<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Wilkins Undrafted, But Not Unwanted Kevin Pelton, SUPERSONICS.COM | Nov. 4, 2004 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For an aspiring NBA player, years and years of hard work and dedication are all leading to one night: the NBA Draft. Overnight, kids who were attending their high-school prom or taking finals weeks earlier become NBA players. And for the less fortunate, those not amongst the 50 and change selected, dreams are shattered. Or maybe not. As painful as going undrafted must be for an aspiring NBA player, it has never been a death sentence for an NBA career. With the draft becoming increasingly a crapshoot as teams look to hit homeruns by picking young foreigners or high schoolers with later picks, that's never been more the case than now. In 2003, Detroit's Ben Wallace and Sacramento's Brad Miller (then with Indiana) became the first undrafted players in NBA history to make the All-Star Game. Already, there have been a pair of major undrafted success stories from the 2003 Draft. Dallas guard Marquis Daniels had a phenomenal rookie season, working his way into the Mavericks starting lineup in time for the playoffs, where he averaged 15.8 points and 6.2 rebounds against the Sacramento Kings. This summer, Daniels parlayed his breakout season into a lucrative long-term deal from the Mavericks. </div> Link
I don't think he'll get the minutes to do a Marquis, but he's certainly earnt his way onto our roster, and I still think he has the ability to contribute in the NBA if he gets the chance. Whether that is in Seattle is a different matter, but I'm happy to have him on the active roster.
