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Elton Brand: Top of the Class of 1999

© Chris Lin

The talent was there. The holes needed to be filled. In the last draft of the millenium, teams rushed to get the players whom they were dying to get; or console themselves after their dreams were broken. One year after their great dynasty ended, the Chicago Bulls had the first pick in their hometown, and they chose the National Player of the Year. Several other players will soon have the chance to either show off their abilities or suck their talent on the bench.

The Bulls were in dire need after last season, and they picked the most reliable big man in the draft: Duke's Elton Brand. On a team loaded with talent, he came up big in every category. Although discounted as small, he has the tools to blossom, as did Corliss Williamson and Danny Fortson. After the Bulls, the Vancouver Grizzlies picked up one of the most talented players in the draft, Steve Francis. Amazing but inexperienced, Francis had just one year of Division I play with Maryland before jumping to the NBA. Then there was super sophomore Baron Davis, chosen by the Charlotte Hornets, who look to improve after a hiatus from the postseason last year. After Davis was Lamar Odom, the Rhode Island phenom, who like Francis, was inexperienced but incredible. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Clippers, who will try to improve on perennial dismal seasons. To finish the Top 5, Toronto chose Jonathan Bender, a forward out of Picayune High School. Next was the great shooter, Wally Szcerbiak of Miami (Ohio), who was one of the great stories last season. UConn's Richard Hamilton, first-team All-American and super scorer, was next for the Washington Wizards. Eighth was Utah's floor general, Andre Miller, who was drafted by Cleveland. Next, Phoenix took UNLV's Shawn Marion, the athletic underclassman. Jason Terry, Arizona's marvelous point guard, was taken next by Atlanta, who needed to replace Mookie Blaylock. Some of the other notables taken in the first round were Ron Artest, by Chicago, the other three Dukies - Trajan Langdon, Corey Maggette, and William Avery, and Tim James, who will be staying in Miami. Definitely, the big winners were Atlanta, Chicago, Vancouver, while the big losers were Seattle and Dallas. Atlanta got three quality picks, while Chicago got the best big man and a great talent in Artest. Seattle, on the other hand, took a gamble on the raw but talented Corey Maggette, only to trade him away along with other veterans for the aging Horace Grant. Dallas simply had no first-round picks.

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