http://nbadraft.net/prevenas064.asp<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Wake Forest All-American Chris Paul was sitting in the green room, ready to put on an Atlanta Hawks cap. Instead, David Stern called the name of a raw, unproven small forward from North Carolina, Marvin Williams, giving Atlanta five players that did not fill their biggest roster gap.This is nothing against Williams, but his best season will never be as good as Paul's rookie year.The Hawks' pick is merely an example of a larger problem. Many General Managers mistakenly believe that 6-foot-8 multi-tool prospects are the keys to winning in the NBA. Let's face it, these super-athletic swingmen are a dime-a-dozen (well, to adjust for the NBA's inflation rate, move that decimal in front of that time about eight spots to the left).Small forward is the easiest position to fill in today's NBA. But the teams that have a chance to contend for the title every season either have a dominant big-man or an elite point guard (sometimes both).The value of a big-man is obvious. There simply aren't very many 7-footers with the requisite hand-eye coordination to dominate at the NBA level.But far too many people underestimate the value of a pass-first guard who can set up the offense, play defense, identify his team's best match-ups and act like a coach on the floor.In this year's draft, far too many teams will pass on UConn's Marcus Williams, but he will be a more valuable component to a successful franchise than the plethora of swingmen available. Granted, Williams has to prove that he possesses the maturity and discipline necessary to play in the league, but his point guard skills are unquestioned.Fans might like the high-flying dunks a supremely athletic 3-man can bring to a team's highlight reel, but unless he ends up being one of the all-time greats, he is interchangeable.There you have it. Three exceedingly simple rules that, when followed, will undoubtedly result in draft success.</div> My favorite part, so true so true.
