Watson has leverage

The NBA's version of summertime basketball has shifted from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City, but former Tennessee guards C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton appear to be finished for now.

While Lofton has a deal in place with a Turkish League team should he not make an NBA roster, Watson has opted not to play with the Warriors in Utah's Rocky Mountain Revue League.

"My agent is trying to work something out to be guaranteed through the whole year,'' said Watson, who signed a one-year deal with Golden State in January. "I plan on going back to Oakland at the end of August and work out there.''

Watson, who played overseas and in the NBA Developmental League prior to signing with Golden State, had a strong Las Vegas showing for the Warriors in recent weeks. He's expected to be pursued by other teams after averaging 18.8 points, 4.8 assists, 4.2 steals and 31 minutes per game.

Watson said he appreciat es having some leverage but said the waiting is "frustrating.''

Meanwhile, Golden State announced Tuesday evening that it had acquired point guard Marcus Williams from New Jersey for a conditional first-round pick. Williams is expected to be a backup to Monta Ellis, which leaves Watson's position more tenuous

UT coach Bruce Pearl said Lofton likely will end up in Turkey, but that's not such a bad thing.

"The first year playing overseas is always the most challenging, but Chris is going to a good team with a good coach who has had players move up,'' Pearl said Tuesday. "This is the beginning of a long journey for Chris. He'll get other opportunities to play in the NBA, and he has a clause in his contract (with the Turkish team) that if he gets picked up by an NBA team he can be released.''

Former Vol JaJuan Smith is still battling to make the Dallas Mavericks, while former UT player Scooter McFadgon is playing for the NBA Developmental team of "Ambassadors" in the Rocky Mountain Revue League.

Smith got off to a strong start with the Mavericks in Las Vegas, averaging more points per minute than any other Dallas player in the NBA Summer League.

Smith averaged 7.6 points in 10.6 minutes and shot 13-of-27 from the field (.481) and 7-of-15 (.467) from beyond the 3-point line with five assists and one turnover.

Smith started slow in the Salt Lake City league, but a strong performance Monday night (5-of-13 shooting, 4-of-9 on 3-pointers and 14 points) has him back in the running for a job.

He did not play Tuesday night against the C.J. Watson-less Warriors.

Watson, who played against Smith in a Las Vegas summer game, said he believes Smith has what it takes to make it in the NBA.

"It was pretty much the same JaJuan - he had a quick five points in our game and shot the ball well,'' Watson said. "I think JaJuan is an NBA player; he just needs time to develop and add a little ball handling to his game.''

Former UT great Allan Houston, a guest on the Sports Page radio show last week, said Smith has a better chance of ultimately landing on an NBA team than Lofton.

"JaJuan is a little quicker,'' Houston said. "The advantage they both have, is they both can shoot. A few years ago, coaches were afraid to go with the smaller guards, but now you are seeing it in more spots.''

That said, Houston indicated no one should rule out Lofton.

"The way Chris shoots the ball, there just aren't a lot of guys (like that),'' he said. "Chris will always have an opportunity, it just depends on where he's at.''

McFadgon, meanwhile, has played a total of 24 minutes in two games for the NBA Developmental team in the Rocky Mountain Revue League, making 2 of 8 shots (0-for-2 beyond the 3-point arc) to average three points per game.

Top 10 Team: This year's Tennessee team has a No. 10 preseason ranking from CBSsportsline.com, No. 11 on the Fox Sports website and they are No. 10 in the Rivals.com preseason rankings.

As for the schedule, the Vols are playing plenty of high ranked opponents, including Gonzaga (12 in the CBSsportsline.com poll), Memphis (13), Marquette (14) and Florida (23).

The Vols might also meet Michigan State (No. 9) and Georgetown (15) at the Old Spice Classic in November in Orlando.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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