The NBA draft occurred and Dallas came in to the event with the #51 pick.
The Mavs made no draft-day moves and selected Shan Foster with the 51st
pick.  Foster is a 6-6, 205 shooting guard from Vanderbilt.  He stayed all
4 years and was the SEC Player of the Year.  He is known for his shooting
touch, including an impressive 46.9% behind the college 3-point arc for
his senior season (42.1% for college career).  As a 2nd round pick, he is
not guaranteed a roster spot, but will definitely have a chance to earn a
spot in summer league play and training camp (for a change, the Mavs do
have a few available roster spots).

The highlight of an uneventful night at the AAC (Mavs media draft party)
was when Mavs radio play-by-play guy and college basketball guru 
Chuck Cooperstein came down at about the 47th pick and announced that he 
wanted everyone to know that Shan Foster was his prediction for who the 
Mavs would take at #51 - and that was the prediction he announced on the 
radio prior to the draft beginning.  About 5 minutes later came the news 
that the Mavs had indeed selected Foster and everyone was significantly 
awed by Coop's correct prediction.  Most mock drafts are happy when they 
get a pick correct in the 20 through 30 spots, and here Cooperstein 
accurately predicted the #51 pick.


Rick Carlisle emphasized Foster's level of maturity, quality of character,
and the fact that he played all 4 years as positives.  He said that the
Mavs were fortunate to get a kid like him that low in the draft and that
he was the last player the Mavs had on their 'A' list that was still
available (and if none of their 'A' players were left, they probably would
have traded the pick).  For Foster's negatives, Carlisle mentioned that he
is slender and doesn't have good strength - but that the strength coach
was waiting to get a hold of him.  He said that Foster will have an 
opportunity to make the team, but will have to earn his way in.

Carlisle quotes:
"He has a skill that we need, that's 3-point shooting.  We had a list of
'A' candidates, 'B' candidates, and 'C' candidates.  Shan Foster was the
last guy on our 'A' list.  We're very fortunate to get him."

"I don't think any of us would have dreamed we'd get a player like Shan
that late."

"This is a kid that's a 4-year college player, so he's got the experience
and the maturity.  He was SEC Player of the Year, and that's a big time
conference.  You have to be pretty damn good to be Player of the Year in 
the SEC."


Donnie Nelson said that the Mavs were happy to be able to get a shooter
like Foster and that shooting is one of those things that tend to carry
over from college.  He also mentioned that Foster has a 7-foot wingspan as
well as several more comments about how happy the Mavs were with the pick
(see below).  He said that Carlisle felt that shooting was an issue with
the current makeup of the team that needed to be addressed and that part
of Carlisle's philosophy is that he wants to open up the court.  Nelson
also mentioned that the Mavs were talking and listing to pick-trading
ideas, but felt that teams just wanted too much money to buy a pick -
"I've never seen 2nd round picks going for so much cash."  He also said
that last year's 2nd round picks Renaldas Seibutis and Reyshawn Terry were
going to get summer camp invites and that Terry has been in the AAC gym
almost all month.

Nelson quotes:
"We are really excited about Shan Foster.  He is long and athletic with
good size.  Shan can also shoot the ball.  Coach Carlisle felt like
shooting was the hole in this team and wanted to get a shooter to put
around Jason [Kidd].  We feel very fortunate that Shan fell to us this
late in the draft."
 
"To have a guy like Shan - who is long, athletic, a pretty good rebounder
for his size - we feel just really fortunate."

"He's got size, he's athletic, he can make shots."

"He could earn some time because you're always looking for shooting.
That's usually something that transfers from college."

"Shan is a heck of a pick at 51."

"We feel real good about it."


Shan Foster quotes:
On Dallas: "They definitely have a great team, great defensively and a
superstar in Dirk Nowitzki.  Brandon Bass is one of my good friends."

On being drafted: "It feels great.  This is a long awaited opportunity
I've dreamed about since I was a little kid."

On his his shooting release: "I played center when I was younger and I had
to get used to shooting over bigger people, so that's where that came
from."


patricia