Hornets Draft Workouts: June 25

June 25, 2007

The Hornets worked out eight different draft prospects on Monday. The morning session included Cal-State Fullerton guard Bobby Brown, Oral Roberts forward Caleb Green, Iowa guard Adam Haluska and Arizona guard Ivan Radenovich.

The afternoon group consisted of projected first-round picks Nick Young of Southern California, Javaris Crittenton of Georgia Tech and Morris Almond of Rice, as well as Florida’s Taurean Green, who is expected to be selected in the second round of the draft.

Here are comments from selected players who participated in the separate Hornets draft workouts on Monday, as well as remarks by Byron Scott:

Monday Morning Workout

Bobby Brown, Cal-State Fullerton guard
NBADraft.net projection: No. 53 pick to Portland
On the workout:
“I thought it went well. I heard a lot of positive vibes and feedback. Byron told me you’re going to be that vocal point guard. Don’t be afraid to get on people, because that’s what a point guard is supposed to do.”

On what it would be like to play with Chris Paul:
“It would be nice. He has two years under his belt. He’s a great point guard, and he’s a guy I idolize. It would be real fun to play with him.”

On the Hornets:
“They’re a real athletic and young group. It would be great throwing alley oops to a guy like Tyson Chandler.”

On areas he wants to improve:
“I need to get stronger in the weight room. Also I want to show that I can finish (shots) with contact when I go to the basket.”

On his game:
“I’m a playmaker. I’m a score-first point guard. I can shoot the three and get into the lane.”

Caleb Green, Oral Roberts forward
NBADraft.net projection: Undrafted
On Monday’s workout:
“It probably didn’t go as well as it should, but that’s how it goes. I haven’t been to one place where the head coach ran the tryouts (as Byron Scott does for the Hornets). That shows you what kind of coach he is. I like to dominate, and I didn’t feel like I dominated today. I thought I played average.”

On Oral Roberts’ upset win over Kansas, in which Green had 20 points and 11 rebounds:
“It was a great win for the school. We beat the No. 3 team in the nation. I feel like I played well, but that wasn’t our only game against a top team. I was used to the competition. We had a great out-of-conference schedule.”

Monday Afternoon Workout
http://nbadraft.net/admincp/profiles/nickyoung.html
Nick Young, Southern California shooting guard
NBADraft.net projection: No. 13 pick to New Orleans
On the Hornets:
“Byron Scott was someone I looked up to playing for the Lakers. Playing with Chris Paul would be great, having someone like him to get me the ball. I told my agent to make sure the Hornets were on my list of teams to work out for.”

On one of his strengths, his off-the-dribble game:
“That’s something I’ve been working on since I was growing up. Watching players like Kobe, Dwyane Wade and Michael Jordan, I always tried to emulate them.”

Byron Scott
On Monday’s afternoon workout:
“We had four guys in here who had pretty good college careers. It was a good workout. We wish we could see these guys in a 5-on-5 setting a little bit more, but you just have to watch tape of them from their college games. From workouts, you get a little different perspective from watching them in drills. It gives you a pretty good gauge and it really helps (in evaluations). That guys who don’t come in for a workout, you don’t have a good gauge of what they can do.”

On Nick Young:
“With him being an L.A. kid, obviously I know a little bit about him. There wasn’t a whole lot I didn’t know. It just confirmed what I thought of him. But I’m not biased toward Los Angeles players; I’m biased toward good players. If they happen to be from L.A., that’s great.”

On whether Young’s individual defense concerns Scott:
“A little bit, but most rookies’ defense worries me. He can be a good defender because of his length. At the beginning of the (NBA) season, coaches always worry, because this is totally new to them. They aren’t guarding (bad) offensive players. They’re going against guys who are just as good as they are. Every night they’re defending guys who were All-Pac 10 in college.”

On Taurean Green:
“He’s a good player. I was real surprised. I saw him enough at Florida, but he had all those good players around him. He held his own today. (Javaris Crittenton) I thought would dominate (Green) because he is so much bigger and stronger than him, but it didn’t happen.”

On Crittenton:
“He’s a point guard, (not a shooting guard). He’s a strong kid with great leaping ability.”