Someone Will Say Yao, but Will It Be Rockets?

By MARK HEISLER

June 26, 2002 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Fortunately for everyone involved, the NBA draft is today, providing an end point to what has turned into gathering chaos.

As Tuesday’s endless countdown ebbed into weary night, there were these developments:

* The Houston Rockets, frustrated at failing to secure a letter of release from China’s basketball federation, were wondering if they dared go ahead and draft Yao Ming.

Of course, if the Rockets don’t take Yao, after multiple trips to China and months of negotiations, how far will he fall before someone takes a chance on him?

(How about No. 7, to the desperate New York Knicks, who romanced Yao for a month, despite having only a 4% chance at him in the lottery? Of course, if Yao goes there, this will start the David Stern-Knicks conspiracy talk all over.)

* Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls, who are counting on getting Jay Williams in the No. 2 spot, are petrified, fearing the Rockets will trade the pick to someone who’ll steal their point guard of the future.

* The Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers seemed close to agreement on a deal giving the Clippers point guard Andre Miller for their No. 8 and 12 picks and either Lamar Odom, Darius Miles or Corey Maggette

With Gund selling the franchise, Cavalier officials say they intend to go the Clipper way, stockpiling young players and cutting their payroll.

This means finding takers for veterans Lamond Murray, Wes Person, Tyrone Hill and Jumaine Jones. Or as another general manager noted, “Good luck.”

The Cavaliers aren’t saying it, but people suspect they’re also thinking of losing 70 games or so and lucking into local phenom LeBron James in the ’03 draft.

The Cavaliers recently were fined $150,000 for letting the high school junior from nearby Akron work out with them, although, as Coach John Lucas noted, he had done it before--in Philadelphia when he let Kobe Bryant practice with the 76ers.

“I would never do anything to try to get up to get a kid, especially when you have to lose all your games and you have to get [lottery] balls to pick the kid,” Lucas said. “If that was the case, he’d be playing for another coach.”

Not that the Cavaliers wouldn’t make that trade.

* Portland’s Bob Whitsitt, who loves phenoms, however young and problematic (Shawn Kemp coming out of high school and Rasheed Wallace after his turbulent rookie season in Washington), reportedly was going to trade up, presumably for the 19-year-old, 6-10, 250-pound Brazilian, Nene Hilario, or Amare Stoudemire, a 6-8, 233-pound high school senior.

* Then there were the teams--Indiana, Detroit, New Jersey, Sacramento--considering trading their first-round pick to save money

As it has been more and more, the draft will be dominated by foreign players and young Americans.

Three international stars--Yao, Hilario and 19-year-old Georgian Nikoloz Tskitishvili--are expected to go in the lottery, with at least three more ticketed for the first round. If the Rockets take Yao, he’ll be the first foreign-born player who didn’t attend school in the U.S. to be chosen No. 1 overall.

Last spring, the first college senior, Shane Battier, went to Memphis at No. 5. This spring, only one, Fresno State’s Melvin Ely, even has a chance at the bottom of the lottery.

The 12 other lottery picks are expected to include the three foreigners, four juniors, three sophomores, a freshman and a prep player.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

LOTTERY ORDER

1. Houston

2. Chicago

3. Golden State

4. Memphis

5. Denver

6. Cleveland

7. New York

8. Clippers

9. Phoenix