From Deseret News archives:
Real Salt Lake looking for impact player in today's SuperDraft
By taking 16-year-old Nik Besagno with the No. 1 overall pick last year, Salt Lake wasn't expecting the Generation adidas player to step in and contribute right away. Instead, they were drafting a prospect they believed would help the team down the road.
That won't be RSL's strategy when the 2006 draft convenes this morning in Philadelphia.
Real, which has the No. 2 overall pick in this year's MLS SuperDraft, hopes to use its lofty draft choice on a player who can make an immediate impact during the 2006 season.
"We're looking for an impact player," said coach John Ellinger. "Obviously, these are young players . . . but certainly, we want somebody that could contribute as a sub or potentially be a starter."
The SuperDraft will be held at 10 a.m. inside the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast the first hour, while the remainder of the draft can be seen live on MLSnet.com.
Also, unlike last season, there's a fair amount of uncertainty surrounding what RSL will do with the No. 2 pick.
Where most people knew before last year's draft RSL would be taking Besagno first overall, nobody's sure what CD Chivas USA will do with the No. 1 selection in 2006. UCLA defender Marvell Wynne is widely regarded as the top pick, but new coach Bob Bradley has remained tight-lipped about his team's intentions.
If Chivas selects Wynne as expected, Ellinger said Real Salt Lake has decided what they'd do at No. 2. However, if Bradley trades the pick away or chooses someone else, it could drastically change RSL's plan.
"We kind of have an idea of where we want to go," said Ellinger, "but a lot of it depends on where the first pick goes. If Chivas doesn't select Marvell, it could generate a busy morning."
Ellinger wouldn't say whom RSL would select if things go according to plan, and prognostications vary as to whom RSL will take with the second pick.
Possibilities include a trio of collegiate stars: Seton Hall's Sacha Kljestan (midfielder), Clemson's Nathan Sturgis (defender) and Santa Clara's Mehdi Ballouchy (attacking midfielder).
Kljestan and Sturgis are both Generation adidas players. Those are generally regarded as the most talented prospects in the SuperDraft.
Generation adidas players are luring because they can be placed on a team's developmental roster and don't count against the salary cap during their first few seasons in MLS. Ellinger said it's likely Real Salt Lake will pick one of the 11 Generation adidas prospects.
Of course, all that could change if Chivas trades away the top pick or doesn't pick Wynne.
