Cannon Firing Line
Taft’s Tumble
By Ellis G. Cannon
PSR Publisher

We’ve used this space on occasion to point out that the genius of internationalizing the NBA, particularly related to marketing, is foremost in the world of professional sports.

The NFL has Europe, but that’s just a place for castoffs to get another peak from scouts. Baseball has been more aggressive with players from the Pacific Rim and the Dominican, and has a world tournament coming this winter. While we HEAR soccer is the world game, apparently it’s still EMERGING in the United States. As for hockey, we’re turning over such matters to Ambassador Jeremy Roenick for his considered opinion.

Bottom line is nobody does a better job of making his game truly global than David Stern.

What’s that have to do with Chris Taft’s tumble into the second round of the NBA Draft?

Very little in terms of player selection. This year’s crop of internationals, privately favored by some coaches, was down compared to previous years. It wasn’t like Chris Taft fell to the 42nd pick of the draft because of a slew of guys from Warsaw and Belgrade.

If anything, the impact of the global nature of the sport was not fully appreciated prior to the draft. There was much discussion, if not confusion, in Pittsburgh over projections of Taft being a top 10 pick. The head scratching had something to do with what folks saw on the court this past season. Talk became so assumptive it became a regular part of coverage on Taft.

The thoughts on Taft’s draft potential weren’t limited to Pittsburgh. A USA Today mock draft on the day of the draft projected Taft going 21st overall to Phoenix. They missed by 21 picks.

The moral of the story – and what Taft’s tumble should remind everyone – is the scope of analysis when it comes to the NBA is much broader than most appreciate. Instead of only focusing on Pitt, or the Big East, to gauge the top pro prospects, it’s wiser to compare how those players compare to leagues you don’t know and players in Zagreb or Athens. That’s what the experts do all year through pre-draft camps and workouts. To limit one’s focus to how a player stacks up to Providence is short-sided, if not comedic. To spend time getting locked in on how a player will be evaluated because of numbers is a waste of time.

Because, as proven again this year, the NBA gets players from anywhere it wants.

This is something to be particularly mindful of in Pittsburgh, where there’s very little appreciation, or understanding, on what’s happening in pro ball. Indeed, the common refrain is one of cynicism when it comes to the NBA, so why should this area be considered a bastion of expertise when it comes to how player-decisions are made?

From the top to bottom of a roster, the NBA has the best talent of any pro sports league. Potential is fine, but with so many prospects, a non-elite player has much less margin for error. In retrospect, that’s one of the lessons learned from the Taft experience.

"Ellis Cannon's Sportsline Pittsburgh" airs weeknights, 6-8 p.m. on FM NewsTalk 104.7. Ellis is also a regular contributor on the "#1 Cochran Sports Showdown" aired Sundays at 11:35 on KDKA-TV.