NBA universe reacts to Milwaukee’s shock selection of Aussie Thon Maker

BEN Simmons went at No. 1, but the selection of another Aussie in the NBA Draft, despite controversy, came out of nowhere.

Thon Maker, right, poses for a photo with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected 10th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks.

THE NBA Draft is one of the best reported sporting events in the world.

Every pick in Friday’s first round was revealed by a journalist on Twitter several minutes before NBA commissioner Adam Silver read the player’s name out on stage at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn.

But there was one selection which left many well-connected reporters and team staffers scratching their heads — the Milwaukee Bucks’ decision to grab Australian power forward Thon Maker at pick 10.

Maker was seen to be a late first round pick in the 20-30 range for most of the lead-up to the draft but around half an hour before it started whispers began he could go much earlier.

Despite an 11th-hour controversy about his age, the Bucks were preparing to use their first round selection on the supremely-athletic Sudanese-born youngster who spent his formative years in Australia before moving to the US and then Canada to develop his game.

It left draft analysts scratching their heads but after the Philadelphia 76ers selected Aussie Ben Simmons at pick one, Milwaukee followed through by adding the seven-footer to a roster which already includes young stars Giannis Antetokounmp and Jabari Parker.

See a pick by pick run down of today’s draft here.

This is how the NBA universe reacted to the biggest shocker of the 2016 NBA Draft.

‘THE ENTIRE NBA IS IN A STATE OF SHOCK’

US Media are picking their jaws up off the floor.

“HEAD scratcher.” That is how US media are describing the young Aussie being picked up so early in the draft’s first round, with the majority of pundits sharing a similar opinion.

“The entire NBA is in a state of shock right now,” The Vertical’s Jonathan Givony said. “Word started to trickle out about 15 minutes before the draft even started that Thon was going to go 10th, and I texted out to a number of GM’s who said ‘No way, there’s no way Milwaukee can make that pick’.

“I was actually sitting with Thon Maker’s agent, Mike George, before the draft started… He said he had no idea when Thon was going. There were some indications that he may fall as far as the second round. So for him to go 10th is a huge surprise.

“We’ll see how the pick ends up, you can’t judge that on draft night. Maybe Milwaukee will look like geniuses, but it is absolutely safe to say, it was a surprise for him to go this high.”

ESPN’s Myron Medcalf and Amin Elhassan both shared the opinion that Maker was still a few years off being ready to make an impact in the NBA.

“The high school kid, the only high school kid in this draft,” Medcalf said. “Some people are saying he’s a project. I personally think he’s almost two years and 20 pounds away from being a real project. A lot of room to grow, but he might not get there.”

I don't know if he should have gone this high, but I'm happy and proud for Thon Maker. Welcome to the NBA! 🇸🇸🇸🇸🇸🇸

— Amin Elhassan (@AminESPN) June 24, 2016

“It’s tough, because, first of all, he definitely fits the profile of the Milwaukee Bucks,” Elhassan responded.

“Really skinny and really long. It seems like they have the market cornered on that. He’s definitely a project. He’s two years away from being two years away. But underneath all of that raw material is a talent. And if you can get him to a place where his skill level is higher, guys like that don’t grow on trees.

“At 10 in this draft, most of the main guys are gone, and now we have entered the part where the guy that went 10 could have gone 22nd on someone else’s board. We are going to see a lot of these kind of head-scratchers, but I think Milwaukee really values this kind of player, and that’s why they took him.”

‘THE SKY WILL BE THE LIMIT’

Many current players see huge potential in Maker.

OF THE few current and former NBA players to comment on the pick, the majority showed a wealth of support for the 19-year-old — none more so than former Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Bobcats point guard Sean Singletary.

Now playing for the Erie BayHawks in America’s D-League, Singletary posted an Instagram message immediately after the 10th pick was announced, declaring that the “sky will be the limit” for Maker.

Aussie Boomers and San Antonio Spurs Star Patty Mills was the first Australian to congratulate the new Milwaukee Buck.

AWESOME!!! https://t.co/cpNbeTNtEr

— Patrick Mills (@Patty_Mills) June 24, 2016

Congrats to @ThonMaker14 BUCKS got a hard worker with a great attitude. Was fortunate to coach him at the @TheNBPA Coaches Program!!

— Garrett Temple (@GTemp14) June 24, 2016

Congrats @ThonMaker14 !! 🇦🇺👍

— Matthew Dellavedova (@matthewdelly) June 24, 2016

BUCKS EXCITED BY MAKER’S WORK ETHIC

MILWAUKEE Bucks general manager John Hammond said the risk of not drafting Maker and wondering what could have been was too great to let the Aussie slip through the cracks.

“We’re really excited about him,” Hammond said after the draft. “You’re always concerned if you can put your head on the pillow at night knowing if you drafted somebody you can trust. We felt that with Thon. We know he’s going to do everything he can to be the best player he can be.”

A relative unknown among rank-and-file NBA fans, the 7-foot-1 Maker played last year for the Athlete Institute in Canada. “We saw a kid that had a strong determination and desire,” Hammond said at the team’s training facility.

Hammond took a risk on international prospect Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2013 draft that has paid off. The Bucks hope they can get the same return eventually on Maker.

He figures to be a project, someone who’ll need to hone his raw basketball skills — just like Antetokounmpo the last few years.

“He’s scary with what he can do with that length,” Maker said about the 6-foot-11 Antetokounmpo.

Asked if Antetokounmpo’s development provided a blueprint for Maker’s future, Hammond said “You bet we do. The blueprint is right here, it’s right here on this floor. The one thing that happens on this building, on this floor is hard work.”

It’s on the Bucks’ training facility floor where Maker had an impressive workout on June 15. The Bucks were about to take Maker to dinner, but the prospect had other thoughts.

“He got back on the floor... He went for an hour and 45 minutes after that,” Hammond said.

“I told him, (when) we got in the car, I said ‘Thon, if you get drafted, you just got a taste of what’s going to happen with you’.”

MAKER LOVES OFF AGE CONTROVERSY

Thon Maker, left, is congratulated by supporters, including his brother, Matur.

MAKER laughed off reports he is not 19-years-old after being embroiled in controversy just hours before the draft when reports surfaced some NBA teams had ruled him out because they believed he could be as old as 23.

Maker was born in Sudan and fled with his family when he was five-years-old, eventually settling in Perth as refugees where a basketball talent scout spotted him playing soccer.

“If it were true I’d probably be sideways about it, but it’s not true so I’m comfortable,” said Maker, responding to the reports. “I’m not pissed off or angry or anything.”

Maker’s top 10 selection by the Bucks underlines Australia’s growth as an international basketball power, with Ben Simmons picked No.1 by the Philadelphia 76ers and seven other Australians already in the NBA.

Maker and Simmons both declared they want to play for the Australian national team, although they want to concentrate on their rookie NBA year rather than joining the Boomers in Rio. “Not this year, the veterans will have a nice run so they can handle that,” Maker said.

Adding to the good news for Australia, Maker has an 18-year-old brother, 208cm tall Matur Maker, who was enrolled at the Athlete Institute in Ontario, Canada, with him and is also focused on making it to the NBA. “He’s next,” Maker said. “He’s very special.”

— with AP