The career of Darko Milicic continues to astound me. When the Pistons drafted him with the second overall pick in 2003 it was a good move, at least in theory. A Championship caliber team attempting to add youth to the front line without having to put pressure on a rookie to perform immediately is a good plan, however Darko wasn’t the right fit. Chris Bosh would have been, but hindsight is 20/20. The problem with Darko was that he didn’t show any desire in practices to deserve anything but occasional garbage time minutes. Larry Brown is known for not playing youngsters, but if you perform in practice you can get a chance to earn playing team. After the Pistons gave up on Darko, the Orlando Magic decided to give him a chance.
Watching Darko play is frustrating because he has loads of talent but no drive or work ethic. Milicic had a chance to play next to emerging star Dwight Howard who would draw double teams that would allow Darko to have an easier time offensively. Another good plan, however the execution failed miserably. Darko couldn’t earn a starting job (losing out to Tony Battie), and struggled to put up eight points and five rebounds a game. Darko broke 20 points in a game only once, and only put up five double doubles in eighty games. When the Magic needed the salary cap space to sign a one-dimensional scorer to the league maximum contract, Darko was suddenly cast aside.
Now that Darko is a free agent the Vancouver, um Memphis Grizzlies (are there even any grizzly bears in Tennessee?) have offered him a three-year deal worth seven million per season. In four years in the NBA, what has Darko done to earn twenty-one million dollars? Start nineteen games, average five points and three rebounds per game, but he did score in double figures in all four of the Magic’s playoff loses to the Pistons (12.3 PPG but only 4.5 rebounds per game despite playing almost thirty minutes a game). Darko did just turn 22 years old and is still seven feet tall, and you can’t teach size or youth. You can overpay for size but you can’t buy desire. The one thing missing from Darko’s game is the ability to care. He shows up, plays below average and inconsistent basketball, and goes home. He has all the talent but no heart. Darko is the basketball version of Alexander Daigle, a can’t miss hockey superstar a decade ago. Daigle wasted his talent, partied, and never put in the effort needed to live up to his potential. Daigle bounced around hockey, occasionally showing glimpses of his skill, but was just a walking bad contract. Darko Milicic should fit in perfectly in Memphis, a player with talent and no heart that nobody really wants, playing for a team no player really wants to play for. This is a match made in Hell, and Elvis should be spinning in his grave.
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