[TerpSam]

Everyone is saying that Dixon will be a bust and that he got picked way too early. The Wizards needed a point guard badly at the time. You are going to tell me Dixon is not a point guard. Well if you watched any of the Wizards summe rleague games you know that Dixon ran the offense quite well. He wasn't shooting so great but still led the Wizards in scoring, assists, and steals which is all you can ask from a point guard. Would you rather have Frank Williams or Dan Dickau when you could have a winner that never gives up. Dixon got just a smuch trash-talk when Gary Williams recruited him to Maryland. Everyone said he was too small and Gary was crazy for picking him up. Next thing you know, Juan gives him 2 Final Fours and leads the Terps to an NCAA championship.

Plus if there is any team that could use a guy like Juan at point guard, it's the Wizards. They run a triangle offense, and now have many players capable of playing more than one position in Dixon, hughes, Hamilton (ran the point at times), Jordan, and Jeffries. As much as I hate Wes Unseld and hi smanagement decisions for the Wiz, he put it best when he said "We aren't looking for point guard, small forwards, or centers, we're looking for basketball players". A lot of NBA teams waste draft picks and pass up on great trade sbecause they are too worried aobut having a "true" center or point guard. Well, when the Wizards make the playoffs next year or the year after without a single "true" point guard getting more than 20 minutes a game, you will see why they run the triangle and why it works.

 

[Hawkeye Pierce]

anyone else think dixon could be great playing a reggie miller type of offense just alot of screens and shots, but he IS to short to play the 2 like reggie so it wouldnt work as well, but he should do well with the wiz, he can shoot the ball well and makes good decisions.

 

[Brick]

i think dixon will be a fine role player on a winning team. he might not have the size or athleticism, but he's too competitive and has too much leadership skills to not be.

 

[HAWK23]

he should be a steve kerr type player, hitting big shots when left open

 

[TerpSam]

I'm glad you guys are confident in Dixon, but I don't agree with the type of player you think he is. Dixon lacks size to play the 2-spot, tohugh he may get some time at the 2 with the Wiz since Larry Hughes can play the point and guard 2-guards. Dixon does not lack athleticism at all. He isn't a freak in terms of vertical leap, but he is extremely quick, and his footspeed was a bi reaosn why he lead the ACC in steals. Also, Dixon won't be a Steve Kerr player. He is much more versatile, plays MUCH better defense, and can create his own shot to some extent. I don't know if Juan can get ROY witht he Wizards log jam at the point and 2-spot, but he is a lot more NBA-ready than people give him credit for.

 

[CoolHandLuke]

Gosh, I hate reading stuff posted by Maryland fans. Rookie of the Year, Juan Dixon!? You gotta be kidding.

Going into the draft, I had huge arguments over at draftnet with Maryland fans about whether or not Juan Dixon will suck. He will. The guy's not big enough. If he were 6-6, it'd be a much different story. But anyone that watched Maryland for the past four years SHOULD know, that Juan Dixon just isn't going to be able to play the point in the NBA; it's painfully obvious.

Dixon can shoot. That's all he'll be able to do in the NBA. Maybe he'll get time at the end of games just TO shoot, but he's not going to ever be able to play a large part in any team's offense. Horrible pick at 17.

 

[CoolHandLuke]

Oh, and on his LEADERSHIP SKILLS and HEART.

They don't mean anything.

If you can make it to the NBA, you'd better have heart or be talented enough not to need it. And I wish people would stop talking about his "heart" like it's something unusual; you'd be hardpressed to find a Division III football player without that much "heart."

But most absurd is this thing about his "leadership skills." Do you honestly think that any NBA veteran gives a damn what the hell some ROOKIE says? Yeah, a ROOKIE is going to be able to be a leader.

Leadership, heart; the two most overrated qualities in sports. It's like saying the Patriots made the Super Bowl because of Tom Brady's determination, and rejecting the fact that he's got talent, that he fits well with the Pats offense, that the team's offensive line played outstanding for their talent, that Damien Woody solidified his position as the best center in the game, that Antowain Smith became the back he was in Buffalo three or four years ago, that Troy Brown stepped up, that Richard Seymour was dominating as a rookie, that Bryan Cox and Roman Phifer came in and gave good minutes and used their experience to prevent defensive mistakes, that Ty Law and Lawyer Milloy both played out of their minds, even for them, and many other factors. If anybody was a leader on that team, it was guys like Cox, Brown, Phifer, Otis Smith. Brady hasn't been around long enough for any teammates to consider him a "leader." The same will be true with Juan Dixon. You can have all the heart, determination, grit, leadership skills, whatever, that you want, but in the NBA, you need the TALENT, too. That's something Juan Dixon just doesn't have.

 

[cmd34]

I know 6'4" is not ideal for a shooting guard but some of you guys are acting like it's impossible for him to play there. Byron Scott was 6'4" and Joe Dumars was 6''3". They were both pretty successful shooting guards.

As far as the "heart" issue...a player could have more heart and be more determined than another just like a player can be faster than another or stronger. I would say Mark Madsen has a lot more heart than Vin Baker.