SteelCurtain5875's Blog
  • 08:30 PM ET  06.02
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As the NBA draft swiftly approaches, one of the college stars that has taken the biggest leap up many scouts' draft boards is Mike Conley, Greg Oden's teammate and Ohio State's freshman point guard sensation. Many project him to go to Atlanta at no. 3, as the Hawks desperately need a reliable point guard and have passed on many such players in the past. However, while Conley undoubtedly has amazing speed and playmaking ability, I feel that he is not the ideal fit for the ATL. The player best for them is indeed a point guard, but it is Texas A&M senior Acie Law, not Conley. Law has consistently shown the ability to perform in the clutch, as well as great playmaking skills, and ability to get to the basket and score. He also boasts an impressive .458 three point percentage and has definite NBA range, compared to Conley's pedestrian .303 and obvious lack of range. Another factor to consider is that Law has four years of playing in a tough Big 12 confrence under his belt, as compared to Conley's one in the mediocre Big Ten, as well as the fact that Law's stats have steadily increased each year he has played and he will undoubtedly continue to improve as time progresses. While Conley's talent level is comparable, if not superior to Law's, the Hawks need stability at the position and selecting one of the most NBA ready players in this draft would be a major step forward. He would undoubtedly mesh well with their current core of Joe Johnson, Josh Childress and Josh Smith, and if the Hawks can find a decent low post scorer with their other picks (like the no. 11 pick they also own) then there's a good possibility they can take advantage of Law's experience to vault into contention in an extremely weak Eastern Confrence. Taking Conley would most like result in more of the same: they would continue to stagnate as they try to develop another physically gifted player with middling success (cough Speedy Claxton, Marvin Williams and Shelden Williams cough). Bringing Law in would provide them with an instant leader who has the talents to be good in the NBA for a long time. Conley would be served better by going to a later lottery team, such as the Clippers, where he could learn for a little while before being forced to carry a team, something he didn't have to do last year, as Oden was clearly the dominant player on that team. Law, however, was the star on A&M for four years, and carried a team devoid of other real stars to help him, as his main help came from role players like Josh Carter, Joseph Jones and Antanas Kavaliauskas. At the end of the day, I would much rather have Acie Law than Mike Conley. I may be in the relative minority, but I value Law's experience and excellent leadership over Conley's amazing physical tools, and I believe Law is more ready to lead a weaker NBA team, like the Hawks, but I have confidence he'll do well wherever he ends up, where as Conley needs to find the right team to succeed. Hopefully, the people in Atlanta's, or other first round teams', war rooms will agree, for everyone involved's sakes.
 
June 2, 2007  09:25 PM ET

Law.

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