<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The Detroit Pistons are set to take 7-foot-1 Darko Milicic with the second pick in the NBA draft. Carmelo Anthony, the other player most considered in the running to follow Cleveland's selection of LeBron James in the draft order, canceled his scheduled workout with the Pistons. Joe Dumars, Detroit's president of basketball operations, was asked if Anthony's cancellation on Tuesday provided a clear indication that the Pistons would take Milicic. "Yes," Dumars told The Associated Press on Wednesday night. Dumars declined further comment. The Pistons had their choice of any player not named LeBron James because Cleveland will take the high school phenom with the No. 1 pick on June 26. The Pistons, the only Eastern Conference team with 50 regular-season wins, have the second overall pick thanks to a 1997 trade with the then-Vancouver Grizzlies for Otis Thorpe. Milicic, a 253-pounder from Serbia and Montenegro, would provide a scoring presence the Pistons currently lack on the frontline. Ben Wallace, who started at center in the All-Star game, focuses on defense and rebounding for the Pistons, while 36-year-old Cliff Robinson is past his prime. Milicic would join a team on the rise with three stars younger than 29 - Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups and Wallace - along with Tayshaun Prince and Mehmet Okur, who had promising rookie seasons. Milicic, who turns 18 on June 20, is considered the best big man in the draft - with the skills to score inside and out - and comes out of the Yugoslavia professional league where most players are in their mid-20s. The 6-8 Anthony, who led Syracuse to the national championship this season as a freshman, was scheduled to work out for the Pistons on Saturday. </div>
lol the first 2 picks are already established...but the Raps don't know if they want Bosh or Pavel....I'd take Bosh....
More stuff about Darko. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">When Darko Milicic flew into Kennedy Airport last month, he did not experience the typical awe that accompanies one's first trip to the big city. He was not overwhelmed by the stream of traffic or the soaring line of skyscrapers. All Milicic wanted was directions to the gym. "Give me the ball," he said. Milicic, a 7-0, 245-pounder from Serbia, is playing a different type of transition game. He will turn 18 on Friday and is expected to be a top-three pick in the NBA draft on June 26. Milicic arrived in the city with fellow Europeans Aleksandar Pavlovic (Serbia), Slavko Vranes (Serbia) and Zoran Planinic (Croatia). All four could be first-round picks. They have been transported to their new world by 32-year-old agent Marc Cornstein, who, along with his wife Natasha, is helping them adjust to life in America. The foursome has been living in an upper East Side apartment four blocks from the Cornsteins' residence. They have NBA personnel salivating, including Scott Layden of the Knicks, Eddie Stefanski of the Nets and Steve Rosenberry of Seattle. Milicic could be the second overall pick as long as Detroit GM Joe Dumars can prevent new coach Larry Brown - who is apparently infatuated with Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony - from asserting his influence on personnel decisions. Some say Milicic, with his ability to run and jump, is a European version of LeBron James, who figures to be the No. 1 overall selection. But while James was earning national attention with games televised on cable, Milicic, who is six months younger, didn't even know about the high school star. "I just heard about him six months ago," Milicic says. "I have never seen him play." When informed James drives a Hummer, Milicic said he'd like to buy a car with his first paycheck. "A normal little car," he said. "A Mercedes. That's my favorite car. But I have to go easy with that. I need to send money back to my family, provide for my parents and my sister." Milicic grew up in war-torn Serbia, which used to be part of Yugoslavia. He was born on the outskirts of Novi Sad, a city of 7,000. His father, Milorad, is a police officer. His mother, Zora, works for the pharmaceutical company that sponsors the club team he has played for the past two years. Milicic never let his surroundings stop him from developing his game. At 14, he joined a club team and moved into his own apartment in the small industrial town of Vrsac, a two-hour drive from his home. One day, while his team was working out, a bomb went off and shook the building. The kids looked to the coach for direction. His response: "Keep going." "He grew up with war," Cornstein said. "That's all he's known. I'm sure, like everyone else in the country, he's known people who have fought, people who have died. This is a way of life and a way to escape that life." Cornstein and his partner, Spomenko Pajovic, who played professionally in Yugoslavia during the early '80s, have become a presence in that country over the past five years. Cornstein was introduced to Milicic two years ago by Dragan Delic, a former club coach there, and convinced the young star and his family that Milicic could thrive in the NBA. Pro scouts, who have flooded Europe this year, seem to agree. They see Mililic as the next Dirk Nowitzki. "Nowitzki? He's a miracle guy," Milicic says. Milicic is fundamentally sound, which comes from working out in a structured practice environment seven hours a day, 12 months a year. He shoots threes with ease and is ambidextrous. He can shoot hooks with either hand and can command both ends of the court. Milicic's favorite team is the Sacramento Kings because they have two established European stars in center Vlade Divac and guard Peja Stojakovic, who both played for the Yugoslavian national team. When Yugoslavia defeated the U.S. last summer at the world championships, Stojakovic had a game-high 20 points. Divac added 16 points and 11 rebounds. "Unlike this country, where a player like LeBron James comes out of high school or Carmelo Anthony comes out of the NCAA Tournament and is anointed the next Michael Jordan, the next Tiger Woods, the next Joe Montana, it is the exact opposite mentality in Yugoslavia with young players like Darko," Cornstein said. "You are nothing until you prove yourself. So you have some ability, who cares? How many European titles have you won? How many Olympic medals have you won? So, there's almost a resentment when you get a player like Darko, who is getting some attention. The other players and the media in his country are saying, - What have you done to warrant this?' It's not that it's right or wrong. It's the culture." The Cornsteins have tried to introduce the young players to the city, taking them to St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Chrsyler Building and the United Nations, and on a tour of the NBA offices, where they met commissioner David Stern. "I like Manhattan, but the city is not for me," Milicic said. "Too big." Still, Milicic seems to be adjusting. He likes music and has developed a fondness for hip-hop. He recently bought 50 Cent and Dr. Dre CDs. He watched the original "Rocky" at the Cornsteins' apartment. He misses his family and phones home every day, and checks in with friends using instant messenger on the Cornsteins' computer. Occasionally, the Cornsteins will take the players out for a nice dinner. Milicic was at Mr. Chow's, an upscale Manhattan restaurant recently, seated at a table next to Mariah Carey. But he was oblivious. "Where's the bread?" Milicic said. He's a difficult young man to impress. </div>
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting "pchotsauce":</div><div class="quote_post">lol the first 2 picks are already established...but the Raps don't know if they want Bosh or Pavel....I'd take Bosh....</div> raps might be able to get carmello :shock: , denver is considering paval from the rumors.
