OBryant selected by Bucks
Johnny O'Bryant had been favorably compared to two other former LSU post players - Brandon Bass and Glen Davis.
Obviously, NBA teams viewed all three players in a similar fashion when one sees where they were drafted. Bass was the 33rd player chosen in the 2005 draft, while Davis was the 35th player selected in the draft two years later.
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On Thursday night, O'Bryant went to the Milwaukee Bucks as the 36th player in the 2014 draft. O'Bryant was the sixth person picked in the second round. He was the third player of the night drafted by the Bucks. Small forwards Jabari Parker of Duke and Damien Inglis from France were chosen earlier.
Milwaukee, which is coached by Larry Drew, had the worst record in the NBA this past season at 15-67. O'Bryant is going to a team which is lacking in post players. The top power forward is Ersan Ilyasova, who averaged 11 points and six rebounds per game, last season.
There is available playing time at the position. Other power forwards are Jeff Adrien (11 points, eight rebounds per game) and Ekpe Udoh (three points, four rebounds per game). The top centers are Zaza Pachulia (eight points, six rebounds per game) and John Henson (11 points, seven rebounds per game).
Reportedly, O'Bryant had an impressive workout with the Bucks last week. He averaged 12.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game during his three-year LSU career. O'Bryant made 47 percent of his field goal attempts. He is the highest drafted Tigers player since Anthony Randolph went in the first round in 2008.
The Bucks had drafted one LSU player before O'Bryant. Jerry Reynolds was Milwaukee's first-round pick in 1985. O'Bryant was the third Southeastern Conference post player to be chosen. Kentucky's Julius Randle (first round/Lakers) and Tennessee's Jarnell Stokes (second round/Jazz) went before O'Bryant.
There were three other SEC players drafted Thursday - Kentucky's James Young (first round/Celtics), Missouri's Jordan Clarkson (second round/Wizards) and Tennessee's Jordan McRae (second round/Spurs).