<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">There is at least one other guarantee, whether Chris Taft is a lottery pick or not: He won't be among the players attending the draft because the NBA did not invite him, even though he was among those to be fitted for a suit at the Chicago pre-draft camp earlier this month. "It's a matter of someone's opinion," said Billy Ceisler, Taft's New York-based agent. "I told Chris, 'You can't get caught up in any of this.'" There is no question who will be the top two picks in the draft, but it's debatable which teams will get which players. The Milwaukee Bucks choose first and the Atlanta Hawks follow, with the top choice to be either Utah center Andrew Bogut or Williams, the dominating power forward from national champion North Carolina. The 6-9, 230-pound Williams, like Taft, is raw but presents serious matchup problems as a quick, athletic player who performed well inside and out during his time with the Tar Heels. Diogu, a 6-8, 250-pounder, averaged nearly a double-double (22.6 ppg. 9.8 rpg.) for Arizona State last season. He has been great at drawing fouls and shoots 90 percent from the free-throw line. At 6-8, 266 pounds, May possesses an excellent shooting touch while averaging a double-double (17.5 ppg., 10.7 rpg.) as Williams' teammate at North Carolina. Hakim Warrick (6-9, 219) and Villaneuva (6-11, 240) are quite familiar with Taft, and vice versa. The three players caused fits for one another during Big East Conference play during the past two seasons. Warrick, of Syracuse, is a tremendous athlete who finishes in the lane with a flair, while Villanueva of Connecticut is an athletic, versatile big man whose biggest weakness is on defense. That brings us back to Taft, who may end up not only as a low first-round pick but also as only the sixth power forward taken in the draft. "Chris is still very raw ... He has a tremendous amount of potential, there's no doubt," Toronto Raptors general manager Rob Babcock told the Toronto Globe and Mail. Taft, playing with little emotion for much of last season, averaged 13.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game for Pitt. "The draft is a crazy night," Ceisler said. "Some people may be projected in the first 15 and then will go in the second round and some will be projected for the second round and will go right away. All Chris can do is work as hard as he possibly can, and come Tuesday, we'll see where we're at." </div> Source
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting REREM:</div><div class="quote_post">" ...All Chris can do is work as hard as he possibly can". And when is that going to happen?</div> Maybe he's got some attitude problem like Erick Dampier, only Taft has better hands. Pitt did have a lot of guard play and everyone knows that you have to feed the big dog if you want him to protect the yard. Still, the guy appears to have no heart and if he fell down to the 2nd round, he'd deserve it if indeed he had no heart when it came to basketball.
He really listened to the wrong people, he was told he was going lottery to mid first round. And ends up mid 2nd round with no garunteed pay or roster spot. I think he is this years biggest draft casualty(out of players that where in college but let early). I think he had the talent to be succesful, just not the mental, playing in the big East for a couple more year would have helped him develope that mental toughness. He went at 42 right before the Nets picked. I would have like to seen the Nets take a risk on him if he was still avaible at 43 tho..I think he still has upside. And withour frontcourt, we would have had the roster spot and playing time for him to prove himself. But now I think many probably wont even remember Chris Taft in a couple years. And everybody else is going to be like what ever happen to him. Its sad but cats make their own bed so they have to lay in it, stop listening to people who dont have your best interest in mind.
Taft just didn't live up to expectations. Needs to change his attitude If he wants to make an NBA roster.
