Clearly attempting to emulate the experience of his boy Jonny Flynn in the NBA Draft this spring, Paul Harris was drafted #8 overall in the NBA Development League draft tonight. Paul becomes the first player ever drafted by the expansion Maine Red Claws.
Among Paul’s comrades in the Red Claws’ draft class are former Cincinnati Bearcat Tony “Don’t call me John” Bobbitt and somebody named (not making this up) Scooter McFadgon. The NBDL season begins right around Thanksgiving. For all you Upstaters, especially Paul’s Niagara Falls crew, the game to circle on your calendars is Saturday Dec. 12 when the Red Claws will be taking a trip to Erie, PA to face that town’s Bayhawks. A quick jaunt down I-90 from Buffalo.
Paul is, of course, not the only former Orangeman with NBDL aspirations. Eric Devendorf was not drafted. This does not mean he is out of luck, just that he will have to find a training camp and hope to stick with a team. A few other guys are likely to land with NBDL franchises. Darryl Watkins, after spending last season in China, is going to give the D-League another shot, mainly due to the fact that he is now a father (scroll way down for the item). His daughter was born in August (congrats Mook) and he doesn’t want to be separated from his kid, even though he was offered an overseas contract. Similarly, Josh Pace, who is “A Winner Everywhere He Goes” (hell yeah) says he is likely to try the D-League this season as well. The wild card is Demetris Nichols. He has been a dominant D-League performer in the past and he would definitely be signed by someone if he chose to pursue it again this season. On the other hand, his name appears in this Eurocup season preview as a member of Azovmash Mariupol in Ukraine. But he does not appear on the team’s website or in any of their recent boxscores. So if he is going to play for them, he hasn’t made it across the pond yet. All of this should become clear within a couple of weeks, when D-League rosters are set for the beginning of the season. Once that happens we will have the full rundown of who is playing where and for whom. Word.