The Need for Darko

Marty Burns says Darko Milicic could be in line for a biggish payday:

Milicic is expected to command a multiyear deal starting in the $7 to $8 million range. Some say that's optimistic, given that there are so few teams with any cap room.

Assuming he winds up unable to pull off anything more than the midlevel exception, I think the Lakers have to sign him, just so the world can experience the Kwame/Darko All-Bust front line. Those two, Kobe Bryant, plus some Chinese dude from the ABA would be priceless.

Comments

Darko is not a bust. He is a 21 year old seven footer with great shot blocking ability and a lot of raw talent. If he was in the draft next year he would be a top 5 pick easily.

Posted by Freddie | July 8, 2007 12:26 PM

I should say, not yet. Signing him is a swing for the fences move. If you're a bad team, why not swing for the fences with Darko instead of playing it safe with a Mo Pete or Andersen Varejao?

Posted by Freddie | July 8, 2007 12:54 PM

"Darko is not a bust. He is a 21 year old seven footer with great shot blocking ability and a lot of raw talent. If he was in the draft next year he would be a top 5 pick easily."

Yup. Unlike Kwame, he's still got a decent ceiling.

It'll be interesting to see where he ends up.

There really are few teams with the cap space to give him what he needs. And if I understand the CBA, a sign & trade is no longer possible for him.

But his agent has sworn not to re-sign with Orlando as long as Otis Smith is employed there.

So unless Memphis or Charlotte wants to bite, what are his alternatives? He's gotta sign a 1yr mid-level deal and do the contract year thing all over again.

Posted by Petey | July 8, 2007 12:55 PM

Laugh your ass off all you want, Yglesias, but the Lakers had (IIRC) at least as many injury problems as the Wizards, played in a tougher conference, and ended up with a better record (one game, I think). With Kwame as the center.

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 8, 2007 1:12 PM

It's true, it's true, Darko still has a chance to be a very solid player (a shot-blocking big man is a good thing on almost any team). I think, though, that being picked at #2 ahead of Carmelo, Wade, and Bosh all-but-ensures bust status even if he remains useful for years to come.

Posted by Matthew Yglesias | July 8, 2007 1:19 PM

"With Kwame as the center."

Dude. Kwame started 28 games and played 1,100 minutes.

That's like saying the Spurs won a title. With Francisco Elson as the center.

Perhaps if Kwame were to start throwing cakes at opposing players during games, he might be able to have more of an effect on the results.

Posted by Petey | July 8, 2007 1:29 PM

Assuming no one is going to pay him what he wants...

I think the Pistons have a mid-level exception available and could use a F/C. I think it would be a very interesting situation if Darko went back to Detroit. I expect he would get more playing time this time. Of course, I kind of doubt that either party would care for the idea.

Posted by matt wilbert | July 8, 2007 1:40 PM

"I think the Pistons have a mid-level exception available and could use a F/C ... Of course, I kind of doubt that either party would care for the idea."

Yup. Somehow, I don't suppose that'll be the Darko Camp's first choice, even though it does make perfect sense on paper.

Posted by Petey | July 8, 2007 1:51 PM

Dude. Kwame started 28 games and played 1,100 minutes.

Right. Which is one of the reasons the Lakers were only one game better than the Wizards.

Over the 24 games Kwame played prior to his end of year injury, the Lakers won 16 of 24. That's a 54 game season. Eyeballing it, it looks like they were somewhere around .500 otherwise. There are obviously a lot of confounding factors--Odom, homestand--and there is no doubt that he has enormous limitations (e.g., he's a headcase). But Phil wanted him back from his injury for a reason.

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 8, 2007 1:59 PM

Darko still owns a house near Detroit.

Although I think this is more a function of a wealthy/lazy 21 year old not bothering to deal with the real estate business than anything else.

It is highly unlikely Darko returns to Detroit, but it's not entirely impossible.

Posted by Pete | July 8, 2007 2:05 PM

"But Phil wanted him back from his injury for a reason."

Of course. He's a perfectly serviceable center, and the Lakers didn't have a spare in that category. Not to mention that the Lakers were strapped for all kinds of tall guys due to their injury spate.

But unlike Darko, Kwame's got no headroom. He's never going to be a whole lot better than what you see now.

Unless, of course, he manages to find a way to integrate cake throwing into his on-court repertoire.

Posted by Petey | July 8, 2007 2:10 PM

Isn't he still in prison in The Hague?

Posted by Thunderlips | July 8, 2007 3:05 PM

But unlike Darko, Kwame's got no headroom. He's never going to be a whole lot better than what you see now.

I'm increasingly less certain about how player development works in the NBA. A few things I've read suggest it's driven by context more than age. That strikes me as credible, because, prior to age-diminishing athleticism abandoning a player, I cannot see what age would have to do with it.

I don't think Kwame's problems are physical. He remains a phenomenal athletic specimen, and the "small hands" rap has never struck me as convincing. But his problems aren't trivially mental, either. (I have finally accepted that.) So you're right: Darko has a much better chance to be a very good player than Kwame. But it's going to depend an awful lot on where he goes next. I'd look at the bottom of the standings and work my way up, if I were him.

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 8, 2007 3:14 PM

So you're right: Darko has a much better chance to be a very good player than Kwame.

And, let me add, if he does sign for the mid-level exception-- and that seems to be likely, considering the market-- he only has a be a shot blocker and reasonably able rebounder to be worth it. Ruben Patterson will get the exception. You take an athletic seven footer for the same, if you ask me.

Posted by Freddie | July 8, 2007 4:24 PM

"Ruben Patterson will get the exception. You take an athletic seven footer for the same, if you ask me."

Hey, even Kwame would be worth the exception to 25+ teams in the league.

And a big advantage to the team signing Darko to a 1yr exception deal is that they get the Bird rights to re-sign him assuming he has a decent year.

-----

And tangentially, despite the maid-raping and the general evidence that he's a lousy human being, I find something oddly endearing about Patterson.

Posted by Petey | July 8, 2007 4:44 PM

petey, i'm a little fuzzy on the details, but my general recollection is that i read an article about patterson some 5-7 years ago in which he turned out to be a terrific foster dad or something to a sibling's kid or kids (told you the details were fuzzy), so maybe that's what you find oddly endearing.

somecallmetim, "development" isn't a skill that most nba coaches posses (i think that it is one of jeff van gundy's strong suits, but i can't think of many others).

as for "small hands," i'll just note in passing that had patrick ewing not had small hands, he would easily have pulled down 1-2 more rebounds and shot 2-3% better over the years.

which isn't to say that if kwame brown turned out to be as good as patrick ewing, we wouldn't all be shocked, but i just wanted to mention that about small hands.

Posted by howard | July 8, 2007 8:50 PM

"I don't think Kwame's problems are physical. He remains a phenomenal athletic specimen, and the "small hands" rap has never struck me as convincing. But his problems aren't trivially mental, either."

But "phenomenal athletic specimen" isn't the same thing as "good basketball player." There are physical skills to this game beyond being big and strong and fast, and Kwame doesn't have any of them. He's just not a very good basketball player. He has no feel for the game, physically or mentally. You'd think this is something a team might have noticed before drafting him, regardless of his lack of college experience. But then, Michael Jordan is a pretty crappy GM.

Posted by too many steves | July 8, 2007 9:25 PM

. He has no feel for the game, physically or mentally.

That doesn't seem to say much beyond "He's not a good basketball player because he's not a good basketball player." Furthermore, he's actually a pretty good passer, and he was drafted over Chandler in part because he had a better shot (who doesn't?) and a decent handle.

From the outside, his biggest problem appears to be that he cannot seem to stay interested in the game for any period longer that 15 seconds. It's one thing not to get rebounds because you're boxing out your man and leaving it for your teammates. It's another to end up behind your man, and stand and watch as he gets the defensive rebound without your even getting your hands up, if only to trick your coach into thinking you're interested. I'm willing to cut Kwame a lot of slack because I think Jordan screwed him up so badly. I'm willing to treat him as if he has only three, rather than six, years of experience. But I have a hard time believing he's going to change on something like that at this point.

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 8, 2007 11:16 PM

It's worth mentioning in any discussion of Kwame Brown that the draft in which he went number one is almost up there with the Kenyon Martin draft in horrible-ness.

Posted by Freddie | July 8, 2007 11:28 PM

Actually looking back over it again it's a lot better class than I remember.

Posted by Freddie | July 8, 2007 11:30 PM

Looking at that draft, the odd thing is that you could field a better team based on picks 28 and later than you could from the first 27.

PG: Tony Parker
SG: Gilber Arenas
SF: Bobby Simmons
PF: Brian Scalbrine
C; Mehmet Okur.

Okay, that isn't great, but if you were willing to take picks 25 and later you could have a 7 man rotation of

1: Tony Parker
2: Gilbert Arenas
3: Gerald Wallace
4: Mehmet Okur
5: Samual Dalembert
6: Earl Watson
7: Bobby Simmons

Posted by NickS | July 9, 2007 3:24 AM

From the outside, his biggest problem appears to be that he cannot seem to stay interested in the game for any period longer that 15 seconds. It's one thing not to get rebounds because you're boxing out your man and leaving it for your teammates. It's another to end up behind your man, and stand and watch as he gets the defensive rebound without your even getting your hands up, if only to trick your coach into thinking you're interested.

I think this is what a lot of people mean when they talk about Kwame "not understanding" the game -- he is so frequently out of position and so frequently late to react that one wonders if he really knows what he is supposed to be doing out there.

You can call this lack of understanding, or perhaps more (or is it less?) charitably lack of interest, or perhaps even laziness, but these are different ways of describing the same thing. He looks lost out there so often that it is amazing.

The small hands thing is true to an extent -- here in DC he was a turnover machine who griped about not touching the ball enough. But there is no indication that if he simply decided to be less offensively involved and more defense-minded (which would be tremendously valuable to most any team) that he would do a good job.

Posted by Brad L | July 9, 2007 4:51 PM