Jeffries awaits draft fate

Hoosier star expected to be top-10 pick in upcoming NBA draft

Published Monday, June 24, 2002
He has been a high school McDonald's All-American, the Big Ten Most Valuable Player and a key member of a Final Four team.

On Wednesday, Jared Jeffries will add first-round draft pick to his list of accolades at the NBA Draft in New York City. The former IU star will likely be a top-10 selection, according to draft analysts for espn.com and cnnsi.com.

The draft will mark the end of Jeffries' remarkable career in Bloomington, first from Bloomington North High School and later as a Hoosier. It will also mark the beginning of a dream.

"All my life, I've (dreamed) to hear my name called for the NBA Draft," Jeffries said when he announced his decision to go pro. "I never could have imagined that I would get an opportunity to play in the NBA so early."

Jeffries' opportunity may become one team's gain Wednesday night. The NBA covets players like Jeffries, 7-footers who can score in the post, drive to the basket and shoot from outside. Versatility is so sought after that a player similar to Jeffries, 7-foot-5-inch Yao Ming from China, will likely be the first overall pick of the Houston Rockets.

Even at nine years old playing AAU basketball, Jeffries exhibited the skills that have impressed NBA insiders. Jeffries' incredible height never made him feel awkward on the basketball court, said Cecilia Jeffries, Jared's mother.

"He always said he wanted to be a point guard," said Cecilia. "But he just kept growing."

Jeffries' physical growth since his AAU days has been complemented with an understanding of what he is capable of doing.

"He's improved (at IU) on posting-up inside and stepping out when he has to," said Bloomington North coach Tom McKinney, who won a State title with Jeffries in 1997.

Ironically, the major critique of Jeffries' game may be that he is too versatile.

"Jeffries is one of those kids that is so impressive because he does so many things well for a big man," one scouting report on espn.com said. "The problem is that he doesn't do anything great."

Jeffries admitted he had plenty of work ahead of him when he decided to enter the draft.

"I realize that in no way am I a finished basketball product," Jeffries said at the press conference in April. "I know I must develop in order to meet the demands of NBA basketball."

And he has certainly developed. Jeffries has gained roughly 15 pounds since the NCAA championship game, when he struggled against Maryland's larger frontcourt in a 64-52 loss. Listed at 215 pounds at the start of the season, he weighed 230 pounds at a pre-draft function in Chicago.

The beefed-up Jeffries has likely impressed NBA scouts with his work ethic as much as his improved strength.

"Strength is not something that you gain overnight. It takes months and months work," IU Associate Head Coach John Treloar said. "Since the end of the season, he has had more time to commit to the weight room, which allows for quicker progress."

Besides his versatility and new muscle, Treloar said he thinks NBA teams are seeing other attributes of his game in private workouts.

"One thing that has probably gone unnoticed is his great defensive play," Treloar said. "He is a good team defensive player, (that's) something that scouts look for."

Scouts are also looking for players who can help immediately. In recent years, high school players have moved up in the draft. Such is the case with last year's No. 1 pick, Kwame Brown, whom the Washington Wizards are patiently tutoring for NBA stardom. With fewer prep players expected to go in the first round, experienced players from the U.S. and overseas might get more attention in this year's draft.

Fortunately for Jeffries, one of 47 underclassmen who forfeited collegiate eligibility to go pro, he has been groomed for the NBA game. McKinney credits IU head coach Mike Davis for making Jeffries NBA-ready.

"He's coached in the pro leagues," said McKinney of Davis, who coached in the CBA during the early 1990s. "Some of the sets (Jeffries) ran in college, he'll run in the pros."

Treloar agrees.

"Jared will succeed in the NBA because he knows how to play and understands the NBA game," Treloar said. "This makes for a quicker transition (from college)."

Mock drafts by the media predict Jeffries will be selected between the 8th and 12th pick of the draft. Andy Katz of ESPN and Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated both think that the Phoenix Suns, who have the ninth pick, will select Jeffries.

Another possibility is one of Jeffries' favorite teams, the Miami Heat, at the tenth pick. However, his mother said Jeffries doesn't have a preference at this point.

"He's liked them all," said Cecilia Jeffries of the teams he has worked out for in recent weeks, including Memphis, the No. 4 pick; Cleveland, No. 6; New York, No. 7; Phoenix, No. 9; Miami, No. 10; and Washington, No. 11.

Whether he goes in the top-10 or slips to the middle of the first round, Jeffries' draft position will net him a hefty first paycheck. In 1999, the Suns had the ninth pick, which they used to select forward Shawn Marion. They signed Marion to a three-year deal worth over $4 million. A similar deal likely awaits Jeffries, if not in Phoenix then elsewhere.

And although he might not be sure how to spend all of his NBA riches, Jeffries at least has a few ideas.

"Jared and his father (Tom) like to go fishing," Cecilia said. "So Jared's said he'll buy him a truck and a boat so they can go out and fish."

When asked why her son won't buy his family something bigger, like a house, Cecilia didn't hesitate.

"We have such a wonderful family," said Cecilia, who added that several of Jared's relatives live in Bloomington. "We're not material people. We're very content."

Family members will travel to New York today to attend the draft. Cecilia, Tom, his brother Justin and Jeffries' girlfriend will join Jeffries in the "green room" at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.

Probable first-round picks will wait in the green room before walking across the stage to greet NBA Commissioner David Stern. Jeffries, like most potential first-rounders, has a new tailor-made suit for his NBA entrance.

And that's why despite the significance Wednesday night holds for Jared Jeffries, his mother will come back from New York with memories that have nothing to do with basketball.

"It'll be the only time, other than prom, I'll see him in clothes that fit," Cecilia said.

Jeffries stock on the rise

Former Hoosier rapidly moving up the wish list of many NBA teams

How much richer will Jared Jeffries be Thursday morning than he is today?

There is no black-and-white answer to the question, but one NBA source said if the former Indiana star goes as high as the fifth pick in Wednesday's NBA draft he could command perhaps $2 million a year for three years.

Much depends upon who drafts the former Indiana Mr. Basketball, who was measured recently at 6 feet 11 in his shoes.

Jeffries was listed at 6-9 when he arrived on campus after a stellar career at North. He was 6-10 last season when he led the Hoosiers to the championship game of the NCAA Tournament.

Jared's stature in the draft has enjoyed similar growth. When he talked about turning professional a year ago there was little support for his immediate candidacy. Yet almost everyone saw him as a solid professional down the road.

Two former Indiana assistant coaches say Jeffries' defense is his ticket to a successful professional career.

"Sometimes J.J. likes to think of himself as an offensive player," said Dan Panaggio, an IU assistant in 2000-01 and now an assistant with the Portland Trailblazers. "I remember saying to him once that his defense was going to be his ticket, and he wasn't crazy about me saying that.

"But I'm sitting up here in the NBA now and that's what people are looking for."

IU coach Mike Davis said one of the most pleasing things about Jeffries was how well he played defensively.

Tates Locke, an aide with the Hoosiers under Bob Knight in the late 1980s, now is a scout for the Trailblazers and agrees with Panaggio.

"That's where his niche is," Locke said. "I would say he's going to go with somebody who really has a need for a long perimeter guy, who can defend, who's a conduit in basketball and can transfer the ball from side to side. I really feel he'll be a better shooter in the pros than he was in college."

Since announcing this spring that he was forsaking his final two seasons at Indiana to enter the draft, Jeffries has been working out at a basketball academy in Bradenton, Fla.

"I went down there to see our player and watched J.J. work out as well," Panaggio said. "He looked pretty good. He's pretty serious about preparing the best he can and I think his stock has raised. He's done a real good job in some individual workouts."

Jeffries reportedly was especially impressive in a workout with the Phoenix Suns. Early last week he worked out with the Denver Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks.

Panaggio said Jeffries has profited from the individual workouts he received from Indiana assistants John Treloar, Ben McDonald and Jim Thomas.

"He's been getting them all year," Panaggio said. "The Indiana staff, they're all pro guys, and they're kind of on the same page. They know how to prepare a guy in terms of his footwork and the kind of things that NBA people want to do. He's going in with a great advantage."

Portland's first selection in the draft, which will be conducted in New York City, isn't until the 21st pick.

"I picture him way out of our range," Locke said of the Blazers' chances of drafting Jeffries. "We have an (draft-related) exercise every week and he's been very, very high all year. He's not even in our picture."

The first five teams to draft are Houston, Chicago, Golden State, Memphis and Denver. Miami, picking No. 10, may be Jeffries' best early bet. Miami coach Pat Riley has been high on Jeffries in public comments.

Jeffries didn't participate in the NBA Camp this month in Chicago, except to attend and be measured. The tape showed him to be 6-10 in his bare feet, 6-11 in shoes, with a weight of 230 pounds.

Panaggio said previous coaching, which included the work of Tom McKinney at North, is a plus for Jeffries.

"He's been well coached right through his career," Panaggio said. "He understands the game and he especially understands the game on the defensive end of the floor. You want a guy who can play defense and who understands team defense, and he understands it."

Jeffries was listed at 215 pounds at the beginning of last season, which indicates progress in the weight room.

"He's very mobile and when you get a guy that size who can run and who's that mobile, it really turns heads," Panaggio said. "Offensively, he still needs size and strength and he's got to continue to work on his post game. It's going to be a huge learning experience for him in the NBA because it's not boys against boys but men against men."

A major question surrounding Jeffries involves how much playing time he'll get his first season in the professionals. Many Indiana fans prefer to think he would have benefitted from another year in college.

Locke says it's unlikely Jeffries will be heavily used next season.

"If there are two guys in the draft that can get in an NBA game that counts, that's a lot," he said.

Rolling over the names of fewer than a half-dozen rookies who saw much playing time last season, Locke continued, "They might get in but it's not going to be a game that counts, and I think year in and year out, that's the case.

"If he gets in a uniform he's lucky. Bonzi Wells didn't."

Former Ball State star Wells is a starter for the Trailblazers who had to pay his dues before playing.

Locke said Zach Randolph, who left after his freshman season at Michigan State, knew what his status would be when he signed last year with the Trailblazers.

Former Hoosier Kirk Haston is another example. After skipping his senior season at Indiana he played in only 10 regular-season games after being the 16th pick in last year's draft.

"Zach Randolph was explained things at the outset," Locke said. "Show up with your lunch pail. Pick out a shovel and dig your share of the dirt, and if they do that they'll play. If they don't, they'll wash out."

Former IU star Mike Woodson, now on the staff of the Philadelphia 76ers, said he would love to have Jeffries. But the Sixers have only the 16th pick and most project that Jared will be gone by then.

"He is a young talent with a lot of upside," Woodson said. "He can't help but get better."

Added Panaggio, "I think it's going to be a few years before he's on the floor with regularity. However, he's the type of guy who understands the game and is fundamentally very sound. I think he's going to get a taste every game."

Locke said he believes Jeffries is more mature than a lot of others who left school early to play professionally.

"I've been around Jared a good bit in the summer time and I really respect him," Locke said. "I think that once he gets out of Bloomington he's going to mature so much faster. I'm not so sure that was the best place for him to go to school. He's a mama's boy and all that."

Locke said he spent three days in Bloomington last winer evaluating Jeffries and his future.

"I wasn't doing that because of character in his case, but to determine work ethic and all that stuff," Locke said. "I came away very impressed."

Jeffries' work moves him up draft boards

Former IU forward says he has been able to concentrate on basketball the past few weeks.



By Terry Hutchens

terry.hutchens@indystar.com

June 26, 2002

A knock against Jared Jeffries' decision to make himself eligible for the NBA draft was that he would get pushed around, much the same way he was manhandled by Oklahoma and Maryland frontline players in the Final Four.

But it's a bulked-up Jeffries who will likely hear his name called early tonight at The Theatre at Madison Square Garden, site of the NBA draft.



The consensus among many NBA draft experts is that the former Indiana University forward will be one of the top 11 picks. Many have Jeffries slotted to go 10th to Miami. Others believe Phoenix, which had Jeffries in for two workouts in the past two weeks, will take the former Indiana Mr. Basketball at No. 9.

Pacers president Donnie Walsh said Tuesday he would take Jeffries if he dropped to Indiana at No. 14. But he doesn't expect that to happen.

"I think he's totally underrated, particularly in this community," Walsh said. "I think the guy is for real. It doesn't surprise me that I hear his name up at four, five, six and seven. I think he's a very, very good prospect."

And now it's his body that is attracting attention. When IU lost to Maryland 64-52 in the NCAA championship game April 1, Jeffries weighed 218 pounds.

Today, the 6-11 Jeffries is at 235 pounds. He spent six weeks in April and May working with Joe Abunassar, a former Bloomington resident who is director of the basketball camp at the IMG-Bolletieri Sports Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

"He was putting in anywhere from six to eight hours a day in basketball/conditioning workouts with us," Abunassar said. "It was a combination of on-the-court skill work, weight training, agility work and explosive training.

"And we spent a lot of time with his diet. The goal wasn't just to get him heavier, it was to make him a better player and more effective on the court, which is what that added strength has done for him."

Jeffries said for the first time, he was able to focus exclusively on basketball.

"I knew I had to get bigger for the NBA and I had to prepare," Jeffries said. "I was able to do this because when you're in college you're never able to put all your attention to basketball. Now, I've had two workouts a day, and I'm totally focused on basketball.

"It was hard the first couple of weeks to put on the weight but then my body got used to it."

He weight gain was in muscle. Jeffries said his body fat remains at 7 percent.

That was no surprise to Abunassar.

"When you're talking about adding 15 pounds over a 6-foot-11 frame, I don't think that's a significant situation," Abunassar said. "To a guy that's 6 feet tall, that would be another story. But body fat has never been a problem for Jared Jeffries."

Jeffries said he thinks his added weight and muscle will benefit him.

"I have to be able to play physical and I wanted to build up my endurance," Jeffries said. "People in the NBA are fighting for their careers. I have to be in a position to do the same."

Jeffries, along with his parents and younger brother Justin, will be in attendance tonight at Madison Square Garden.

"I think we're all looking forward to having this period in Jared's life behind us," said Tom Jeffries, Jared's father. "It's an exciting time but it's a crazy time, too. Everyone has their own opinion as to where Jared will go, but finally we're close to seeing where exactly that will be."

Jeffries likely will be the state's only first-round selection. Valparaiso's Lubos Barton, Notre Dame's Ryan Humphrey and former Indiana Mr. Basketball Luke Recker are all potential second-round picks. Ball State center Lonnie Jones and Butler forward Rylan Hainje will likely have a shot in an NBA free agent camp.

Two others players -- Ball State's Theron Smith and Purdue's Willie Deane -- declared themselves eligible for the NBA draft but later withdrew their names from consideration and will return to play college basketball next season.

Posted on Wed, Jun. 26, 2002

Fickle NBA dubs Jeffries gold - for now

Fifteen pounds, and suddenly the world is wearing out its fist on your door.
Strange place, this National Basketball Association.

Ten or 12 weeks ago Jared Jeffries went 215 pounds and a follicle shy of 7 feet, and it was the former everyone harped on. Two-fifteen made him a length of kite string in a suspension-cable world. It meant he got thrown around like a sock puppet by bruisers like Tahj Holden, Chris Wilcox and Lonny Baxter of Maryland. It meant he wasn't strong enough to play inside, didn't handle the ball or shoot it well enough to play outside, probably needed to remain among the scholars.

Now Jared Jeffries runs 230 muscled pounds, J.J. gone XL.

And the smart guys who said he wasn't ready to play for pay are falling all over themselves to throw cash at him.

The Suns covet him with the ninth pick in tonight's NBA draft.

The Grizzlies, at No. 4, are talking about trading down to get him.

He's worked out at least once for the first 13 teams in the draft, and they've all liked what they've seen.

"He's more of a player," praised Cavaliers assistant coach Jerry Eaves, to Michael Grant of the Louisville Courier-Journal. "He will be able to do some things guarding big people, and he will be able to do some things with mismatches when he's guarding (small people)."

So what happened to the guy who, 10 or 12 weeks ago, couldn't guard either?

Strange place, this NBA.

It falls in and out of love quicker than Anna Kournikova.

It changes its mind the way Barbie changes outfits.

Conventional wisdom is whatever happened a minute ago.

And so Jared Jeffries comes out, and the smart guys say he should have stayed in, that at 7-feet and 215 he as yet had no place to play in the NBA.

And then he puts on 15 pounds, he reportedly dogs highly regarded Caron Butler of Connecticut in a workout, and the smart guys say: "Hey! This guy's 7-feet! He can play anywhere!"

Strange place, this NBA.

It loves the XL J.J. now as much as it loved all those high school kids a year ago, when No. 1 pick Kwame Brown and No. 2 Tyson Chandler led a peach-fuzz brigade of prepsters. Potential, that was The League's watchword. The kids wouldn't help right away, maybe they wouldn't reach full flower for four or five years, but when they did . . .

And then Brown spent most of the season on the Washington Wizards bench, and the rest of the time looking utterly lost.

And DeSagana Diop, picked No. 8 by Cleveland, got hurt and didn't contribute.

And Pau Gasol came over from Spain and became the NBA's Rookie of the Year, and Dirk Nowitzki of Germany became a star in Dallas, and Vladimir Radmanovic of Yugoslavia made the All-Rookie team.

So now they are off the high school kids, all the smart guys.

It's the players with an extra vowel or two in their names who are going to be the Next Whatever this time around.

Houston will make 7-foot-5 Yao Ming of China the No. 1 pick. 7-foot Nikoloz Tskitishvili of the Republic of Georgia could go as high as fifth. Maybyner "Nene" Hilario of Brazil, 6-11, could be a lottery pick as well.

High school kids are out. Foreign players are in.

That, and a player a shade under 7 feet whom everyone swore was no better than a middle-of-the-first-round pick, and who was last seen putting up a shot in the Georgia Dome that Holden sent on a suborbital path toward Augusta, and whom NBA draft guru Marty Blake said should have stayed one more winter in Bloomington.

That player, Jared Jeffries, is now "the rare rookie who knows how to play," according to Sports Illustrated.

He is "one of those kids that is so impressive because he does so many things well for a big man," according to espn.com.

He has been "zipping up draft boards in the last couple of weeks," according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.

Strange place, this NBA.

"It's a crapshoot," said Jeffries' father, Tom, in the Courier-Journal.

Nah. It's mathematics, is what it is.

The weight of the coin. The height of the flip. The trajectory of its spin and the angle of its descent.

Heads we take Jared Jeffries.

Tails, Uwe Blab.

Ben Smith is a writer for The Journal Gazette. His columns appear Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Knicks Are Looking Forward
Jeffries looms big for Layden

By FRANK ISOLA
Daily News Sports Writer

he Knicks' compensation for a 30-win season could be Chris Wilcox, Dajuan Wagner, Jared Jeffries, Caron Butler or perhaps even Nene Hilario or Nikoloz Tskitishvili.

Missing the playoffs and having your job on the line is a hefty price for Scott Layden to pay for just the seventh overall selection. That pick may develop into a star or become a bust. Chris Mullin and Kevin Johnson are two former No. 7 picks but then so are Lionel Simmons and Bobby Hurley.


Layden, the Knicks president, is confident the Knicks will improve with tonight's NBA Draft. Chances are, Layden will go big and select either Wilcox from Maryland or Indiana's Jeffries. If Layden opts for the best available player, then Wagner — the Memphis freshman guard — will be wearing a Knicks uniform next season and fighting five guards with lucrative contracts for playing time.

But the harsh reality is that whoever the Knicks select will have little impact on the team's quest to return to the playoffs next season.

Instead, Layden's best avenue out of the lottery and into the postseason is by making smart trades for veteran players, just as the top three teams in the Eastern Conference — the Nets, Pistons and Celtics — all did last summer.

"We're always focused on how we can improve the team," Layden said. "If we don't make a trade before the draft that just means will continue to push in the summer. This is a critical time. But we are going to improve out team Wednesday one way or another."

Layden will be busy this summer trying to trade at least one of his point guards: Mark Jackson, Charlie Ward or Howard Eisley. Marcus Camby is certainly available for the right price but then Camby is a mobile 6-11 player and why trade him when his value is at an all-time low?

Kurt Thomas' value may never be higher. Trading Latrell Sprewell is an option that Layden should explore and perhaps the Knicks will re-visit a proposed deal for Milwaukee's Glenn Robinson and Ervin Johnson.

It appears unlikely that Layden — who yesterday was going over different draft scenarios and no doubt already knows whom the Knicks will select — will make a deal before tonight.

Yesterday, Layden met with Tskitishvili, the 7-footer who plays in Italy. There is also a possibility that Layden will meet again again with Jeffries, Butler and Wilcox by this afternoon.

"It's a very important pick for our organization," Layden said. "We've gone to great lengths to have the information we need to make the best decision we can."

Layden then added: "There are no certainties in the draft."

Indeed, if you go by history then the seventh pick will do little to help Don Chaney earn a contract extension. Chaney has one season to turn the Knicks around and needs talented veterans, not unpolished rookies.

Consider this. This past season, the Nets' Richard Jefferson and San Antonio's Tony Parker were the only two rookies from the class of 2001 to contribute to a playoff team.

If you go back to the 2000 draft, the first-round picks to make a contribution in the postseason were Kenyon Martin, Hedo Turkoglu, Desmond Mason, Jamaal Magloire, Speedy Claxton and Morris Peterson. That's eight out of 58 first-round picks over two years.

The consensus is that Butler is one of the few players in the draft ready to make an immediate impact. But Layden has said repeatedly that character matters and the Knicks may have a tough time looking past the fact that Butler was a convicted felon as a juvenile.

Wagner is only 19 and could become a star but the Knicks already have too many guards. The Knicks are excited about the raw talents of both Wilcox and Hilario and the organization is leaning toward Wilcox if the Maryland forward is still around at No. 7.

The one wild card is Jeffries, who has spent the last three months adding 20 pounds of muscle and refining his game in Sarasota, Fla. At 6-11, he is a skilled offensive player and at least one Eastern Conference GM is convinced that Layden wants Jeffries.

"I think I'll be like another Dirk Nowitzki, Lamar Odom and Kevin Garnett type of player," Jeffries said yesterday. "Put me out there at forward and I can guard threes and fours. Then they have to guard me at the other end. Like Nowitzki, I can get the rebound and start the offense by taking the ball upcourt."

Lucky No. 10? Optimism abounds for Heat tonight
Team holds its highest pick since 1995
BY BARRY JACKSON
bjackson@herald.com


C.W. Griffin / Herald Staff

STANDING PAT? No one knows whether the Heat will pull off a trade before or during tonight's NBA Draft, or select with the 10th pick.


With the exception of a 24-10 midseason run, Heat fans have endured a year of angst and aggravation.

Tonight is the payoff.

Miami enters tonight's draft with a good chance of acquiring a player it likes with the 10th pick, such as power forwards Jared Jeffries or Maybyner Hilario. Riley said he wants a player who can join the rotation immediately.

In the unlikely event all of the Heat's preferred picks are off the board at 10, Riley indicated he's willing to trade the choice for a lower pick and possibly a veteran player.

''I believe we can get a very good player,'' Riley said. ``I think we will hang in there at No. 10. There are a number of big players we like.''

If Connecticut small forward Caron Butler surprisingly drops to 10, Riley said picking him would be ``a no-brainer.''

If Butler's gone, the Heat could turn to Jeffries. ''If he's down there at 10, it would be a difficult decision not to take him,'' Riley said. ``Jared is rock-solid: great size, great length, very mature. We were very impressed with him in the workout. You develop him as a running perimeter power forward.''

Jeffries, 6-10, averaged 15 points and 7.6 rebounds while leading Indiana to the NCAA championship game as a sophomore.

The Heat also has shown interest in Hilario, the 19-year-old Brazilian League power forward who has elicited comparisons to Detroit's Ben Wallace. Riley says Hilario, 6-11, has ``gifts you don't see come around very much.''

Phoenix, which picks ninth, also likes Jeffries and Hilario. But one of the two should be available to the Heat, barring a surprise.

It's also possible one of the elite players slips to No. 10 -- more likely Memphis guard Dujuan Wagner than Butler, Drew Gooden or Chris Wilcox. One general manager with a top-nine pick said Tuesday he expects either Butler or Wagner to be available at 10.

Although the Heat isn't certain whether Wagner is a point guard or shooting guard, Riley compared him to 76ers star Allen Iverson. ''If a player of that talent dropped, you would have to highly consider that,'' Riley said.

A player as skilled as Butler or Wagner dropping to No. 10 would not be unprecedented. Paul Pierce fell into the Celtics' lap at No. 10 in 1998.

Of the top players, the only one Riley has said he probably would not draft is Italian League forward Nikoloz Tskitishvili, who needs time to develop.

That's why the Heat will root for Tskitishvili to go in the top nine. That would drop one of the other players -- Jeffries or perhaps Butler or Wagner -- to the Heat at No. 10.

If not, Miami might need to look elsewhere. The next tier of players includes small forwards Qyntel Woods and Bostjan Nachbar, power forwards Melvin Ely, Amare Stoudemire and Marcus Haislip, center Curtis Borchardt and shooting guard Kareem Rush.

Woods' representatives don't think Miami is very interested, but the Heat has studied him carefully.

If the Heat trades the pick, there would be several potential partners, including Milwaukee (which chooses 13th), Orlando (18th) and Portland (21st).

''We're listening,'' Riley said of trade offers. ``There are opportunities.''

Heat GM Randy Pfund said he has explored moving up a few spots, but ``if you look at our team, there are some limitations.''

Pfund said his attempt to acquire a second first-round pick ``in the bottom of the first round has been a little more difficult than I thought.''

The Heat has one choice in the second round (53rd).

If the Heat drafts a power forward at No. 10, that does not necessarily mean the off-season departure of Brian Grant, whose seven-year, $86 million contract has discouraged potential suitors.

Riley predicted he would make one significant move after the draft, presumably the addition of a small forward. Donyell Marshall, Rodney Rogers, Devean George and Bryon Russell are potentially affordable free-agent options.

The Heat hopes tonight is the first step toward fortifying a franchise reeling from its first non-playoff season since Riley arrived in 1995.

''What has happened to this franchise has been a downer,'' Riley said. ``This is a great organization going through a tough moment. We're going to work very hard to make it right.''