Beau Dure article analysis thread

I did read this last week.

"Two teams even passed on their last picks rather than drafting David Beckham on the odd chance that Posh Spice decides she's had enough of the English rain."

Some MLS team ought to do something like that - cheap publicity. Someone would pick up on it besides Mr Dure. It would be good for a laugh at the least. Its worked out for the Cowboys a couple of times.

Kind of related:

As far as San Jose is concerned: With Wade Barrett seemingly gone, Mulrooney maybe gone, Joe Cannon maybe gone to spite MLS, Eklund status up in the air - all that cap space maybe soon cleared - did they let Graziani go a month too early?

They may need his goals more than ever and have had the cap space to keep him.

 

Jacqua is my early 2003 MLS ROY favorite.

Dure's the only who even sees him breaking in to the starting lineup.

 

where may be mulrooney going?

i hadn't heard

 

Keller's old Rayo Vallecano in La Liga.

Potentially disastrous for the Quakes, IMHO. I think he's the only one of that bunch that the quakes CANNOT afford to lose.

Barret's replacement, Dunivant, is my #2 pick for 2003 ROY, btw.

 

Dure mentions Lucci Gonzalez as part of a crowded forward situation in Columbus, but some people see him pushing for time on the right wing.

 

I went so far as to say he'd start in the season opener, but that's not so much because he'll be that good as the Fire will be without Razov or Selolwane. I mean, I certainly hope he's that good, but that's not why I figured he'd start.

There's a right mid spot that is probably up for grabs on the Fire as well.

Later,
COZ

 

Lucci couldn't push ahead of Ian Russell or Devin Barclay on the right wing for the Quakes. I don't see Lucci doing much on the RW for the Crew ahead of West and Buddle.

 

I've probably seen as much or more of Nate as anyone here, and I can tell you from many first-hand games, even since his high school days, the rate at which Nate has made himself a better soccer player has been remarkable. This year, especially, for the Pilots, Nate has been a load for any team to defend.

What happens when the opponents get tougher, when the games get faster, the seasons get longer, and the systems get more complex? If other UP alumni are to be any indication, Clive Charles - regardless what you may think about him - does a fine job of getting his top talents ready for the next level. Gray, Casey, Cherundolo, and even going way back to Kasey Keller - Clive's kids come ready to play.

That said, I give Nate about 2-2 1/2 months before he makes a serious impact in MLS and on the Fire roster. In the long run, I believe two picks will stick out in this draft - Clark and Jaqua. And Jaqua might make both DCU and the Metros feel like dolts for not picking him when they had the chance.

As for any comparisons to Jaqua and Casey, let me quickly say that the similarities really revolve around size alone, as Nate has quite a different game than did Casey at the same level. He is not as strong as Casey, but his vision is better. Casey over time developed an OK first touch, Nate's touch - at the collegiate level - was better from day one. Casey was certainly a very strong collegiate athlete, and I believe that as he gets healthy he'll get his career back on the same track we saw at the end of Hannover's season last year, but to be honest, based on the rate that Nate has improved, I think it might just be Jaqua who excels above his fellow UP peers.

In short, great pick for the Fire.

 

I would have loved to see a DCU front line of Jaqua and Quaranta. Big, young and talented.

In three years Eksandarian will either be in the A-Leauge or Europe. Your guess is as good as mine.

Sachin

 

Good! Finally, someone takes issue with this column. I couldn't possibly have gotten everything right.

In past years, there were a few oddball picks along these lines (the Galaxy's pick of Cory Gibbs, who was quite content with St. Pauli, was one -- they also picked up Robert Russell when he was under contract elsewhere. One such pick that worked -- the Fire's first-round pick of Evan Whitfield a while back). But yes, MLS may well have changed the rules without me hearing about it. I figured they steered clear of A-League picks (which Will Kuhns reported before the fact) because the USL agreement had expired, but no one brought any other changes to my attention.

It's really not quite a "SuperDraft" any more, is it? They're now talking about a supplemental draft for some of the experienced pros who won't be allocated or "discovered."

It has gotten curious. Perhaps it'll be explained when MLS announces a supplemental draft. Or not.

Now if someone could explain why the Revs drafted a bunch of people who don't get roster protection ... (you'll notice which team announced a waiver soon after the draft!)

 

Worth noting: I've never seen the guy play. As with everything else in the analysis, it's based pretty much on who's left on each team's roster and what type of player they could use. If this guy's a half-decent offensive force -- and I'm not going to second-guess all the scouts who say he is -- then he's a good pick. Chicago doesn't have a lot of depth up front (unlike, say, Columbus).

 

Beau,

The three teams that you mentioned as having a sub-par draft in 2002 were DC, NE (except for Twellman) and SJ. Is it just a coincidence that all three of these teams are coached by Europeans? Or do American coaches have a better feel for American players and the drafting system? How about 1,500 words on that aspect of the draft?

Murf

 

I forget where I read that one of the more comical aspects of the NASL was watching a bunch of European coaches who knew nothing about the college game picking a bunch of guys who were never going to play.

I think this is probably coincidence, though I wonder if New England puts enough thought into roster depth. Last year, San Jose returned most of a championship team, so it was a moot point. D.C. blundered a bit with the whole Kante situation.

Or perhaps Sigi has an advantage because he was a college guy first.

 

I've seen him play and I think you are spot on. Early in the first match of the Combine, he was running around in the box before a corner, this big tall guy mind you, and some very good defenders just could not mark him. The corner was taken, he ran to where the ball was going and timed his leap perfectly with a big strong header into the net - keeper had no chance. Scored the same way against Portugal for the U23s.