MLS SuperDraft came and went today, here's Portland's picks (round (pick)-player-position-school): 1(2) Darlington Nagbe - F - Akron 2(22) Chris Taylor - D - Tulsa Portland traded into (good move) then out of (not so hot) the 11th pick when Will Bruin was available. It may seem like Bruin was redundant given that he's a forward and Kenny Cooper is coming in addition to Nagbe, but Cooper doesn't play like his size would indicate. Bruin is a target man who would free space for Nagbe and Cooper as well as give Hall and Wallace targets for their crosses.
I'm trying to wait on trade to judge it... since we wont know how much allocation $ they got for trading it away, and depending on who they get with the extra International spot. But yeah I'm not big on info from the college world of Soccer, but it sounds like Bruin would have been a good pickup. We'll wait and see I guess. can you give me an example of a ceiling for a player like Nagbe? The most common one I hear is a more skilled Zakuani from Seattle. But it could also be from homer Timbers fans lol.
A better Zakuani is what I hear for Nagbe. Mind you, Zakuani was pushed by some British media as worthy of a call-up for England. Personally, I don't really rate England that highly (particularly wingers), but its still a pretty big deal. Zakuani would have been a definite for the USMNT if he wanted to wait/risk the years for citizenship (he just got a Green Card and would be three years away), but went with Congo. Other articles have Freddie Ljundberg saying that Zakuani can become a "top player," David Beckham tried to talk him into England, and (can't find this one) Fabio Capello or one of his assistants commented on him, while taking a shot at MLS.
wow. Yeah I agree that it still is a big deal. If Nagbe can be better than Zakuani last year, thats a pretty good pickup for the Timbers. I didnt do much MLS in Zakuani's rookie year though, but from what I read struggled some his rookie year. Wonder if it will be the same with Nagbe. Thanks for the info... was just wondering if a better Zakuani was an accurate description
Its a difficult transition for most, especially smaller speed guys like Nagbe and Zakuani. A big dude like Will Bruin (6'2", 194) can take it, but Nagbe (5'9", 165) has been using speed all through his college days. He's going to be going at much faster and much bigger defenders now who can get close enough to him to shove him around. Skill level is skill level and its high for Nagbe, but speed isn't really going to help him as much as it did at Akron.
Nagbe ready to prove himself in Portland Top-rated college prospect expected to get right into the mix As Darlington Nagbe held up a personalized green Portland jersey (no number yet) during a press conference hours after the SuperDraft had ended on Thursday, he couldn’t help but wear an ear-to-ear smile. “It feels great,” he told MLSsoccer.com about his new destination. “I’ve researched it [Portland] -- great fans, great city, great coaching staff. … I’m just ready to contribute and have fun. I’m looking forward to meeting the Timbers’ Army.” The most-vaunted college prospect in this year’s class, who didn’t make it in time to Baltimore for the event due to a technical snag in his recently-approved P-1 visa, fell right into the Timbers’ lap. Expected by many to go to Vancouver as the No. 1 pick, the Whitecaps instead selected 17-year-old forward Omar Salgado. Vancouver's choice took many by surprise, but not Nagbe. “No, I wasn’t surprised,” he said. “There were a lot of great players here. From what I hear, Omar’s a great player. Anything can happen on draft day.” http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/nagbe-ready-prove-himself-portland
Nope. He signed a Generation adidas deal, so he's making big bucks. Probably in the $100k+ range. He had signed prior to the draft taking place. There were rumors of him trying to find an out if Vancouver took him first as it would screw with his immigration status if he had to live in Canada for the season. I guess he's working on a Green Card, and (I'd assume) a path to citizenship in the US. From what I have read about other guys doing the same thing (Danny Mwanga, Steve Zakuani, Andy Najar), he'd have about three more years to go after getting the Green Card. So Portland could be hanging on to him for a while if that's a goal of his.
4 more picks. http://portlandtimbers.com/news/2011/01/timbers-select-four-2011-mls-supplemental-draft Timbers 2011 MLS Supplemental Draft Selections: Spencer Thompson (No. 2 overall) Position: Forward Height: 5-11 Weight: 170 Born: Oct. 19, 1988 Hometown: Ahwatukee, Ariz. Last Club: University of California, Irvine College: University of California, Irvine Robby Lynch (No. 12 overall) Position: Midfielder Height: 6-0 Weight: 165 Born: Aug. 9, 1988 Hometown: Carmel, Ind. Last Club: University of Evansville College: University of Evansville Raymundo Reza (No. 20 overall) Position: Forward Height: 5-10 Weight: 175 Born: May 7, 1989 Hometown: Denver, Colo. Last Club: San Diego State University College: San Diego State University Taylor Mueller (No. 38 overall) Position: Defender Height: 6-2 Born: Sept. 20, 1988 Hometown: Sammamish, Wash. Last Club: University of Washington College: University of Washington
I wouldn't expect these guys to do too much other than fetch Kenny Cooper some water during training camp. Of course, now that I've put that in writing, you've drafted the next Jeff Larenotwicz and you'll have a strong starter for the next ten years.
That s right, who knows how these guys will pan out. Do you have any other examples of supplemental draft success stories?
Googled........Ha ha, Wondo was taken a couple spots ahead of Larentowicz who was taken a couple spots after Timbers Legend Cameron Knowles Mainly it just looks like the USL All Stars, but there are some names still around in MLS, the biggest one is Brian Ching.
Guys who are still around: 2008 - Chris Tierney, Kheli Dube, Daniel Antunez (playing in Mexico, never played in MLS) 2007 - Aaron Hoblein 2006 - Jordan Harvey, Devon McTavish 2005 - Jason Hernandez, Chris Wondolowski, Jeff Larentowicz 2003 - Brian Ching, John Wolyniec And guys from earlier drafts who stuck around for a while: 1999 - Brandon Prideaux, Darren Sawatzky 1998 - CJ Brown 1997 - Ezra Hendrickson, Carlos Llamosa, Braeden Cloutier, Curt Onalfo (more known for coaching), Kerry Zavagnin 1996 - Chris Armas Armas, Llamosa, Brown, Ching, Wondolowski, and Larentowicz are the real impact palyers there. Zavagnin, Hendrickson, and Prideuax have stuck around for a while. Its possible to find some gems in this draft, but I wouldn't expect anything from these guys.
