NBA
Dials expected to dodge draft
Former OSU player would have more options as free agent
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
</IMG>
</IMG>
Terence Dials would like to hear his name called in the NBA draft, if for no reason other than the prestige of being picked.
The former Ohio State center realizes he probably will be better off if it isn’t called Wednesday night, however. In the NBA, going undrafted is preferable to going in the second round, which is where Dials would go if he goes at all.
Secondround picks are tied to the teams that drafted them but, unlike first-round picks, are not offered guaranteed contracts. Undrafted free agents, on the other hand, "can pick and choose because no one has your rights," Dials said.
The consensus of a handful of mock drafts is that Dials will be free to choose his employer after the two-round, 60-pick draft is complete.
A Big Ten player of the year, as Dials was last season, has never gone undrafted by the NBA.
But it could benefit him in the long run because, as a free agent, he could choose an NBA team that needs what he brings or, if that doesn’t work out, get an early crack at a good job overseas.
"I think most people see him as an NBA player, but it may not be this year," Dials’ agent, Lance Young, said. "The positives are his size (and) he is somewhat athletic for a 6-9 guy who weighs 250. But I think a lot of people say he needs to get a little stronger and refine his game — shoot it a little better, dribble it a little better."
Dials, who played almost exclusively with his back to the basket in college, will have to face it and defend away from it more as a professional. He had workouts with eight NBA teams the past six weeks and also played in the league’s pre-draft camp in Orlando. He said the workouts generally included two-on-two games with a guard and big man on each team.
"Every time, I’ve gone against somebody picked to go higher than me and I think I’ve been the best big man in most of them," Dials said. "A few times I didn’t shoot well but I did other things that made them say, ‘This kid can play at the next level.’ "
An NBA role that could suit Dials, sooner or later, is what Ohio State assistant coach Alan Major calls an "energy guy … who runs the floor and does the dirty work. Guys like that can play 10 years" in the league.
Major mentioned Etan Thomas of Washington and Brian Cardinal of Memphis as examples. Dials cited Udonis Haslem, who was undrafted after leaving Florida in 2002 and played a year in France before signing with Miami in 2003.
"He’s 6-8 tops but he gets things done. Udonis brings it every night," Dials said. "Reggie Evans (of Denver) is another one. I played against him (when Evans was at Iowa). He’s not that tall, but the guy plays with so much heart, it doesn’t matter how tall he is."
Evans also was undrafted.
Dials said some NBA coaches with whom he spoke before the pre-draft camp, including New York assistant Herb Williams, a former Ohio State standout, emphasized the importance of going all-out in the workouts.
"Herb Williams said one of the things they look for is, can a guy run? Is he in shape? I took that to heart and got myself in the best shape I could be in," Dials said. "I put myself in a situation where I could run all day because that’s what they want to see."
Three of Dials’ teammates on last season’s Big Ten championship team also will pursue opportunities to play professionally. Je’Kel Foster and J.J. Sullinger have worked out for some NBA teams and hope to parlay that into a summer-league contract. Matt Sylvester will try to play next season in Italy, where he grew up, maintains a passport and thus would not count against a team’s cap of two Americans.
[email protected]
