The 1996 NBA Draft

As a long-time, rabid NBA fan, whenever I can get my hands on some media source that rings my memory chimes about past games, unforgettable moves, dunks, etc., I gladly devour them. A couple of days ago, I came into possession of a DVD showing the NBA draft for 1996 that was televised on TNT. Actually, its only part of the first round - the first 13 picks.

To me the NBA draft is a metaphor on life, in that with one pick a team's fortunes can rise or fall. Some draftees succeed and some fail. Drafting is far from an exact science, but it is sometimes shocking to look back at some high draft choices and to see how some have blossomed into superstars that have led their teams deep into the playoffs or to the Championship, while some have withered on the vine and were out of the league in a short while or never had the impact that they were projected to.

Watching the 1996 draft, the TNT analysts' (mainly Hubie Brown) discussion about Kobe Bryant was particularly interesting. At the time, he was a brash high-schooler making the jump to the NBA. While commentators were unanimous in projecting great things for him, all said it was a bit of a gamble to take such a young kid with a very high pick. Then-Kentucky coach Rick Pitino was on the panel, and was needling his friend and fellow coach, John Calipari - now the coach of the Memphis Tigers - but then, coach of the New Jersey Nets, to take the plunge and draft Kobe. NY Post journalist Peter Vecsey echoed the sentiment. "Coach Cal" confirmed that he was indeed enamored with Kobe's game and "upside," but that Villanova senior guard Kerry Kittles was a better fit for his current team.

What a fateful decision that was! Kerry Kittles had a solid pro career, but one that was cut short due to injury, but Kobe Bryant has gone on to become one of the league's greatest players - a sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer. I can imagine that New Jersey's fortunes would have been quite different had Calipari acted on his first instinct. The now-moribund franchise would doubtless be millions of dollars more valuable and would likely be benefitting greatly from a more energized, enthusiastic fan base. If nothing else, Bryant has proven that he can put fannies in the seats.

Of all of the players chosen in that draft, only about Allen Iverson - chosen in the #1 slot - could one have made any kind of reasonable argument for selection ahead of Bryant. In the final analysis, if teams could go back in time, I would imagine that virtually all of them would have taken "The Mamba" with the first pick.

Interestingly, I just found a great new site, KobeBryantDVD.com, which sells some of Kobe's highest scoring games on DVD. I'm going to grab some for myself to watch at my leisure. Great NBA games never get old for me. There are also some Michael Jordan games for sale, and a smattering of great games from other stars like Allen Iverson.

As you can tell, I live for sports.