scoring a couple of points or grabbing loose rebounds.
Kelenna Azubuike — Warriors: One of the most electrifying dunkers in Kentucky history, Azubuike has come into his own as an NBA player. A self-made D-league star, he was often lost on the Warriors bench as ‘Buike didn’t garner a lot of attention from current head coach Don Nelson. When Azuibuike grew as an NBA player, his talents followed
as his playing time began to increase to the point where he average 14.5 pts. a game last season to go along with the 5 rebounds. This season may put Azubuike on the wrong side of the rotation once again with the decision to draft former Davidson standout Stephan Curry. It is almost certain that Azubuike’s minutes and production will be cut into because of Don Nelson’s inconsistent player rotation. There is no telling Kelenna’s development is one the rise as he raised his field goal, three point, and free throw shooting percentages all last year. If there is a lack of playing time, those numbers decrease dramatically.
Randolph Morris — Hawks: Morris is one player who I though could have benefited from staying in college another year. His tenure at UK was cut short by the departure of then head coach Tubby Smith. With Smith leaving, Morris didn’t feel it was best to endure a coaching change, all while trying to prepare himself for the NBA Draft after his senior year. Morris skipped his senior season and in turn got on with the New York Knicks. He’s played very sparingly during his three year NBA career, racking up only 89 minutes in 23 games played last season for the Atlanta Hawks. Morris certainly has the NBA body and frame to bang down low with other NBA big guys, but it seems as if his talents haven’t caught up to him just yet. With post players like Al Horford, Zaza Pachulia, and newcomers Jason Collins and Joe Smith, Morris may be hard pressed to find any valuable minutes during the regular season.
Jodie Meeks — Bucks: The rookie out of Kentucky caught everyone’s attention after he blew away the Tennessee Vols last season, during a game in which he scored 54 points. That total was the highest of any UK player in the history of Kentucky basketball, as Meeks used his junior season to propel himself into NBA Draft discussions. After many teams balked at the idea of drafting Meeks, the Milwaukee Bucks decided to draft the sharp-shooter with the 11th pick in the second round. Meeks will learn a lot of his game from fellow sharp-shooter and All-Star Michael Redd. Both Redd and Meeks were viewed in the same light coming out of college. Meeks looks to get solid minutes in his rookie year and some learning curves may ensure for the All-SEC player from last season. He’ll look to make other NBA general managers eat crow with their own decisions in passing on Meeks, by becoming a consistent NBA shooter and developing a game that can get him to the rim.
Andrew Hardison is a recent UK alum and frequent contributor to Wildcat Blue Blog. You can find more Andrew Hardison articles on his Kentucky Examiner site.
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