My impression is that I wasn't impressed. They went for youth, for sure, but none of the names really jumped out at me. Thought for sure they would take O'Brien and take Razov (and trade his rights). They must have other big-name signings in the works is all that I can figure. Freddy's going to need help, and their front line sucks right now.
We went young that is for sure. Jacqua was almost a given. We also mostly went defensive. I dont see how you can say our front line sucks, it is incomplete. But we already have Jacqua who is a proven scorer in MLS, Le Toux who has shown he can score against MLS defenders. I am sure our offense is already on more solid footing than San Jose was when they rejoined. If our defense can play at even 80% of what San Jose did to start we should be looking good. Khano was an unexpected choice. Jarrod Smith I don't know mcuh about. Peter Vagenas has been roundly lambasted and is seen as our worst choice but there may be reasons for this choice that are not immediately obvious. It may bear fruit later as opposed to immediately. Finally we have set ourselves up to have an attack and midfield oriented superdraft. And the expansion draft may have been a portent of what players we are poaching from the USL Sounders.
I gave this draft a 6. Evans was a strong pick, but I also thought picking anyone other than Evans or perhaps Moffat from Columbus would have been so dumn you have to spel it rong. But he and King are both underrated. The Razov and O'Brien suggestions smack of people who don't know how this works. You don't load up on guys who are highly paid and are either old or have injury histories just because they happen to have been above average attackers at one point. Those guys wind up albatrosses around your neck. I would have taken Randolph instead of Vagenas like you talked about, and Smith is a puzzler. Pitchkolan of Dallas seemed a better pick than some of the guys you took like Riley. I liked Khano, actually. At times he'll frustrate the hell out of you, but he also provides an unpredictable element from time to time that will open up your offense. Wahl is a useful body on D, which is where you need them (that is, much better to add an extra Tyson Wahl than an extra, say, Calen Carr). Also liked the Parke pick, he'll be looking to redeem himself. Then you have Sturgis, which is a total roll of the dice. You could be huge winners, or the pick could end up a complete waste. I think doing that once was a good idea, and doing it twice would have been a bad one. Though you could also have taken Petke and, as history bore out, traded him to NY. Corey Ashe might have been a better pick than Jaqua in terms of output per salary, but I think the fix was in on that one.
I went with a 7. It is a 6 if Parke jets off to Europe. I love the Sturgis pick if he can get/stay healthy.
I gave them a 3 because that's how many players I would actually want out of what they picked. I don't rate Jaqua, Smith, Smith, or Parke that highly, and there were actually better picks from those teams (Ashe, the other Smith, Phelan, and Mendes). Vagenas and Wahl are headscratchers, as neither is starting quality. Sturgis is made of glass, has had problems on turf, and now has to com back on the same surface? Definite pass, especially with both Kovalenko and Williams available. Either one is an instant starter for Seattle's midfield. So, King, Evans, and Riley are at least young and have potential. They're also dirt-cheap, which will mean a lot when Seattle eventually signs all their USL players (Eylander, Gardner, Graham, Sakuda, etc.). But the core of this draft likely won't help much.
Solid for sure. The only pick that I would consider a head scratcher is Vagenas. Expensive and ************. I actually like the Jarrod Smith pick. Under the radar but he is a beast and could turn into something special.
I read where Henderson said they actually asked some players if they would feel comfortable playing in Seattle. If they asked O'brien, you can bet he said no. He begged out of Toronto because of the turf, and I'm sure he would of been none to happy to have been selected. I gave them a five, which would of been a six if Henderson had picked the right Smith from Toronto. Also, perhaps its just me, but I find Nate Jaqua to be vastly overrated. Especially for the salary he commands. Has everyone forgotten how awful he was in LA?
I'm sorry, I don't mean to be a grammer nazi, but the guy plays for our club now. Let's try to get his name right. It's Jaqua
I'd prefer he (Jaqua) played as awful for us as he did for Houston and the Austrian clubs. Gave the draft a 6. It is clear that we were not planning to use the expansion draft to 'make our club' from, but rather to accent it. This means (god let's hope) that we've got some gamers in the pipeline.
Thats not a grammar nazi, thats a spelling nazi which is ironic since you misspelt grammar . And I don't know why I have always spelt Jaqua with a 'C' issue noted I will correct it. Just set in my ways there I guess.
Jaqua is way overrated, but I'm still happy "we" got him... we picked the wrong smith, but overall I would have gave us a 9, but we also drafted one of my least favorite players in MLS history, Khano Smith, so that drops us to a 7 or 8... but we also picked the high priced worthless player that is The Great Peter Vagenas, which drops us from a 7 or 8 down to a 2 or 3. He's THAT bad. Still just an expansion draft, could only expect one or two players to make an impact and one or two more to even make the roster or play for us this season, so getting Evans, Riley and Jaqua out of this draft is good for me. But judging it overall on all 10 picks, we didn't do good...
it's a pot luck assembly, as with all drafts. no matter what you do, you're not going to put together a 'team' on expansion draft day. they seem to have found two midfield starters in evans and king, which helps a lot. wahl and parke in defense, if you're being optimistic, give you a good start. jaqua was a given. khano smith i would have passed on, more headache than it's worth, even considering some good soccer attributes. vagenas is the 'talent.' but like smith, only on an expansion team could he get the headlines. riley was inconsistent but works hard. jarrod smith is a reasonable bet. on the whole, imo it shapes up just like an expansion team would. i don't know the usl talent they have availble, maybe that will help. it certainly is a nice extra source.
He's got a magical ability to head the ball into the ground and over the goal from 2 feet in front of the empty net.
I've blogged multiple draft reviews here. Newer reviews are more favorable: http://www.socceramerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=29850 http://sounderatheart.com/2008/11/missing-elements-in-expansion-draft-reaction/ MLSnet.com video reel of drafted players
Which is why I find it surprising that so many people refer to him as a target forward. He's as awkward as Wolyniec once he jumps up. However, his ability to hold the ball is decent, so maybe he can be to setup man up top.
Aside from Khano Smith I thought they did well enough. I'm absolutely perplexed as to why anyone would want him on their team. He's a red waiting to happen who I predict will receive the longest suspension and largest fine in the 2009 season*. I also estimate his red cards will outnumber his goals 2:1. Unless perhaps he receives some therapy in the off-season. *EDIT - For conduct on the field. This prediction excludes PED suspensions, etc.