Ming or Williams: Who's No. 1?

Most observers expect 7-5 center Yao Ming of China and Jason Williams from Duke to be the top two picks in the upcoming NBA Draft. However, some feel that Ming could be the top selection, while others favor the College basketball News’ Player of the year. The question is who will be the top pick on June 26th.

The NBA draft lottery is still several weeks away, but judging from the teams in the lottery, it is likely that Ming will be the top selection.

People close to Ming have hinted that he would prefer to play in a city that has a large Chinese-American population. That would favor teams like Chicago, Golden State, New York, Los Angeles and Washington.

Here is a team-by-team look at which way the lottery teams could go in the NBA Draft.

Chicago and Golden State both finished with 21 victories. They both have 225 chances of winning the lottery out of 1,000.

Chicago has Jamal Crawford, Jalen Rose and free agent Travis Best in the backcourt, leaving little need for Williams. General manager has scouted Ming extensively and the addition of the center would allow them to move eddy Curry to power forward and Tyson Chandler to slide to small forward.

Golden State needs help at center and point guard, but the strong play of Gilbert Arenas in the second half, could make them look harder at Ming. The Bay Area has a big Chinese-American population, which makes Golden State intriguing.

Memphis had 23 wins and has the third best chance of landing the top pick. They need a center with the forced retirement of Bryant reeves. They already have their own Jason Williams, who they signed to a long-term deal. Backcourt mare Michael Dickerson is expected to be ready for the start of the season, so Ming makes sense to join Lorenzen Wright, Pau Gasol, Shane Battier and Stromile Swift in the frontcourt.

Denver has a need for point guard and center. The presence of Menk Bateer would help with the development of Ming. General manager Kiki Vandeweghe was at Dallas previously, where he saw the infusion of foreign talent firsthand, so Ming makes sense. However, the Nuggets also need help at point guard.

Houston has a good young backcourt in Steve Francis, Cutino Mobley and Moochie Norris, so going big makes sense. Rocket centers Kelvin Cato and Jason Collier (who is really more of a power forward) combined for just 10.8 points per game.

New York Knicks’ general manager Scott Layden has been overseas to see Ming and the 6-5 center would give them the center they have lacked since the trading of Patrick Ewing. New York has a big Chinese-American population, but there are concerns about the pressure of laying in the nations’ biggest media market. The Knicks’ trio of point guards of Mark Jackson, Charlie Ward and Howard Eisley were not overly productive and their big salaries (a combined $15 million) make them tough to move. However, big is the way to go for the Knicks.

Atlanta has to deal their pick unless it is in the top four. They have Theo Ratliff and Nazr Muhammed in the middle, so point guard is the biggest need as Jason Terry is more comfortable at the shooting guard spot and Emmanuel Davis and Jacque Vaughn are not long-term answers as playmakers. Williams would hopefully sell tickets for a team that faces plenty of empty seats at Phillips Arena.

Pat Riley missed the playoffs for the first time in his coaching career and it is likely that they may try to trade the pick for veteran help. Riley has never had much use for rookies and a veteran to go with Alonzo Mourning, Brian Grant and Eddie Jones could get them back into postseason play. If they kept the pick, Williams might be the choice with Rod Strickland and Anthony Carter being just average at point guard.

Phoenix has Stephon Marbury at point guard and would grab Ming.

Washington needs help at point guard with Chris Whitney and Tyrone Lue as playmakers. Williams would give them an exciting guard to go along with Richard Hamilton, Courtney Alexander and Michael Jordan, if he returns. However, Ming might be tough to pass on, despite Jahidi White and Brendan Haywood on the roster.

The Los Angeles Clippers have to worry about signing center Michael Olowokandi, but they have a big need at point with Jeff McInnis being a free agent. Williams would give the Clippers another young potential standout.

Milwaukee has Sam Cassell at point guard and would grab Ming to plug up the middle.

Ming has an individual workout planned for next Wednesday in Chicago. A strong showing could solidify him as the top pick in the draft, which is something that might be the case already as many of the lottery teams have needs at center.

Check out MonterDraftNews.com to get further inside the NBA Draft