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Draft workout #4 Q & A’s
June 24, 2008 MILWAUKEE -- The Bucks held their fourth draft workout and three of the players had ties to Wisconsin - Draelon Burns and Mike Taylor both attended high school in Milwaukee and Brian Butch is from Appleton and went to college at Wisconsin. Bucks.com caught up with them for a few minutes.
Draelon Burns - DePaul
Q: What did you think of today’s workout? A: Very helpful and very tough. Probably the toughest one I’ve been in, which is good. I’m always up for a tough workout. I feel good about it. At the end I was a little fatigued but good players work through that and I was really happy about it. Q: At this point in the process, do you think everyone working out is drained from the travel and workouts? A: Everyone’s getting to that point, they’re getting excited and a little nervous for what happens. If you have a good mindset it won’t affect your play. Q: What is the strength of your game? A: Getting to my spot and pulling up. I can get to open spots and then hit my jumpers. That opens things up for my driving game. Q: What was the transition from Milwaukee to North Carolina like in high school? A: The transition was real tough. It was my first time away from home and the living situation there was real different. I really had to do it to better my life so I had to stick it out and fight through it. Q: Have you been a Bucks fan and followed them? What do you think they need to improve on? A: I’ve always been a Bucks fan and wanted them to do great. They’re my team everywhere I go - people would ask me where I was from and when I said ‘Milwaukee’ they’d ask ‘what’s up there, cows?’ If I had the opportunity, I’d do my best to make the Bucks better any way I could. They could use a guy like myself, an energy player who could adapt to any situation they put me in.
Brian Butch - Wisconsin
Q: What has the workout/draft process been like? A: It’s good. You go out there, play as hard as you can and do the things you know you can do. You don’t try to do the things you can’t do because the teams already know you can’t do it. Q: Did you receive advice from anyone at Wisconsin about the workouts? A: The biggest advice was don’t get too high and don’t get too low. It’s going to be a roller coaster. Just try to stay even keel throughout it. Q: What are the strengths of your game? A: The ability to stretch the defense and step out and shoot the ball a little bit. Q: Have you been a Bucks fan and followed them? What do you think they need to improve on? A: To improve, that’s up to the GM. But I have been a Bucks fan since the Ray Allen and Vin Baker years. It’s been great to watch. In high school I was number 42 for Vin Baker. Q: Bucks assistant coach Joe Wolf was another 6-11 player from Wisconsin who could shoot – do you think you could take him in a game of H-O-R-S-E? A: (laughs) He’d probably get me. He was pretty good, but I think I could give him a good battle.
Mike Taylor - Idaho Stampede
Q: How did playing in the D-League help your development? A: Playing in the D-League was real beneficial to the development I had this year in learning to play the professional game. I played 40 some games of professional basketball and learned the pick and roll offense and got comfortable with the three-second rule and the three-point line. It was pretty much getting familiar with the game on that level. Q: What has the process been like with workouts and getting ready for the NBA Draft? A: It’s been a long, long two weeks. It seems like it’s been a month – traveling, getting off the plane and getting ready for workouts. It seems like a long time, they call this the ‘world tour.’ I’ve had my share of it; I’ve had 14 workouts. It’s been a long road, but Thursday having your name called - that feeling is going to be irreplaceable. Q: From junior college, to Iowa State to Idaho your numbers have gotten better at each stop – what are the big reasons for your continued development? A: Desire. It’s always been a dream of mine to be a professional player in the NBA. No matter what I’ve been through and I’ve been through a lot, I’ve always been determined. I always saw myself ending up at that level. I didn’t let anything deter me from my dream. Q: You’ve had an unconventional journey in basketball, what have you learned along the way? A: It’s been a lot of experience and learning lessons throughout this journey I’ve been on. I tell a lot of young basketball players that junior college was a great experience for me. Coming out of Milwaukee I could just get to the basket anytime I wanted to. In junior college I developed my jump shot. Going to Iowa State I exceeded some expectations because some people said I couldn’t play at that level. I did pretty well. In the D-League it was a whole different scene. You don’t have to worry about school, you worry about developing and the mental mindset, being a professional and carrying yourself in a professional way. Q: What are the strengths of your game? A: I’m an energy player, a spark. With my D-League team I came off the bench and was a momentum changer. I tried to force the tempo offensively and defensively. I can get into the lane pretty well too. Q: Have you been a Bucks fan and followed them? What do you think they need to improve on? A: I was a fan of the Bucks in the Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Glenn Robinson and Tim Thomas years. I still watch them a little bit, but because of everything going on, I can’t watch them like I did in those other years. |
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