Mullin says "tall enough" but critics say "tweener"

I've read that Ike, the GSW #1 draft pick (#9 overall), is 6' 6.5" in bear feet but has the wingspan of a much taller (7'4") person. This claim is based on the "normal" ratio of a arm length to leg length. Ike seems to have a disproportionate longer arm length for his 6-7ish height.

Well, we know most NBA players list their court height which allowd for extra inche(s) due to shoes, socks (and etc). They easily add 1.0 to 1.5 inches. A 6'6" NBA player may be 6' 4.5"

Ike Diogu, the Warriors No. 1 draft pick, will attempt to become the next. Asked how tall Diogu is without shoes, Warriors vice president Chris Mullin shrugged and rattled off a list of height-inflating devices. Whatever cushioned sneakers, extra socks or orthotics players wear, Mullin said Diogu measures a solid 6-8 on the court.

Diogu is tall enough, Mullin says / At 6-8 (maybe), new Warrior is a tweener at power forward: "Brand was the NCAA Player of the Year when he left Duke after two seasons in 1999. Much like Diogu, Brand dominated his college counterparts. Yet word spread during team workouts that Brand stood only 6-6, possibly even 6-5. It wasn't until he measured 6-8 in shoes at the Chicago predraft camp that the jitters subsided.

Brand, of course, can now be counted on for 20 points and 10 rebounds a game for the Clippers.

In league history, several undersized power forwards have made their mark, none greater than Charles Barkley. Though he was listed at 6-6, those who saw Barkley in person swear he was closer to 6-4."
....
Rob Evans, Diogu's coach at Arizona State, put it more bluntly: "Ike Diogu is not going to have any trouble scoring on people, inside or outside. He just scores."

Still, there will be doubts about Diogu's effectiveness, mainly because of his size. His father, Edward, has some advice for those stuck in the "tweener" mentality.

"I tell them to wait and see," the elder Diogu said. "Seeing is believing. "

So Ike is a long-armed, wide-bodied, instinctive rebounder and prolific college scorer. He is also smart, disciplined and well-socialized. Sounds like an guy who very well could be an "Elton Brand" class player.

The Bulls traded Elton for Tyson Chandler because Elton wasn't potentionally a freakishly outstanding player like Tyson. Elton was "only" going to be a reliable 20 pt/10 rb a night guy.

You can bet Chris Mullin wouldn't have made that trade. He drafted for the same type of guy the Bulls picked at #1 and won "rookie of the year". Wadaya think? Will this guy be a monster or will he be buried in a 11-man rotation?