March 2007 Basketball Wiretap

Durant Says NBA Is His Dream But Decision Will Be Difficult

Mar 31, 2007 11:39 AM

Kevin Durant is in no rush to make a decision on whether he will leave Austin for the NBA.

"The NBA can wait," Durant told ESPN.com. "I love college so much and if I decide to stay, that's going to show a lot of freshmen that they don't have to go to college just for one year.

"I love my family so much at Texas and I really don't want to leave them," Durant said. "[The NBA] is my dream but it's going to be a hard decision."

ESPN

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NBA Talk Stressing Durant

Mar 22, 2007 8:17 PM

All the talk about whether he plans to leave Texas after one season for the NBA is becoming stressful for Kevin Durant, one of his close friends said today.

North Carolina freshman Ty Lawson said Durant sounded ?stressed out? after talking to him this morning. The two players, who played against each other while attending high school in Maryland, talk several times a week.

?Kevin right now is just trying to be a kid. He?s 18 years old,? Lawson said after workouts for North Carolina?s NCAA regional semifinal against Southern California on Friday. ?Everybody is calling his phone, leaving him text messages asking him if he?s going to the NBA or not. That?s a lot to put on him.

?He?s really not used to stuff like that. He?s kind of stressed out right now about stuff like that.?

Houston Chronicle

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Duke's McRoberts Will Enter NBA Draft

Mar 22, 2007 1:37 PM

Josh McRoberts' sophomore season at Duke ended on a sour note. The star forward will not try to redeem himself next year.

McRoberts announced Thursday that he will forego his last two years of eligibility and enter June's NBA draft.

Duke's second-leading scorer and top rebounder, the 6-10 McRoberts emerged as one of the nation's top big men this season, leading the Blue Devils to a 22-11 record and an 8-8 mark in the ACC.

Yahoo!

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Kobe Denies Durant Story

Mar 22, 2007 7:35 AM

Kobe Bryant angrily denied a story in Wednesday's Dallas Morning News claiming he had contacted University of Texas freshman star Kevin Durant at the direction of the Nike shoe company.

The story is vague about the source of the claim, saying, "Word is Kobe Bryant has already called Kevin Durant on behalf of Nike and that a shoe deal ranging between $30 million and $50 million simply needs to be presented."

Bryant responded after practice Wednesday at the Lakers' El Segundo training facility before boarding a plane for Memphis, where the Lakers will play the Grizzlies tonight.

""Don't print something that's just completely false," Bryant said. "That makes no sense whatsoever. It's really unprofessional.

"I've never spoken to [Durant]. I've never seen him. Obviously he's a phenomenal talent, watching him play on TV a couple of times. But I don't know him at all.

"I don't know where they got that story from, where they got that idea from or where they came up with that, but they might want to check their facts first."

L.A. Times

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Coaches Name Kevin Durant The Player Of The Year

Mar 22, 2007 5:12 AM

Texas freshman Kevin Durant has been named the Division I Player of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.

The 6-9 guard/forward from Suitland, Md., is the first freshman to win the honor.

Durant helped the Longhorns to a 25-10 record and a second-round appearance in the NCAA Tournament. He led the team in scoring (25.8 ppg) and rebounding (11.1 rpg), both of which ranked fourth nationally.

Durant tallied 20 double-doubles this year and set Texas and Big 12 records with eleven 30-point performances.

A member of the NABC All-America first team, Durant has also been named National Player of the Year by SI.com, ESPN.com and the Sporting News. He is one of five finalists for the Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA Player of the Year) and one of four finalists for the Naismith Award.

USA Today

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Durant's Future Tied To Shoe Deal?

Mar 21, 2007 9:55 AM

Word is Kobe Bryant has already called Kevin Durant on behalf of Nike and that a shoe deal ranging between $30 million and $50 million simply needs to be presented.

Taras Brown, the man who sculpted Durant's game back in Seat Pleasant, Md., and the man Durant calls his godfather, said a potential shoe deal - not Durant's draft placement - would be what shoves Durant to the NBA.

"Kevin will go two or three years at Texas, if he could," Brown said before the season. "It won't be because Kevin Durant or (Ohio State's) Greg Oden want to go. The shoe companies will make them an offer where it's impossible not to go."

The Olympian

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Scottie Reynolds Returning To Villanova

Mar 21, 2007 9:52 AM

Scottie Reynolds tap-danced a little bit around the subject, clearly uncomfortable with the questions, but after some repeated prodding the Villanova freshman said he fully intends to return to the Main Line for his sophomore season.

"Right now, I'm coming back," Reynolds said. "Right now, I'm not even thinking about it. Of course, there's the question but I'm not thinking about it. I'm ready to take on the new challenge for next year, help this team as much as possible to carry on the tradition."

Philadelphia Daily News

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Davis Says He's Going Pro

Mar 20, 2007 1:18 PM

Glen "Big Baby" Davis of LSU will skip his senior year to enter the NBA draft.

"After my toughest year, I now feel I am physically and mentally ready for the NBA," Davis said at Tuesday's announcement.

Globe And Mail

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Conley Sr. To Start Sports Representation Firm

Mar 20, 2007 12:42 PM

Mike Conley Sr., who coached Greg Oden in summer basketball and has known him since he was in sixth grade, has decided to start a sports representation firm.

The company will be called Mac Management Group after the founder's full name, Michael A. Conley.

"I just need to start putting things in place, not knowing what any of the guys are going to do," Conley Sr. said Monday, referring to several college players he knows who are in the position of making decisions about declaring for the NBA draft. "They're definitely going to do something this year or next, so if I'm going to do it, I need to put myself in the position to be ready when the time comes."

Conley Sr. said starting a firm should not be viewed as any indication that Oden has made a decision about whether to go pro this year. Ohio State is in the Sweet Sixteen, and Oden has said he won't make a decision about his future until the college season is complete.

"I have had zero conversations with Greg about this, and I promised (Ohio State coach) Thad (Matta) I wouldn't until after the season," Conley Sr. said.

"I'm not being presumptuous at all," Conley Sr. said about his long list of contacts.

"Getting into this business is not just for those individuals. I'm competitive. I want to be the best at what I do, and that's not going to stop when I enter the sports management business.

"Hopefully I can attract and share a vision with some of the athletes I know, but also with others and move their careers forward.

"He would be incredibly valuable, as valuable as you'd expect the first pick in the draft to be," said ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas, who is also an attorney.

"He's worth tens of millions of dollars. As a big guy, he might not get a shoe deal equal to what LeBron James got because big guys don't tend to sell shoes. But's he's a very marketable young man who will be worth tens of millions of dollars off the court."

Indianapolis Star

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Likely Lottery Pick Lopez Will Return To Stanford

Mar 20, 2007 5:20 AM

Stanford forward Brook Lopez won't be entering the NBA draft and will return to the play for the Cardinal next season.

"It is with great excitement and peace of mind that I plan to return to continue my education and be a member of the Stanford team next season," Lopez said. "I greatly enjoy my experience here as both a student and athlete and feel that it is important to continue to focus on maturing as a person, student and player with the assistance of my coaches, the Stanford faculty and my teammates."

According to ESPN.com's Andy Katz, the 7-foot, 240-pound Lopez would have been a likely lottery pick.

ESPN

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Brook Lopez Decides To Return To Stanford

ESPN

NBA Scouts Descend On Beijing To Watch Top Chinese Players

AP

Indiana's White Noncommittal On Draft Prospects

Indianapolis Star

Durant Unsure About Future

Houston Chronicle

Parents To Decide Future Of Texas' Durant

Memphis Commercial Appeal

Big Baby To Go Pro

SI.com

O.J. Mayo Cited For Marijuana Possession

L.A. Times

Durant Leads Longhorns' Comeback From 20 Down

San Antonio Express-News

Durant Tells Teammates He'll Be Back

Dallas Morning News

Durant Named Big 12 Basketball Player Of The Year

Associated Press

Durant Hurts Ankle Against Kansas

Dallas Morning News