Big ups to Jrue Holiday for being selected Number 17 in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers:
and to Darren Collison for being selected Number 21 by the New Orleans Hornets:
Ben Howland on Collison and Holiday
By UCLA Press Release, Special to BruinBlitz.com and Yahoo!Sports
Jun 26, 10:07 am EDT
UCLA head coach Ben Howland held a teleconference to discuss yesterday’s draft and the status of his two starting guards from year ago, Darren Collison and Jrue Holiday.
on how high/low in the draft Holiday would be selected
Howland: “Seventeen is not a bad place to be. There are a lot of things that have to take place. Every team is looking for different things. He had been projected to be as high as eight down to about 15. Philadelphia is a great franchise. Ed Stefanski, the team’s general manager, is really good. Eddie Jordan is a great coach, so Jrue is in a great situation in a nice town with good history for basketball. Andre Miller is an unrestricted free agent, so he may or may not be back. I think that he [Jrue] could be in a situation where he could play a lot.
on Jrue Holiday’s draft selection
Howland: “The difference between 14 and 17 is probably negligible. The great thing for Jrue is that he’s with a great franchise. He’s in a great situation. They’ve got a pretty good team. They had good pieces, and they’ve got good young talent. For a point guard to have a lot of talent, that’s a dream situation.”
on how high/low in the draft Collison would be selected
Howland: “He never really knew where he was going to go. New Orleans showed great interest in him. No one in his family is surprised. Byron Scott called them multiple times today. They wanted to have a guy to come in there – they only have one point guard, obviously he is a great player, maybe the best point guard in the league. Darren is going to be in a great situation in the league, playing for an outstanding coach in Byron Scott and playing behind maybe the best point guard in the NBA. I’m really happy for both these kids and just real excited for them. It’s a great situation for Darren.
on amount of playing time next season
Howland: “They are counting on him. That 82-game schedule – 48 minutes a night – I think Darren is going to end up playing a fair amount of minutes each night. They can play them [Darren Collison and Chris Paul] together . Darren is going to have a long NBA career. He’s playing for a great coach. Byron Scott has been the NBA Coach of the Year at least once, maybe twice. He understands the game. It’s a good system to be in. They’ve got great players around him – guys like [Peja] Stojakovic and [David] West. Obviously their starting point guard is a great, great player.”
And best of luck to President Alfred Aboya and Josh Shipp as they explore pro basketball opportunities here and abroad!
GO, BRUINS!!!
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