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2C SPORTS/tCJe ClwrlatU $o« Thursday, February 12, 2004 GMium setnes into leadliig role at J.C. SmHh Continued from page 1C “It started off (as a) confi dence thing,” he said. “I did n’t know my role and identi fy what was going on in the system but once I started to fit into the system and learn what was going on and trust what coach was saying to me, then I began to relax and play my game.” “He’s 6-5 and has one of those (former NBA player) Dell Curry-type jump shots,” Joyner said. “He doesn’t need much room to get it off, but he needs more confi dence, more strength, more stamina. And he’s even beginning to put the ball on the floor a little bit. As an offensive talent, he’s reaUy learning and developing.” Smith, which is in con tention for the West Division lead despite a 12-12 overall record, will need Ciybum’s best effort to get to the post season. Because the scoring load has shifted to the front court, Ciybum’s ball han dling and scoring are critical. “I don’t feel I’m the best ball handler on the team .. .but coach told me I have to step up and take the role I have, that I have to play to my abilities,” he said. “I know half the people in this league are decent defenders. but I also have to step up my game as well and play at the level my team needs me to play at.” As good as Clybum is,now, .Joyner believes he has room to grow. With another season to mature, his best days are still ahead. “I really wish we had two more years with Chris,” Joyner said. “I think he could be something special. His conditioning has been off a little bit the last year and a half but he’s getting better there. If he has a good off season, I think he’s going to be a tremendous player next year.” League and colleges get rich off players, so why shouldn’t Buckeyes star? Continued from page 1C mles are. Even when the stupid three-year mle was in force, kids such as Tbxas’ Ricky Williams and Tennessee’s Peyton Manning stayed and got their degrees. And that’s great. That’s the way I would love for it to be with everyone. But we have to be honest: There are hordes of NFL-cal- iber players in college mere ly focused on staying acade mically eligible so they can enter the draft. Actually, there are coaches who only worry about their players staying .eligible until they leave. At least now, thanks to Clarett, there’s an air of legitimacy about the process for everyone involved. The NFL and the NCAA aren’t the only parties that can benefit from the system. Sure, the quality of the col lege game will be hurt with teen-agers going pro. But if you claim to be a diehard fan of a particular school, you get a chance to prove it now. Besides, as a “regular” stu dent or alumnus of a college, why would you want a guy there who clearly didn’t want to be there? Why should coaches and adminis trators try and hold a kid hostage or, worse, force him to the streets if he doesn’t want to be at the school? ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. says Clarett won’t get drafted until the second round. Other draft gurus question whether Clarett is big and strong enough to survive in the NFL at all. Whatever. Of course, all the NFL teams can get together and make a pact not to draft Clarett- or any other teen ager - this April. Such a unit ed front would show how serious the NFL is about having emotionally and physically mature players in the league. Right? Right? Give me a break. Someone will draft Clarett - and any other amazingly gifted fresh man or sophomore who can make an impact. Clarett’s too good to pass up. . See, every NFL team is about trying to make money. Every team has to go out on a limb every once in a while in its ovm best interests. Sort of like the underclass men such as Clarett, huh? C JEMAL HORTON is a Post columnist. E-mail him at seeje- tnalwrite @ aol.com. VlOApl® NFL asks judge to stay order on draft By Larry Neumeister THE ASSOCIATED TRESS NEW YORK - The NFL asked a judge Tuesday to suspend her decision to allow high school players into the draft, argu ing that an onslaught of teenagers would harm the league, its athletes and college football, U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin issued her ruling last Thursday in a lawsuit by Ohio State ruiming back Maurice Clarett, a 20-year-old sophomore who played just one season in college before trying to enter the draft. The NFL asked the judge for a stay while it appeals, saying a higher court may not be able to rule before the April draft. “Absent a stay, countless college underclassmen, as well as high school students who lack the physical and psychological maturity to succeed in professional football, will be encour aged prematurely to declare themselves eligible for the NFL draft,” it said. At issue is a league mle that a player must be out of high school for three years before he is eligible for the draft. The NFL argued that the mle is for the young players’ own good: It is designed to make sure they are big enough and strong enough to play with the pros. The league said “immediate enforcement of the court ruling will encourage teenage athletes to overtrain — or worse — to use steroids or dangerous nutritional supplements in the hope of rapidly developing the strength and speed required to com pete in the NFL,” Scheindlin, however, said the eligibility rule violates antitmst law by denying young athletes the right to market their talents. The NFL has set a March 1 deadline for high school players and college underclassmen to apply for the draft, pending its appeal. The league said that without a stay, its 32 clubs will be forced to evaluate and interview a large number of prospective NFL players. Those players then would sacrifice their schol arships and education for an uncertain future, ultimately per haps displacing NFL veterans. “There would also be corresponding serious, dismptive and irreparable effects on the college football programs that invested substantial sums in recmiting these players and fos tering their athletic development,” the NFL said. Bulls aim for history Continued from page 1C at the fifth spot. “All of these guys basically played No. 1 in high school,” Cuthbertson said. “When you can get the No. 1 players from high school, you can have a pretty good team.” It’s also important to work with American-born ath letes, Cuthbertson said, an exception for many collegiate programs. Although black Americans like Chandra Rubin, Venus and Serena Williams and James Blake have high professional pro files, there’s room for more starting in college. “We’re trying to win with Americans,” Cuthbertson said. ‘We’re trying to get tougher and upgrade to make a statement. I want to create students who leave and will teach their kids to play so we can get more black kids to play at black colleges. That way, you can get more black players on the (professional) tour. The only way that’ll happen is for there to be black college ten nis players,” Mercedes-Benz 2003 Model Milestone! As much as 15,000! Stock# 1 Model 1 Color 1 MSRP 1 Sale Price 9971 CL500C Black M01,920 '86,967 9906 CL500C Silver '96,205 *81,918 9716 G500 Silver V4,465 *71,153 9587 S500V4 Pewter '93,340 *78,922 625 S430V4 Silver '79,250 '66,417 9287 E500W Silver '58,620 *50,139 029 CLK500C White '55,695 '49,606 9748 CLK500C Black '57,495 ‘51,387 9950 CLK500C Silver '58,475 '52,062 9595 CLK500C Silver '57,500 *51,201 9887 C240S Blue *36,625 '29,192 9613 C240W4 Black '36,395 '29,488 C320W Silver '41,780 '32,605 5141 East Independence Blvd. | Charlotte, NC 28212 | 800,532.0595 | 704.535.6400 1 www.becklmports.com 1 Mon-Fri 7am-7pm [ Sat 8am-5pm
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Feb. 12, 2004, edition 1
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