Should Trent stay or test NBA waters?
Dick Harmon
That issue has to be at the forefront of Plaisted's mind as he unpacks his bags from Anaheim, finishes his winter semester at BYU and starts his off-season workouts.
Plaisted has not let on what he will do.
That's probably because a guy in this situation cannot know the path he should take unless he finds some answers.
He's got an army of people giving him advice. And there are agents who'd love to enter the picture and give him a piece of their minds for a piece of the pie.
Here's the deal.
If Plaisted decides to put his name in for the NBA draft, he'll immediately become eligible for the pre-draft NBA camp in Orlando. This camp is by invitation only and is the only pre-draft camp run by the league that he can attend and accept expenses for travel and lodging.
Once he learns more about his NBA draft stock, he can either keep his name in the draft or withdraw without hurting his college eligibility. So he could return for his senior year for the Cougars.
There are other things he can do. He can stage his own workouts and invite NBA teams to watch him go through drills, and they can put him through the paces. He can also accept invitations to work out for NBA teams, but he'd have to pay his own way if he wants to keep open the choice to return to BYU.
All this is assuming the NBA will invite him to that Orlando camp — that he's even a legitimate NBA draft prospect.
A year ago, Utah State's Jaycee Carroll, the WAC player of the year, was faced with this same dilemma. He was not invited to the Orlando camp. He did not have the money to travel to workouts, didn't host any workouts and only attended a Jazz workout before withdrawing his name from the draft.
The fear around campus is that unscrupulous, lower-tier agents will get through to Plaisted, persuade him to sign something and give him money. That they will sell Plaisted on the pitch that he can make millions of dollars as a first-round pick.
Plaisted doesn't need people tickling his ears. He needs to hear honest evaluations.
As agents go, there is a top tier of agents that numbers about five or six. The second tier is made up of scramblers and hustlers, and the third tier is full of ambulance chasers who'll say anything to sign somebody.
Plaisted's stock is debatable. He's got talent. He's extremely quick and has great hops. His value rocketed when Dick Vitale got in his corner in Las Vegas in the win over Louisville and the narrow loss to North Carolina.
But he's been up and down since. He's not very strong or durable, his shooting range is limited and he needs massive improvement at the line.
A series of draft-savvy folks, including the agent of two of the NBA's best players, said Saturday that draft science is brutal and can get downright ugly.
Consider that the best players in recent BYU history are not in the NBA. Last season's MWC player of the year, Keena Young, got promises he could get a crack at the NBA in a year or two but ended up in Korea.
That's a long way from the NBA. Generally, if a player doesn't make it in the NBA, the best situation is in Europe — Spain or Russia first, Italy or France second. If you go anywhere else, you are wrestling with poverty and mediocrity.
The D-League in the NBA will get you $1,000 to $2,500 a game. Korea? The agent killed Young by putting him in a bad league in a bad situation.
Rafael Araujo, after going No. 8 to Toronto, left for the Jazz and is now playing in a Russian super league where he and his team are struggling.
Travis Hansen, who signed with Atlanta, is excelling in Russia. He's playing in a super league and a Euro league, a life he prefers over the NBA.
Mark Bigelow finally made it to Spain after spending a few years in Germany; Mike Hall, once the MWC's defensive player of the year, has played in Turkey.
I wouldn't be doing Plaisted any favors if I told him he'd be drafted in the first round. Whatever thread of credibility I hang on to would be shot. Big-league folks I talk to unanimously agree that he's not ready. Plaisted is a great kid who loves the game, but he needs more time in the incubator.
Plaisted could make a great living in Europe, playing in Spain or France, if he can make that grade right now. Good luck with the languages, $6 sodas and $8 for a liter of gasoline.
Plaisted has decisions to make. And they're not easy ones when you have a family to think of.
Hopefully, he'll look under all the rocks and brush and find a deal that works, whether it's going pro or returning for another crack at the NCAAs — certainly work left undone in Anaheim this past week.
E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com
Recent comments
Plaisted doesn't have what it takes mentally to make it in the...
Fragile | April 9, 2008 at 6:41 p.m.
there is no way anybody would want to draft him he had like 2 good...
who are they kidding | March 27, 2008 at 11:30 p.m.
Now I know Harmon is in La La Land. He's a professional writer...
Harmon | March 26, 2008 at 10:38 p.m.
