Agile Bynum Steps Lively

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NEW YORK -- The footwork. You noticed that right away.

Although 7 feet and 280 pounds, Andrew Bynum is light on his toes, his moves around the basket smooth, not altogether unlike one of his idols.

"I like Tim Duncan a lot," Bynum said. "But I play more like Shaq [O'Neal] now."

The NBA scouts who watched Bynum, 17, work out Saturday can only hope that's true. But where will those quick feet lead him in the next two weeks? That is the question the scouts and the UConn coaching staff can't wait to have answered.

They will have to wait a while longer.

Bynum held an audition of sorts for roughly two dozen NBA teams Saturday at Baruch College. The 90-minute workout gave the scouts a sample of Bynum's ability, but brought the UConn recruit no closer to a decision about his immediate future.

Bynum, from Metuchen, N.J., has until June 21 to decide whether to pull out of the NBA draft and attend UConn. It is likely the decision will not come before then.

If Bynum is confident he will be a lottery pick - among the first 14 selections - he expects to remain in the draft. If not, he can pull out before the deadline and attend UConn in the fall. Before Saturday, most NBA mock drafts had Bynum going anywhere between picks 22-30.

Scouts from Atlanta, Portland and New Orleans - who have the second, third and fourth picks in the draft June 28 - were on hand.

"I'm still out there thinking about it," Bynum said. "I'm pretty much going to go to the deadline. There are teams I'm interested in and teams interested in me. If they're in the lottery, then I'll have to sit down and make that decision whether or not I'm going."</div>

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<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NEW YORK - He's agile for a big kid. You don't need to be Red Auerbach to see that much. Good hands. Good feet. Bad jump shot.

Or least it was bad Saturday at the Baruch College gym.

Bounce. Bounce. Andrew Bynum hit 2 of 10 from the left elbow of the free-throw line. Bounce. Bounce. He was 4-for-12 from a foot behind the free-throw line. Bynum would take 59 open shots ranging from 12 to 16 feet in front of two dozen NBA scouts. Nobody - except his own nerves - had a hand in his face.

Although he will ultimately be judged by his inside game, Bynum hit 22 of those 59.

"His shot is flat," one NBA scout said. "He actually shoots it better deeper because he knows he has to put more arc on it to get it over the rim. He needs to do that on his other shots. Somebody has to tell him."

And as dog and pony shows go, this was Westminster and an Ocala thoroughbred auction. For Bynum says he either will be a lottery pick in the NBA draft later this month or he will become one of the great big men in UConn basketball history.

He is 7 feet and 280 pounds. He is 17. He is a powerhouse under construction.</div>

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More analysis of Bynum's workout.