After watching the 2002 NBA Draft for more than three hours and seeing 10 point guards selected, Marcus Taylor was finally taken by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 52nd pick.
The 6-foot-3 guard is the third underclassmen the MSU men’s basketball team has lost to the NBA in the last two years and the 51st Spartan to be drafted. Former Spartans Jason Richardson and Zach Randolph were first round selections in last year’s draft.
“I didn’t get picked exactly where I wanted,” Taylor said. “I just have to make the best of the situation.”
Taylor said he never worked out with the Timberwolves, and didn’t know they selected him until he saw his name flash across the screen.
Many, including former NBA star Charles Barkley, believed Taylor would have benefited from another year at MSU.
“To go this late in the draft, it puts so much pressure on you to make the team,” said Barkley during the draft. “If he had another great year, he could’ve gone in the top five or top 10 in the draft.”
Taylor said Barkley is known for making bold opinions.
Mike Kahn, executive editor of CBS SportsLine.com, said Minnesota is a good fit for Taylor, adding the health of the Timberwolves’ regular starting point guard is in question.
“They definitely are in need of a point guard,” Kahn said. “Terrell Brandon is coming off knee surgery and there has been some concern of whether it’s a career threatening injury.”
Kahn added that backup point guards Chauncey Billups and William Avery are no longer in the mix. He said Billups opted out of his contract and Avery wasn’t offered an extension.
“They really don’t have any point guards,” Kahn said. “He couldn’t have picked a better place to have an opportunity. It he’s got it, he’ll make it there.”
Taylor led the Spartans to the first round of the 2002 NCAA Tournament and a 19-12 record. In the 2001-2002 season, the Lansing native averaged 16.8 points and 5.3 assists and collected first-team All-Big Ten honors.
In Big Ten games, he averaged 17.7 points and five assists to become only the second player in Big Ten history to lead the conference in scoring and assists.
Spartan head coach Tom Izzo believes Taylor could have benefited from another season, but supported his player’s decision 100 percent. Minnesota head coach Flip Saunders had conversations with Izzo about Taylor.
“Flip knows a lot about Marcus because I shared a lot of information with him,” Izzo said in a written statement. “Marcus couldn’t have gone to a better team.”
Other than Taylor, the draft carried a foreign flavor as the Houston Rockets selected Chinese center Yao Ming with the No. 1 overall player. All told, 13 foreign players were selected.
Fresno State forward Melvin Ely was the first college senior taken, going 12th overall to the Los Angeles Clippers. It marked the lowest a college senior has ever been selected in the NBA Draft.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
