University of Virginia Library

NBA Chooses Draftees; Carr, Wicks Go First

By Randy Wert
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

Surprises and novelties provided
the entertainment in the annual
National Basketball Association
player draft as the hapless
Cleveland Cavaliers took UCLA
Star Sidney Wicks' hint and chose
instead high scoring Austin Carr of
Notre Dame.

Choosing first of the seventeen
franchises by virtue of the coin toss
with the Portland Trail Blazers, the
Cavaliers heeded Wicks' intimations
that he would rather not play for
Cleveland and drew the 6-3 Carr
who has averaged well over 30
points per game in his illustrious
cage career with the Irish.

Expecting Wicks to be gone, the
Portland management quickly
adjusted to his availability by
naming the 6-8 forward as their
first round pick. Buffalo's Braves,
the third expansion team this year,
had the third choice and went with
7-0 Elmore Smith, the jumping
bean center of NAIA small college
champion Kentucky State.
Cincinnati's Royals pulled a
surprise by gambling on Ken
Durrett, injured 6-7 LaSalle
stalwart who is rumored to be
promised to the rival American
Basketball Association. Western
Regional runner-up Long Beach
State's George Trapp went to
Atlanta while Oregon's high scoring
Stan Love was Baltimore's pick.

Boston's Celtics went for
Clarence Glover, who starred in
Western Kentucky's two NCAA

playoff come-from-behind wins
against Jacksonville and Ohio State.
Curtis Rowe became the second of
John Wooden's Bruins to be drafted
in the initial round when Detroit
chose him. Low Angeles picked
Ohio State's lone senior starter Jim
Clemons while South Carolina's
John Roche was the first ACC
player to go when Phoenix
announced his name. The New
York Knicks drafted Marquette's
star All-American Dean Meminger
in the first round, and Milwaukee's
Bucks, picking last, went for Collis
Jones, also of Notre Dame.

Cleveland came out very well
after all was said and done naming a
third UCLA player, center Steve
Patterson, in the second round,
several small college stars, and Wake
Forest's star guard Charlie Davis,
who was chosen in the eighth.
Portland also did well, adding
Fordham's Charlie Yelverton, Larry
Steele of Kentucky, and Bobby
Fields of LaSalle to Wicks. Buffalo
uncorked what may have been the
most bizarre choice of the session
by choosing Spencer Haywood,
playing of late in Seattle, for their
third choice after taking Fred
Hilton of Grambling. Haywood,
drafted out of the college ranks by
the ABA's Denver Rockets before
graduating, jumped to the NBA's
Seattle SuperSonics and was just
the subject of long court
proceedings to decide his athletic
fate. Buffalo's choice is apparently
in anticipation of a future change in
Haywood's status.

ACC performers drafted in
addition to Roche and Davis
included USC's Lee Dedmon (Los
Angeles, 5th), Wake Forest's Gil
McGregor (Cincinnati), 6th),
Duke's Rick Katherman (San
Diego, 8th), John Ribock of South
Carolina (Boston, 8th) and
Maryland's Barry Yates
(Philadelphia, 8th).

Several other name players to go
in early rounds were Weaver State's
Willie Sojourner to Chicago while
Auburn's high scoring John Mengelt
was chosen in the second round
by Cincinnati. Seattle hooked
Western Kentucky's Jim McDaniels,
who signed later with the Carolina
Cougars of the ABA, and his
teammate Jim Rose was chosen by
Boston. Georgia Tech's Rich
Yunkus, frustrated in his NIT
experience went with Cincinnati as
the Celtics named Dave Robisch of
NCAA fourth place Kansas. LA's
Lakers took Robisch's playmate at
forward, Roger Brown.