Bulls select ex-KU guard with seventh overall pick

By David Mitchell, Sports Writer, Friday, June 27, 2003

New YorkKirk Hinrich was selected sooner than expected Thursday at Madison Square Garden. The wait still was as bad as Kansas University's former All-American guard had imagined.

"It think it might be the worst feeling I've had," said Hinrich, who had to wait more than 30 minutes before commissioner David Stern finally called his name at the 2003 NBA draft. "It's just a crazy process, sitting there watching the clock tick. But I'm just thrilled. I'm glad it's over, and I'm ready to take the next step."

Many analysts had projected Hinrich as the eighth pick in the draft with Milwaukee, but he went seventh to Chicago. He was the second guard taken -- Marquette shooting guard Dwyane Wade went fifth to Miami -- and the first point guard selected. "He was extremely nervous after the first three picks," said Jim Hinrich, Kirk's father and high school coach. "He knew he had at least a chance at five. After each pick, it got a little more nervous. His spirits were OK. He was just nervous. I think that's the most nervous I've ever seen him."

When Stern announced the Bulls' pick, Kirk Hinrich pumped his fist and celebrated with his parents, sister Jill and KU strength and conditioning coordinator Jonas Sahratian. "I thought maybe they were going to call my name," he said. "The commissioner got there, and he paused longer than he did on all the other ones. I don't know why he did that -- trying to build up the hype. I was just really happy, and I wanted to get out of there and see where I was going to go. Chicago's a great situation, I think."

Texas point guard T.J. Ford -- who won the Naismith and Wooden awards as college basketball's player of the year -- went one pick later to Milwaukee.

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AP Photo
Kansas University product Kirk Hinrich hugs his sister, Jill, after he was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the 2003 NBA draft. Hinrich was picked No. 7 and fellow KU product Nick Collison No. 12 Thursday in New York.
  

"I was really happy," Jim Hinrich said. "I think T.J.'s a great player. That's something that's out of your control. I wanted to see Kirk go as the No. 1 point guard, and that has nothing to do with T.J. other than that he's a point guard."

Former KU All-American Nick Collison went five picks later to Seattle as the 12th selection, marking the first time two Jayhawks were picked in the first round since Raef LaFrentz and Paul Pierce were selected third and 10th in 1998. Collison and Hinrich each worked out for Chicago, but Hinrich originally was not interested in the Bulls because they already had Jay Williams, Jalen Rose, Trenton Hassell, Jamal Crawford and Eddie Robinson.

The Bulls' needs changed drastically when Williams, a former Duke standout, suffered career-threatening injuries in a recent motorcycle accident. "It's tough because I know Jay," Hinrich said. "We came out of high school the same year. He's a great guy, and I really feel for him. The rumors were that Chicago was going to take a point guard, and I thought I had a good chance of being drafted. ... The situation is tough. I know everyone is kind of in mourning about it there because nobody knows what's going to happen."

Williams recently had a second surgery on his damaged pelvis. "He's in for a long road," Bulls coach Bill Cartwright said in an ESPN interview. "But if anybody can make it back from this, it's him." The Bulls aren't taking any chances, though, and they're thrilled to have Hinrich. "He's a grade-A kid," Cartwright said. "He's tough. We like him, and he'll fit in nicely."

The Bulls will have to pay for their investment. As the seventh pick, Hinrich will be guaranteed $1,821,600 in base salary as a rookie and $5,874,700 during his first three years in the league. Hinrich also will have money rolling in from endorsement deals. He showed up during ESPN's draft broadcast in an advertisement for an EA Sports video game.

Thursday night, Hinrich was more concerned about his role with the Bulls than how much they might pay him. The 6-foot-3 Sioux City, Iowa, native played both point guard and shooting guard at Kansas, but wants to play the point in the NBA. "I think I'm a point guard," said Hinrich, who averaged 17.3 points, 3.5 assists and 1.9 steals per game as a senior. "But I think I have the versatility and ability to play the other spot if needed. I did that a lot this year so it's something I'm used to, but I do feel I'm a point guard. "I think I can handle a team and be a point guard, make good decisions, make plays and look for my teammates. I'll carry over a lot of things I did in college. I just have to do it better."

After a long wait, Hinrich finally knows who those teammates will be. "Kirk knows the draft is over," Jim Hinrich said, "and now the hard work begins."

Source:  KUSports.com 6/27/03