Why did Michael Jordan draft Kwame Brown?

[bail]

Discuss.:banana:

[Darsh]

you first.

[mjbulls23]

The NBA is a man's game and after watching Kwame Brown "un-man" Tyson Chandler in a one-on-one workout prior to that 2001 draft, Michael Jordan was sure that he had his man. And with the first first pick the Bullets have ever had, they picked him. No questions asked, history was being made.


"If you draft me, you'll never regret it."

-Kwame Brown to MJ



Brown came off the bench on December 4 to record the first double-double of his career against San Antonio's David Robinson and Tim Duncan, with 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Wizards hoped it was the start of something. But the next day, typically, he came to practice lethargic. By now Collins had had it, and so had most of his teammates. Jordan was struggling with a bad knee and doing everything he could to help turn the team around, and here was this kid who didn't know the meaning of work.

It was Brown's worst day as an NBA player. "The most physically demanding day of my entire life," he says. Collins put the Wizards through a brutal, exhausting practice. The team was in a collective foul mood. Despite Brown's mini-breakthrough, the Wizards had lost yet again. "Everyone was arguing, people were beating each other up," Brown says. But mostly, they took it out on him.

Brown couldn't do anything right. "He couldn't catch it, couldn't throw it, couldn't shoot it right," Jones says. In a series of three-on-three drills, the Wizards banged him -- hard, intentionally. "He got pretty beat around," Jones says. Center Jahidi White knocked him to the ground -- and fell on top of him. Brown lay there, stunned and bruised.

"Get up, you aren't hurt," White said.

Brown got up, aching, holding his back. His gray practice shirt was soaked through. Nobody had any sympathy for him. Not even Popeye Jones, the veteran who'd looked out for him the most. "It's time for you to grow up," Jones told him, coldly. "Now. Today. Stand on your own two feet."

Collins, still not satisfied, ordered a set of punishing sprints. Brown hesitated. "I hurt my back," he said.

Collins wheeled. Now it was his turn. "Stop being a baby and start growing up and playing, and earning the respect of your teammates," Collins shouted. "They're tired of you. They're tired of you getting knocked down, and laying around. They're tired of you holding your back. And holding your head. And holding your thumb. You're the one who has to be in that locker room, and meet them eye to eye."

Brown stared at his feet. "Do you want to play or not?" Collins snapped. No answer.

"Get off the court," Collins said disgustedly.

He sat in front of his locker trembling and crying. This is it, he thought, the league's not for me. I'm horrible. The coach thinks I'm horrible. The whole team thinks I'm horrible. I can't even play. Then he got on a treadmill and ran as hard he could, for almost an hour.

After a while, Jordan came into the locker room. He sat on a bench with Brown, and put his arm around him, and hugged him. "You're going to be all right," he said. For several minutes, he talked to Brown in soothing tones. "Doug is tough, but in a few years you'll understand how good he is," he said. They still believed in him, Jordan affirmed. "We put our necks out for you," he said. "We think you have the ingredients to be a great power forward for a long, long time."

To Brown, it meant everything. "He showed me a side you never read about," Brown says. "The M.J. who comes over and picks you up and talks to you when you're down and out."


When Brown twisted an ankle during an exhibition game and untied his shoe on the bench, Jordan said, "Lace that thing up. I've played with ankles 45 times worse than that."

When Collins tried to set up an offense, Brown might giggle or chat with a teammate. "He starts moving while I'm trying to teach," Collins says. On the floor, he would be totally lost, have no idea what the play was. Collins would have to explain it all over again.

And, like any teenager, Brown always had an answer back.

"But . . ." he would say.

"Just listen," Collins would snap. "I don't need you to say anything back."

Nothing Brown did seemed to please Collins. The man was as spiky as his cropped hair, one minute fatherly, the next screaming with impatience, and then, finally, cold. Every practice was the occasion of a misstep. No sooner would Brown touch the ball, it seemed, than Collins would bark at him.

"Kwame, you can't play on a railroad track. You have to be able to change speed."

Brown would just stare back, seemingly uncomprehending. "Kwame, you're never in a proper position if you aren't in a position to help. You're the last line of defense." He would seem to ignore the simplest directions. Collins would say, "Watch out for the lob, watch out for the lob!" Ten seconds later, a lob would go over his head.

"I wish you would stop correcting me and just let me play," he implored Collins one day.

"Kwame, you don't know how to play," Collins said.

And there was Jordan. He wasn't the mentor that Brown had expected. With the comeback, he had his own problems, including a sore knee. He could be warm, but he could be hard, too, coolly judging, and demanding. He liked to haze the rookies in small, collegiate ways. Jordan would grab a basketball, and drop-kick it high into the stands and make them run the stairs to retrieve it.

Jordan instructed by example. He would ostentatiously arrive in the locker room early and watch tape after tape of opponents, loudly explaining tendencies to younger players. The underlying implication was, Be Like Mike. "He's been hard, he's been stern, he's been tough," Brown says.


I also heard that MJ wanted to draft Gasol but was talked out of it.....

[Aussie Dunker]

Back then Kwame looked like he would be a great player, young, level headed, lots of skill, big... any other scout probably would of drafted him first aswel... in hindsight it was probably the worst pick in history, but at the time it was a pretty good pick, kwame's roof just collapsed instantly...

[KempSonics]

Jordan strongly considered drafting Rodney White with the 1st pick as well.

[evinecz]

Because he thought Kwame would be the GOAT.

[jerky10]

Why Jordan drafted him?

Kwame was a big prospect coming out of highschool. A 19 yr. old kid that's 7 ft tall, physically well-built body, great athleticism, tremendous upside. Almost all the scouts compared him to KG in a big and strong body. The only problem was he was unproven. And he didn't leave up to the expectations given to him.

I also remembered during that time, JO started to flourish. Obviously, there's a big similarity among the two. Giant highschool phenoms that dominated highschool basketball.

Can't really blame MJ, Kwame was just not as good as anyone thought we would be.

[darabzarrabi]

Why did Jordan draft him?...because hes not a good front office guy...lets not forget he drafted Morrison last year too. I dont really get why owners think good players necessarily are going to make good management. Those skills arent linked. Kwame has been a huge bust, but I cant help but think that the butchering MJ and Collins gave him as an 18 year old just mentally turned him off to the game to the point where there is just now zero growth and he brings in his money and enjoys the other aspects of his life like the many people in the real world that hate their professions.

[blazerftc]

Honestly, reading the OP got me thinking. I know when I was 19, working for angry tyrant chefs who thought that yelling was the only way to speak to other people, it was pure hell, and frankly didn't really motivate me to do good work for them. In fact it pushed me in the exact opposite direction, which eventually got me fired. When I finally got a job where the chef was willing to take his cooks aside and personally show them not only how to do things, but also WHY it totally turned my career around. Now I'm on my way to owning a restaurant.

Some people just aren't motivated by hard-a$$es beating on them.

[BIGSHOT]

Because he's an idiot.:confusedshrug:

[AI Nuggets3]

-extremely weak draft AND most experts had Kwame going #1 or #2 anyways.

can't blame MJ really for this one.

[GOBB]

Honestly, reading the OP got me thinking. I know when I was 19, working for angry tyrant chefs who thought that yelling was the only way to speak to other people, it was pure hell, and frankly didn't really motivate me to do good work for them. In fact it pushed me in the exact opposite direction, which eventually got me fired. When I finally got a job where the chef was willing to take his cooks aside and personally show them not only how to do things, but also WHY it totally turned my career around. Now I'm on my way to owning a restaurant.

Some people just aren't motivated by hard-a$$es beating on them.

Whats your point in relation to Kwame Brown tho??? :confusedshrug:

[Kebab Stall]

Whats your point in relation to Kwame Brown tho??? :confusedshrug:
I think he's referring to how Jordan treated Kwame and it's similarities with how he was treated.

[Bruinlove]

Yeh, if he gets a coach who coaches him the right way, I think he can be a pretty good player, they just have to find out what the right way to coach him is. He's a smart dude with alot of tools, someone just has to get him to work hard and use them.

[GOBB]

I think he's referring to how Jordan treated Kwame and it's similarities with how he was treated.

Yeah but Kwame left MJs grasp and he still hasnt done crap. He in fact got a bit worst. So I dont see how his situation relates because he left the yelling, berating PJ Carliesmo chef and went to one that he felt comfortable with and is on his way to owning a resturant. Moral to his story? He progressed and Kwame hasnt. Unless every NBA coach = the angry chef and Kwame is forever doomed. :confusedshrug:

[Kebab Stall]

Yeah but Kwame left MJs grasp and he still hasnt done crap. He in fact got a bit worst. So I dont see how his situation relates because he left the yelling, berating PJ Carliesmo chef and went to one that he felt comfortable with and is on his way to owning a resturant. Moral to his story? He progressed and Kwame hasnt. Unless every NBA coach = the angry chef and Kwame is forever doomed. :confusedshrug:
All I know is that we now have Kwame and he isn't going to accomplish anything with the Grizzlies either, not mention he has to split time with Darko and Collins, who are also going to accomplish nothing. Hell, I'd rather have 3 rocks playing as my C instead of these retards.

[GOBB]

Yeh, if he gets a coach who coaches him the right way, I think he can be a pretty good player, they just have to find out what the right way to coach him is. He's a smart dude with alot of tools, someone just has to get him to work hard and use them.

He's a grown ass man tho. Been in the league for what 7yrs now? And he has to find the "right coach" to baby errr coach him? Like come on. Life has NEVER worked that way. Thats like you working for a crap supervisor who is **** and always up your ass. You leave and end up in a similar situation. What are you gonna roam the world until you find the right job with the right boss where you can say "Ahhhhhhh *puts hands behind head* victory!".

Sometimes you gotta adapt to whats in front of you. How is Phil not the right coach for Kwame? How is it Bynum can improve and Kwame cant? If this was Kwame in his 1rst-2nd years? I'd understand this argument. But not anymore, not now.

Like Kwame is some special needs kid who needs the right teacher and setting to be productive. :oldlol:

[Bruinlove]

He's a grown ass man tho. Been in the league for what 7yrs now? And he has to find the "right coach" to baby errr coach him? Like come on. Life has NEVER worked that way. Thats like you working for a crap supervisor who is **** and always up your ass. You leave and end up in a similar situation. What are you gonna roam the world until you find the right job with the right boss where you can say "Ahhhhhhh *puts hands behind head* victory!".

Sometimes you gotta adapt to whats in front of you. How is Phil not the right coach for Kwame? How is it Bynum can improve and Kwame cant? If this was Kwame in his 1rst-2nd years? I'd understand this argument. But not anymore, not now.

Like Kwame is some special needs kid who needs the right teacher and setting to be productive. :oldlol:

You're right he's a grownass man but with the mindset of a kid. He's still only 25, he might mature before his careers done, and if he gets his head set he might be able to be a 10/10 guy. Kwame must have daddy issues or something, get him a year of therapy and he might turn out ok.

[blazerftc]

Whats your point in relation to Kwame Brown tho??? :confusedshrug:

That, after reading the OP, I understand that he got the sh!t end of the stick from the moment he was drafted. Sure, there have been others guys as young as him drafted before and since, but I sounds to me that he was handled improperly at the very start of his career, and it could very well have taken away his love for the game, which is the biggest motivator of all. Once that's gone it's extremely difficult to get it back.

[geeWiz15]

Ego.

[Sharas]

Like Kwame is some special needs kid who needs the right teacher and setting to be productive. :oldlol:

that might not be untrue at all. kwame seems like a just plain dumb guy.

[mlh1981]

This pretty much sums up Kwame's career:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1ytCEuuW2_A

[Phenomenon]

I still remember when Kwame punked Garnett for 24 some points in the summer league like 3 years ago. He has the skill, he's just mentally weak.

[GOBB]

Once that's gone it's extremely difficult to get it back.

Nonsense. I am going to take out the trash now...I'll grab this to go. :applause:

[blazerftc]

Nonsense. I am going to take out the trash now...I'll grab this to go. :applause:

:wtf: :rolleyes:

Man what crawled up your a$$ and died this morning?

[GOBB]

:wtf: :rolleyes:

Man what crawled up your a$$ and died this morning?

Kwame Brown defenders thats what! Now I'm constipated.

[Younggrease]

I dont think there is a person here who would have had the foresight not to draft Kwame top 3 in that draft. HE could have been an all star but he is not fragile mentally. If any1 here saw him in High School All star games, in Wizards summer lg , the skill set was quite different. He was handling the ball at the top of the key, pulling up for step back jumpers, finishing at the rim, he looked incredibly quick and he actually looked to be able to improved into someday an all star. I always liked Tyson Chandler better but thats just my opinion, but he didnt turn into the type of player I pictured either

[picc84]

Kareem was interviewed after the trade and said Kwame didnt want to learn, and didnt want to listen. He's been trying to work with him for years but Kwame never accepted the help. This "right coach" crap is bull****. He doesn't want to get better. This guy has had the coaching of:

Phil Jackson
Kareen abdul jabbar
Michael Jordan
Kobe Bryant
Tex Winter
Doug Collins

And still sucks. I'd like to know who this "right coach" is, cause if its not one of the best post bigmen in NBA history, its not anyone.

[Bruinlove]

Kareem was interviewed after the trade and said Kwame didnt want to learn, and didnt want to listen. He's been trying to work with him for years but Kwame never accepted the help. This "right coach" crap is bull****. He doesn't want to get better. This guy has had the coaching of:

Phil Jackson
Kareen abdul jabbar
Michael Jordan
Kobe Bryant
Tex Winter
Doug Collins

And still sucks. I'd like to know who this "right coach" is, cause if its not one of the best post bigmen in NBA history, its not anyone.
The right coach is the one who can motivate him to start working:cheers:

[GOBB]

I dont think there is a person here who would have had the foresight not to draft Kwame top 3 in that draft. HE could have been an all star but he is not fragile mentally. If any1 here saw him in High School All star games, in Wizards summer lg , the skill set was quite different. He was handling the ball at the top of the key, pulling up for step back jumpers, finishing at the rim, he looked incredibly quick and he actually looked to be able to improved into someday an all star. I always liked Tyson Chandler better but thats just my opinion, but he didnt turn into the type of player I pictured either

I was really high on Eddie Griffin and well we saw how that turned out. :(

[Lakers13]

Coming out of HS, he looked like a GOAT. Kwame just doesnt possess mental skills, the skills to want to thrive or make your self better.

[GOBB]

The right coach is the one who can motivate him to start working:cheers:

WTF do you mean? Did you not READ his damn reply? Kareem said Kwame simply didnt want "it". Bynum? He wants "it" which is why you see a progression. He didnt get coddled like a baby. He was blasted by the media for his myspace page...blasted by his coach, blasted by Kobe whom he looked up too. Yet as of today the kid has improved and Kwame hasnt. Yet he needs the "right" coach? And not one of you mofos knows who that is. We can go thru 100 coaches...iuf Kwame doesnt improve then the search continues?

Are we searching for lil jon benet ramsey or Kwames balls? Geeze

[GOBB]

Coming out of HS, he looked like a GOAT.

No he f*cking DIDNT!!!!!!! :roll:

Why are you making up stories? WHY? I'm reporting your post!

[blazerftc]

No he f*cking DIDNT!!!!!!! :roll:

Why are you making up stories? WHY? I'm reporting your post!

I think I figured it out. Kwame must have killed your kitten, or stole you ice cream cone years ago, right? Seriously, you've made your point, several times over in fact. Yet, you continue to bluster on. We all know that you think he's the worst thing to happen to the NBA since the hand-checking rule. Now, calm down before you have an aneurysm.

[GOBB]

I think I figured it out. Kwame must have killed your kitten, or stole you ice cream cone years ago, right? Seriously, you've made your point, several times over in fact. Yet, you continue to bluster on. We all know that you think he's the worst thing to happen to the NBA since the hand-checking rule. Now, calm down before you have an aneurysm.

Shut the f*ck up. I LOVE how you ignore a blatant LIE in this thread that Kwame looked like a GOAT coming out of H.S only to fondle my nuts. You wont expose and tell that poster "You're wrong so eliminate that from out of your head", but you'll say "Hey dont correct him because you've proven us to be dumbasses already. We dont need 1 more". :rolleyes:

Kareem exposed Cryme Brown and your thoughts?

*crickets*

Kills ya argument which is weak like Cryme Browns game.

[vert48]

Because he was a horrible GM.

[ForceOfNature]

Maybe he did it so he has someone who sucks playing with him, so he doesn't have to give him the ball and so he looks better. :confusedshrug:

[guy]

Kareem was interviewed after the trade and said Kwame didnt want to learn, and didnt want to listen. He's been trying to work with him for years but Kwame never accepted the help. This "right coach" crap is bull****. He doesn't want to get better. This guy has had the coaching of:

Phil Jackson
Kareen abdul jabbar
Michael Jordan
Kobe Bryant
Tex Winter
Doug Collins

And still sucks. I'd like to know who this "right coach" is, cause if its not one of the best post bigmen in NBA history, its not anyone.

Don't forget Patrick Ewing.

[Eldrunko247]

:roll:

Man, the decision to draft Kwame will hang on MJ until he dies. :oldlol: @ how everyone is talking about it all the time. I swear, drafting Kwame has had a negative impact on MJ's basketball IQ rep even though it has nothing to do with him as a player. What a horrible decision.
He also traded Rip for Stackhouse and drafted Adumb Morrison. Jordan is a great player but prob one of the worst GM'S ever. I'm not even sure Isiah Thomas beats him out.

[stewen12]

it wasn't a good draft. And brown had the "potential"

[stewen12]

it wasn't a good draft. And brown had the "potential"

[Eldrunko247]

it wasn't a good draft. And brown had the "potential"
Well the Clippers were smart enough to trade Chandler or Curry or whoever it was for Brand and Jordan was not. Clippers! We're talking about the Clippers here and they never make smart moves. Jordan=worst GM ever.

[SuperLopez]

Kareem was interviewed after the trade and said Kwame didnt want to learn, and didnt want to listen. He's been trying to work with him for years but Kwame never accepted the help.

Where can I found this interview?

[guy]

He also traded Rip for Stackhouse and drafted Adumb Morrison. Jordan is a great player but prob one of the worst GM'S ever. I'm not even sure Isiah Thomas beats him out.

Stackhouse was just coming off his best year ever though averaging 30 ppg, and leading the Pistons to 50 wins, the 2nd round, and leading them in points and assists. It didnt seem like a bad idea at the time.

[Eldrunko247]

Stackhouse was just coming off his best year ever though averaging 30 ppg, and leading the Pistons to 50 wins, the 2nd round, and leading them in points and assists. It didnt seem like a bad idea at the time.
Well now we know it was a stupid trade.

[GoldMedallist]

It wasn't an extremely weak Draft.

- Memphis got Gasol at 3.
- Ask San Antonio's GM if it was, they built their winner team that year: Tony Parker at 27 and Manu Ginobili at

[Kobe_6/8]

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb4esfSYmO1r765gl.gif