And in the case of the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2004 NBA Draft, when they said afterwards how nervous they were, it was unequivocally true. The Sonics wanted Robert Swift, a 7-0 center from Bakersfield High School, but so did multiple other teams, notably the Boston Celtics. The Celtics liked Swift so much they reportedly promised they'd select him if he was available at the 15th pick. Drafting three spots ahead of Boston, the Sonics stood poised to ruin Boston's plans - unless the Celtics traded up ahead of the 12th pick.

As a result, the Sonics wondered in their Draft Center if Boston or another team would move up to try to take Swift. They considered moving up themselves. In the end, it wasn't necessary. The final few picks couldn't have gone better for the Sonics. First, Luke Jackson fell to the Cleveland Cavaliers at pick 10, giving Cleveland the shooter and offensive weapon it desired to pair with LeBron James. That, in turn, allowed Latvian forward Andris Biedrins to drop to the Golden State Warriors at pick 11, where they had reportedly made a promise of their own to pick Biedrins. When that happened, the path was cleared for the Sonics to select Swift.

The decision to go with Swift could be phrased as a case of long-term potential versus instantaneous results, but that wouldn't really be accurate. With the 12th pick, the Sonics didn't really see anyone who could step in and see heavy action right away given their roster entering the draft.

"I felt comfortable with about three players that if we had the opportunity to draft them could compete for minutes on the floor," said Sonics Coach Nate McMillan. "After that I just felt that this would be a young draft, we were drafting on potential, and for the future. So very early, looking at the guys we’ve had on the roster and possibly bringing one of these guys on board, who would have an opportunity to break into the rotation? Probably three of those guys."

General Manager Rick Sund echoed McMillan's comments, saying, "Whoever we took, unless you took (Emeka) Okafor or (Dwight) Howard, it was going to be very difficult for that player to break in, even with three or four years in college. Then you throw in Nick (Collison), with him coming back, even if we picked three through 10, rather than 12, it would be very difficult for that guy to get playing time. If you look at the ages of all these kids, it was pretty much a draft of potential."

Judging based on that potential, Swift wasn't a difficult pick. On Wednesday, Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist David Locke shared the results of his unscientific poll of GMs and other talent evaluators about the 2004 Draft class. Swift was one of three high schoolers that topped the list in terms of potential, with point guard Shaun Livingston (taken fourth by the L.A. Clippers) and forward Al Jefferson (the Sonics likely choice had Swift been unavailable) joining him on the list.

Certainly, the Sonics don't disagree with that evaluation.

"If we were going to take a high school player we wanted to take one with huge upside," explained Sund. "I think (ESPN analyst) Jay Bilas brought it out that if this kid had gone to college, this kid could have been a very early pick, either one or two, and we looked at that with a number of players."

What made the pick somewhat more difficult was Swift's low profile before the draft. Possibly as part of the promise agreement, Swift did not work out for any teams, and the Sonics had never even spoken to him before making him their pick. That made the evaluation process more difficult, but the Sonics got creative. In addition to making heavy use of tape footage of Swift in action and the notes of scouts and Sund, who saw Swift play during his season and at post-season All-Star games, the Sonics also spoke with former Seattle assistant Tim Grgurich and former Sonics player Lonnie Shelton, who have experience working with Swift, as well as Washington Coach Lorenzo Romar, familiar with the USC recruit from the recruiting process.

In the end, not working Swift out was a minor concern at post for the Sonics.

"This kid has been playing for 18 years and a number of these guys have been playing for 22 years, so if we make our decision based on a 10-minute workout with somebody else, that doesn’t make sense," said Sonics special assignments coach Jack Sikma, whose opinion weighed heavily into the decision to draft Swift.

Sund, who said before last year's draft that sometimes it's better not to work out a player, added, "That's (workouts) probably, on the totem pole, the lowest variable."

Despite not having spoken to the Sonics, Swift expressed excitement about his new team during a brief telephone interview with the media.

"I was happy first of all, and a little relieved, but more so happy that I’ll finally get my chance," Swift said. "Seattle is a great team and I look forward to playing for them."

The process of developing Swift in order to allow him to make good on his enormous potential begins next month with summer league action. Sikma, who worked closely with the Sonics centers last season, is looking forward to helping Swift bulk up, generally considered the most important thing for him to do to become ready for the NBA.

"I think strength will add to his ability to run the court," Sikma said. "And stamina and being able to hold his position, that kind of thing. For most players, even if they come to the league from college, they still need more definition and the ability to hold position."

In addition to the 12th pick they used on Swift, the Sonics also held a pair of second-round picks. The 35th pick, acquired last fall from the Los Angeles Clippers, was used on Texas Tech guard Andre Emmett, who was subsequently dealt to Memphis for a future second-round pick and cash, a move made primarily because the Sonics didn't feel they could find room for three rookies.

"We didn't need both of them, and we felt we'd be able to get the player that we wanted later," said Sund. "It just made sense."

The 41st pick was used on North Carolina Central guard David Young, who played last season under McMillan's brother, Randy, an assistant at North Carolina Central. Randy McMillan's endorsement helped Young, but he earned his draft slot on his own thanks to some outstanding workouts. Young also will help as the Sonics look to upgrade their perimeter defense.

"Defensively, he can hold his own, and offensively, he’s a scorer," said McMillan. "Looking at those factors and knowing we’re looking for that kind of toughness at (pick) 41, we felt like that was pretty good."

Thanks to the availability of Swift and Young, a night that began with nervousness for the Sonics ended with excitement and hope for the future, just as a successful draft should.