Dear John Paxson

On the eve of the 2006 NBA Draft this is an open letter to the GM of the Chicago Bulls. I beg and plead with you to use your pick (the #2 overall) to take Brandon Roy. I know that Tyrus Thomas and LaMarcus Aldridge have more upside and possibly more potential, but Brandon Roy is the better player. He knows how to play and he knows how to lead. He may not have that "upside", "freak athleticism", or "motor" that the other two do, but I guarantee you, he will be the best player to come out this draft. He dominated and the college level and he knows how to win. Don't take my word for it, take the word of the experts. The following are taken from Scouts Inc., the scouting reports for ESPN Insider.

Brandon Roy: " Roy might have been the most complete player in college basketball last season. He has great height, length and athleticism for the guard position. He did not play the point for Washington, but that may be his best position at the next level. Roy has excellent quickness, and is wiry strong. This kid will be a lottery pick because he has no major flaws in his game. He will be ready in his rookie year to contribute, because his game is so complete. Look for him to go in the first 5-7 picks. "

Tyrus Thomas: "Thomas is a "freak" athlete. He has great hops, is extremely long and is one of the quickest jumpers in the college game. He is a high-flyer and incredibly explosive around the rim. In college, if the ball was thrown anywhere up near the rim, he got it. He is weak physically and needs to gain more strength for the NBA game. He may be stuck initially between the 4 and 3 positions. He does not have enough of a low-post game to play the power forward, and his perimeter skills are lacking to be a small forward. However, because of his size, athleticism, energy and ability to score in other ways right now, he will go in the top 1-3 picks in the draft."

LaMarcus Aldridge: "Aldridge has a tremendous upside because of his great length, excellent reach and athleticism. He runs the floor every time in transition, both on the offensive and defensive ends of the floor. He is very active on missed shots; and he goes to the glass. He's a little weak in his upper body and hands going for rebounds. Will improve with added strength. Big-time shot-blocker; very active defensively. Appears to have quick enough feet, to be able to make rotations in defensive assignments. Aldridge will be a lottery pick, and quite possibly the No. 1 pick of the 2006 draft. He has the athleticism and tools to be an impact player as a rookie. Needs added strength to deal with the physical play of the NBA to be effective and so he will not break down. "

Now having read those three descriptions, who would you pick? The guy who was the most complete player in college basketball and who can contribute now, or the guy who needs added strength for the NBA game? That's what I thought. The Chicago Bulls have gotten back to the playoffs by drafting proven college players and proven winners. Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Chris Duhon, and even Andres Nocioni who won the gold medal with Argentina the last Olympics. Don't thwart that progress with a project. Draft the guy who is proven and is one of the more exciting players to watch. He went to battle every game in the NCAA Tournament. He did his best to win those games, and had it not been for UCONN getting in the way in the Double OT game and the lack of help to Roy, Washington might have gone farther. This to me is eerily reminiscent of the 2003 draft. There is definitely not as much talent as the 2003 draft, who had Lebron, Wade, Carmelo, and Chris Bosch, but it does remind me of it because of how Wade was underrated. Wade went behind Darko Milicic for goodness sakes. I remember watching Wade in Marquette's Final Four run and thinking, "that kid is going to be special." That's the same feeling I got with Roy. Look how Wade turned out, he just dominated the NBA Finals and was responsible for the Heats NBA Championship in only his 2nd season. If the Bulls pick Roy, the have a lot of pieces in place...... One last reminder, Mr. Paxson, for every project drafted, like Kobe Bryant, there is a Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Sam Bowie, Michael Olowokandi...the list goes on and on. Do the right thing, pick the one who is proven.