Worst #3?

[syndicated from The Free Shai World Report]

Tea Baggin'
Originally uploaded by atma brother #1.

In the 2002 NBA Draft the Warriors passed up a solid rebounder/low post scorer/ defender in Drew Gooden, an underused scorer in Dajuan Wagner (boy can light it up when given the chance), up-and coming power players Nene and Chris Wilcox, a superstar in the making Amare Stoudemire, a good scorer in Caron Butler, Freddie Jones- the only man to beat JRich in a dunk contest, a top wing defender in Tayshaun "Inspector Gadget" Prince, a poor man's John Stockton in Dan Dickau, Carlos "show me the money (or I'll bounce)" Boozer, and a good role player in Darius Songalia for ...

Mike Dunnuthin... er, I mean Mike Dunleavy with the 3rd overall pick. The man's good for some Tea Baggin' fun and some posterizing, but let's just say this- He will never be an All-Star. And you can quote me on that. Well, actually if his dad Mike Dunleavy Sr. bribes the other coaches to vote for his son, then he might make it.

I could go on about how he's slow, timid, and unskilled. Or I could go on about how he gets undeserved credit for being smart, a great passer, and a sweet shooter just because well, he's white. But, that's fruitless. See my boy's analysis over at Two Turn Tables and a Blog March 7th post.

What's more fun is to wonder if he was the worst #3 overall pick ever. Well, since I'm not old enough to back that far, let's look at the previous 10 drafts at that slot.

2001- Pau Gasol... no debate here. Spanish Fly has been an instant impact payer droppin' almost 18-8 with almost 2 blocks. Did I mention he and the GRIZZLIES (?) made it to the playoffs last year?

Dunleavy 0, 3's 1


2000- Darius Miles... oh here's a close one. Both Dunleavy and Miles have been mediocre. Although Miles can play a little defense- block some shots and get some steals. Advantage Miles for that cool self-props headband thing that he worked so hard at with Q Richardson.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 2


1999- Baron Davis. Well the Warriors just traded for this 2 time All Star thinking he could be the savior with JRich in the backcourt.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 3


1998- Raef LaFrentz. Ooooh, this is a close one too. Can you believe this guy went 7 picks before his Kansas teammate- some guy named Paul Pierce? Raeffer can block shots, but his rebounding isn't that impressive for a 4 or 5. Dunleavy can't block shots and his rebounding isn't impressive for a 3 or 4.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 4


1997- Chauncey Billups. Probably a little underrated, this man's already got a NBA Final's MVP (and he's probably the worst player to get that award, but that's another story).

Dunleavy 0, 3's 5


1996- Shareef Abdur-Rahim. One of Cal's finest. A 20-9 star. No question.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 6


1995- Jerry Stackhouse. An All-Star and a solid player. Can get you 20 in his sleep. Funny thing is there was some talk whether the Warriors should draft Stack or the common man named Joe Smith (another story).

Dunleavy 0, 3's 7


1994- Grant Hill. Grant Hill drinks Sprite, Grant Hill drinks Sprite. Married to Tamia too. I don't think I need to tell you how smooth G Hill was in the mid-90's. And I can't forget that his first Fila kicks are some of the illest sneaks ever.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 8


1993- Anfernee Hardaway. If it wasn't for the injuries we'd be talking about a Kidd-Hardaway backcourt and Big and Lil' Penny. Even with the injuries he and Shaq still made it to the finals. I should count this as 2 wins because his Nike Penny's were so phat. Oddly enough the Warriors drafted Penny too.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 9


1992- Christian Laettner. Another Dukie. He'll always be remembered for that shot via the crazy cross-court in-bounds pass from Grant Hill, but you can't forget his good NBA career. There was a period of about 6 seasons where this man could get you 16-18ppg and 6-8 rpg. Even Duke fans will count this as a W for Laettner.

Dunleavy 0, 3's 10


And there you have it my folkers- Dunleavy the top #3 stinker of the past 10 years. Funny thing is how many of those picks have played on the Warriors or had some connection- Christian Laetner, Penny, and Baron Davis.

Special thanks to NBADraft.net
I'm out like the Warriors cap space in 2007 when Mullin re-ups Mike Dunnuthin for the max.