ritz
Years ago
stern on bogut
found this on yahoo fyi
NBA commissioner David Stern has joined the Andrew Bogut bandwagon, saying Australia's No.1 draft pick has performed far better in his debut season than predicted by many "so-called basketball experts".
Bogut made history in June when he became the first Australian drafted No.1 overall by the Milwaukee Bucks, following a stand-out sophomore season at the University of Utah.
It was considered a solid choice by most pundits, although some felt former North Carolina forward Marvin Williams had a brighter future than the 21-year-old Victorian.
Williams ultimately went to Atlanta with the second overall pick.
But Bogut has played a key role in Milwaukee's surprising playoff push in the eastern conference.
Given little hope of reaching the post-season, the Bucks are currently in a playoff dogfight, sitting seventh in the east with a 38-40 record, equal with sixth-placed Indiana and one game behind No.5 Washington with four games left in the regular season.
Stern feels Bogut has exceeded expectations.
"I think he's living up to those expectations and doing better than a lot of people thought he would, the so-called basketball experts," Stern said in a teleconference from New York.
"I think his rebounding turned out to be stronger than some folks projected, so we're very, very pleased with his development and with his competitiveness."
Bogut has started 73 of his 78 games, keeping veteran Joe Smith on the Milwaukee bench, and is averaging 9.1 points, 6.9 boards and 2.3 assists in 28.3 minutes per game.
He is also shooting a healthy 52 per cent from the field, 11th best overall in the league.
Williams has produced eight points and 4.7 boards in 24.2 minutes.
Bogut had a career-high 21 points against Cleveland in December and has twice managed 17 boards during his rookie season.
The Australian had 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting in Thursday's (AEST) crucial 100-97 win over Washington, second for Milwaukee behind only leading scorer Michael Redd's 24 points.
Stern hopes Bogut's exploits will inspire young Australians to try and join him in the world's premier basketball league.
"I would like to think that there are at least hundreds if not thousands of Aussies trying to emulate him and make their way to colleges in the States and ultimately the NBA," he said.
go you big aussie!!
