Wednesday, Jun. 30
Wally Szczerbiak
Drafted by:
Minnesota, Round 1, pick 6.

 
EXPERT ANALYSIS
  "Wally Szczerbiak was a late bloomer in college, after being lightly recruited out of high school. 'World' can shoot the deep 3-pointer and was the best overall shooter in the college game last season, Trajan Langdon included. Szczerbiak has great inside-outside ability, and he can go into traffic and grab rebounds. At 6-8, he can play the shooting guard or the small forward position, and, because of his range and the ability to drill the deep ball, he can manufacture his own shot. Szczerbiak has an NBA build and can shoot coming off screens or after having put the ball on the floor.

The big question with Szczerbiak is his quickness, or lack thereof. Szczerbiak will have challenges on the defensive end staying with quicker players on the perimeter; however he is smart and crafty enough to survive and excel despite whatever deficiencies he may have on the defensive end. Szczerbiak knows how to score. He runs defenders off screens and plays easy. The comparison you hear on World is Dan Majerle, but I liken his game also to Tom Gugliotta. The questions: Can Szczerbiak defend, and can he truly get his own shot against quicker players?"
-- ESPN's Jay Bilas

College: Miami (Ohio)
Height: 6-7½
Weight: 243 pounds
Position: Forward
Age: 22 (March 5, 1977)
Birthplace: Madrid, Spain

Career highlights

  • Named Second Team All-America by The Associated Press as a senior
  • Also named All-America by NABC and USBWA and was a finalist (top five) for Naismith, Wooden and Robertson awards
  • Miami's all-time leader in three-point FG% at .431
  • Ranks second on Miami's career list in scoring with 1,847 points (trailing only Ron Harper's 2,377 points), and is second in FG made (671), and three-pointers made (204) and attempted (473); third in FGA (1,310); fourth in FG pct. (.512), FT pct. (.809) and blocks (79); sixth in scoring average (17.6 ppg); seventh in minutes (3,290); and 10th in rebounds (666)
  • Closed out career by scoring in double figures in 39 consecutive games, raising his total to 80 in 105 games
  • Only second player in Miami history (joining Ron Harper) to surpass 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 200 assists

    College highlights
    Senior

  • Unanimous choice as MAC Player of the Year as a senior after averaging 24.2 ppg, third in nation
  • Finished second in MAC in rebounds (8.5 rpg), third in FT pct. (.831) and fourth in FG pct. (.522)
  • Scored 20 points or more in 21 of final 24 games
  • Had 22 double-doubles and shot 50 percent or better 25 times in 32 games
  • Scored career-high 43 points in 59-58 win over Washington in NCAA Tournament opener and also grabbed 12 rebounds
  • His 43 points were 72.9 percent of his team's total, an NCAA Tournament record
  • Followed with 24 points vs. Utah and 23 vs. Kentucky
  • Led all NCAA Tournament scorers with 30.0 ppg and was named to Midwest Regional all-tournament team
  • Other big games included 34 points and 12 rebounds vs. Tennessee, 29 points and 16 rebounds vs. Fresno State, 28 points vs. Marshall and 35 points and 16 rebounds vs. Eastern Michigan

    Junior

  • Earned All-MAC First Team honors
  • Led Miami in scoring (24.4 ppg), three-point shooting (a school-record .492) and blocks (1.1 bpg)
  • Missed eight games due to broken wrist suffered on Jan. 3, which prevented him from being listed among nation's leading scorers (would have ranked fifth in nation)
  • Came back to earn All-MAC tournament honors by averaging 24.7 points and 11.3 rebounds in three games
  • Scored 41 points vs. Dayton

    Sophomore

  • Won team's Most Improved Player award as a sophomore, when he ranked second in scoring (12.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (5.4 rpg) and led team in three-point pct. (.463, fourth in MAC)
  • Earned MAC all-tournament team honors by averaging 19.3 ppg and 7.7 rpg, shooting .719 from the field and .667 (8-for-12) from three-point range

    Freshman

  • Earned All-MAC freshman honors, averaging 8.0 ppg and 3.3 rpg
  • Led team with .520 FG pct and ranked second in MAC with .468 mark from three-point range
  • Played in 22 games, making four starts

  • His father Walter was basketball star for Read Madrid in Spain, leading fabled club to three European and three World Championships, and is now U.S. liaison for Spanish Basketball Federation
  • Wally was born in Madrid, Spain

    College statistics
    SEASON G FGM FGA PCT FTM FTA PCT REB AST PTS AVG
    SEASONGFGMFGAPCTFTMFTAPCTREBASTPTSAVG
    1995-962266127.5202228.78672231768.0
    1996-9730150316.4752839.7181626338412.8
    1997-9821185350.5297998.8061605251224.4
    1998-9932270517.522172207.8312729377524.2
    TOTALS1056711,310.512301372.8096662311,84717.6
    Three-point field goals: 1995-96, 22-for-47 (.468); 1996-97, 56-for-121 (.463); 1997-98, 63-for-128 (.806); 1998-99, 63-for-177 (.356). Totals: 204-for-473 (.431).











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