Martell Webster SF/SG from Seattle Prep

(6' 6" - 6' 7½" - 229.6 - 6' 11" - 8' 10")

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GM Thoughts
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New Orleans Hornets

Roster Prior to Draft Day:

PG • Speedy Claxton / Dan Dickau
SG • J.R. Smith / Casey Jacobsen
SF • Lee Nailon / Bostjan Nachbar / George Lynch
PF • P.J. Brown / David West / Maciej Lampe
C • Jamaal Magloire / Chris Andersen / Jackson Vroman

Needs:

The small forward position is our biggest need. Nailon is a decent player but is more of a 6th man that we want to have coming off the bench to provide that spark of offense. He was our leading scorer this year which doesn't say much for the state of the Hornet's franchise at this point. We would like to keep Nailon here, but definitely need to upgrade at small forward if we hope avoid a repeat of this train wreak of a season. Nachbar had some nice games, but he is more of a scorer, albeit an inconsistent one. He doesn't help us much anywhere else. We need a player with greater impact, a player that could take over games, a player that is versatile, a player that will make his teammates better - a leader.

An upgrade at point guard would be our next biggest hole to fill. With our trade to get rid of malcontent Baron Davis and to clear significant cap room to pursue the top Free Agents this year, we are left with a hole at our starting point guard position. Dickau has been able to show us that he's capable of contributing valuable minutes to the club, but we feel he better serves us coming of the bench as a back-up. With Dickau, we have a reliable player that could step up in the event of an injury or when our starter is in foul trouble or needs a rest. We love his hustle and work ethic and are pleased to have uncovered such a surprisingly talented PG. Speedy Claxton, when healthy is a tremendous talent, but unfortunately, his body is not able to take much of the rigors of the NBA. We love his quickness, scoring, and ability to create his own shot, but with the fact that he is more likely to miss weeks of a season, we are forced to look for an alternative as our starting point guard.

I see that Power Forward position as our 3rd biggest need. P.J. Brown is an above average player giving us a low post presence on both ends of the floor, toughness, and good rebounding ability. He is, however, in the twilight of his career and we need to look for his eventual successor. David West is an undersized PF at 6'-8” and is coming along slowly partly due to the fact he has been injured much of the season. He has the toughness, heart, and strength to contribute, but his size might prevent him from having the impact we envisioned he would have when we drafted him 18th overall in 2003. We haven't given up hope on him, but we defiantly need a Plan B. Maciej Lampe is our Plan C. He is a young, raw big, that has potential and we will remain patient with him and bring him along slowly. In all likelihood, we will pursue the top PF free agents rather than draft one with our high pick. Trading the pick for a PF and a low pick is also an option.

Strength:

We believe we have a couple of really nice pieces to build around. J.R. Smith is as an exciting player you'll find in the NBA. He has unlimited range, good handles, and the ability to take it hard to the rack. He has a spectacular game that could develop into one similar to Vince Carter and were extremely happy to draft him with such a low pick. J.R.‼'s young and will only get better with more experience. Jamaal Magloire is the other core piece which would like to build around. We love his size, low post presence, and intense effort at the Center position, one of the hardest positions to fill. We will be looking for players that compliment both Smith and Magloire. We need a true PG to run the team and get the ball moving. We need a SF that could defend the perimeter and one that is versatile, smart, and has an all-around game that could fill a lot of our holes. We also need a prototypical PF that could eventually replace P.J. Brown. One with a good outside game wouldn't hurt, but a defending and rebounding PF is primarily what we are looking for to place alongside Magloire in the middle.

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Draft Day Transactions:

Chris Wilcox!!!!



New Orleans sends #4 Pick, Lampe, and Anderson to LA Clippers for
#12 Pick, Chris Wilcox, and Mamadou N'diaye

With the 12th pick in the 2005 Warriorsworld.net Mock Draft, the New Orleans Hornets select:

Martell Webster (6' 6" - 6' 7½" - 229.6 - 6' 11" - 8' 10")

(from Draft Express) Webster just has a great feel for putting the ball in the basket at the high school level, especially from the perimeter. Part of this is due to the fact that he's so much more mature than most players his age both physically (much bigger and stronger than anyone at his position) and mentally, but the fact that he is a very skilled player who has a good feel for the game can not be ignored.

Webster is a very natural shooter with excellent mechanics and nice elevation on his jump shot, although his release is a bit on the slow side because of his very deliberate motions. Once he sets his feet and gets his shoulders square, though, he is lights out. He can hit his jumper from anywhere on the court, and is good at getting his shot off in tough situations.

Physically, he's got a great body that is certainly ready for the NBA, and an above average wingspan. These skills make him an above average rebounder for the swing positions, because he can simply out-muscle his fellow guards for rebounds. And of course, his leaping ability also helps in this regard as he is quick to rise.

His playing style is pretty unique, and that's probably why so many people are intrigued by his game. He is most definitely not explosive, but has a certain smoothness to him, combined with good court awareness, maturity and an understanding of what's going on around him. In transition, he has powerful long strides, which are deliberate, but help him get to the basket and then finish strong. He shows a willingness to play within a set offense, not forcing the issue too much compared with most players his age (all-star games aside) and appearing to understand his role.

In terms of his intangibles, they appear to be fairly strong. His court demeanor looks good, he interacts well with his teammates and he seems to be a well spoken kid. He plays unselfishly and appears to be pretty mature for his age while carrying himself well on the court. He also supposedly has a very good work ethic.

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With the addition of Chris Wilcox and Martell Webster, we have significantly improved our roster while maintaining our cap flexibility. This formidable frontline of Wilcox and Magloire will anchor the Hornets commitment to playing strong interior defense with a serious threat to score. We are very excited to have Wilcox as part of our franchise's future. He'll have the opportunity to shine here in New Orleans.

The young swingman duo of Webster and Smith will be an exciting one to watch develop for the next few years. Their games complement each other well with Smith bringing athletic, jaw dropping plays while Webster brings the smooth and graceful beauty of his game. Both are able to bury it from long range, allowing Wilcox and Magloire freedom to do a lot of damage in the post. We especially like the fact that Webster is extremely long for his position (8'-10” standing reach), but has the versatility to play the SG as well. He has the body and athletic ability to be a good defender and rebounder at SF position. We love his upside! Webster and Smith are sure to be crowd pleasers in New Orleans.

Our new roster is:

PG • Speedy Claxton / Dan Dickau
SG • J.R. Smith / Casey Jacobsen
SF • Martell Webster / Lee Nailon / Bostjan Nachbar / George Lynch
PF • Chris Wilcox / P.J. Brown / David West
C • Jamaal Magloire / Jackson Vroman / Mamadou N'diaye


Our Top 5 FA targets include:

1. Sarunas Jasikevicius
2. Marko Jaric
3. Brevin Knight
4. Antonio Daniels
5. Earl Watson

We have a ton of money to spend, so the likelihood of getting 1 of our top 5 targets is pretty good.

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