NBA draft: Possible Jazz pick Hansbrough thinks he knows where he's headed

Tyler Hansbrough has a hunch as to which team will take him in tonight's NBA Draft.

But he's not sharing.

"I'm not really sure," Hansbrough said during a media availabity session on Friday in New York, where the ESPN-televised draft will be held. "I kind of have an idea that I'm going to keep to myself. It's the draft. There are a lot of different scenarios, with different teams, trades and all that stuff."

For a while, plugged-in ESPN.com draft expert Chad Ford had him going as high as No. 11 overall to New Jersey.

Now, though, Ford thinks the University of North Carolina power forward will be available for the Jazz at No. 20 overall in tonight's NBA Draft.

Ford and DraftExpress.com, in fact, still both project Hansbrough will be Utah's pick - and Ford puts his hunch at 85 percent, which as high as any other first-round pick except No. 1 shoo-in Blake Griffin.

And if he's not, more than one pundit thinks the choice will be Pitt swingman Sam Young.

Hansbrough remains a possibility for the Nets, and Indiana (at 13), Chicago (16) and Atlanta (19) all supposedly are among teams that have interest as well.

And don't rule out Charlotte at 12.

But according to various reports New Jersey could take Duke shooting guard Gerald Henderson or Louisville forward Terrence Williams instead; the Bobcats supposedly are battling between forwards Williams and James Johnson of Wake Forest (coach Larry Brown wants Williams; boss Michael Jordan likes Johnson); the Pacers could go point guard with UCLA's Jrue Holiday, North Carolina's Ty Lawson or Virginia Commonwealth's Eric Maynor; the Bulls are mulling a half-dozen possibilities; and the Hawks, a team previously thought to be the one Hansbrough would not slip past, might take Lawson or Wake point Jeff Teague as a backup possibility now that they've acquired Jamal Crawford from Golden State.

Writes Ford:

"If Hansbrough falls (to 20) =8A I don't see (the Jazz) passing on him. With Carlos Boozer heading out the door, they need more toughness in the paint. But if he's off the board, they likely will be deciding among (Gonzaga's) Austin Daye, Young and (Florida State combo guard) Toney Douglas.

"Young is the type of tough veteran the Jazz love. He is ready to step in and play right now, and would give them minutes at both the 2 and the 3. Douglas is the type of combo guard the Jazz currently lack. He shoots, plays defense and could be a credible backup at both positions for Utah."

The Jazz don't seem to have legitimate interest in Daye, but they definitely do in Young and Douglas, along with a host of others, including Teague, Maynor, Lawson, Johnson and Pitt power forward DeJuan Blair.

Young, also plugged-in Yahoo.com's Adrian Wojnarowski thinks, is the one. ESPN's Doug Gottlieb concurred in a TV mock draft conducted this morning.

Writes Wojnarowski: "The Jazz are enamored with tough guy Sam Young at No. 20, who is a perfect fit for head coach Jerry Sloan."

E-MAIL: tbuckley@desnews.com