Soon as the Mavericks "drafted" Texas shooting guard Jordan Hamilton, I received texts and tweets and a couple of phone calls from excited fans. Hamilton played for the Longhorns, so he must be good, right?
W-R-O-N-G.
Not sure if any school has more NBA busts than the one down south in Austin. Rick Barnes' team was the only team to have three players drafted in the first round -- Hamilton, Tristan Thompson and Cory Joseph -- and yet somehow lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Arizona.
A lot of folks are somehow upset that Dallas didn't hang onto one of "our own." But a couple huge reasons why trading Hamilton and the No. 57 pick and acquiring Portland shooting guard Rudy Fernandez made perfect sense.
1. Fernandez makes the Mavericks better quicker. The current nucleus of 30-somethings doesn't have a huge window, so the time to win is here and now.
2. There's a long list of Texas exes who suggest Hamilton will flop at the next level.
With the three first-round picks, Texas now has a nation-leading eight first-round players in the last six NBA Drafts. But in their style-over-substance history -- other than big-time All-Stars Slater Martin, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Durant -- what do the 'Horns have to show for it?
Avery Bradley -- 19th overall in '10
Damion James -- 24th in '10
D.J. Augustin -- 9th in '08.
Dexter Pittman -- 32nd in '07
P.J. Tucker -- 35th in '06
Daniel Gibson -- 42nd in '06
Royal Ivey -- 37th in '04
T.J. Ford -- 8th in '03
Chris Mihm -- 7th in '00
Travis Mays -- 14th in '90
Lance Blanks -- 26th in '90
LaSalle Thompson -- 5th in '82
Ron Baxter -- 22nd in '80
Johnny Moore -- 47th in '77
