Gordon adding to Hoosier history

When 1983 Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Archie Dees was drafted second by the Cincinnati Royals in 1958, the pipeline between Hoosier basketball and the NBA was officially opened.\nFifty years later, Eric Gordon hopes to add his name to a long list of Hoosiers selected in the first round of the NBA Draft. Since Dees was drafted a half-century ago, 17 other Hoosiers have been selected in the first round.\nGordon opted to pack up his game and take it from Bloomington to the next level. Prognosticators have the Indianapolis native going anywhere from third to 12th in Thursday night’s draft.\n“The draft is so up in the air,” senior Michael Golembo said. “He could go up to the top three but hopefully he doesn’t drop past the top six or seven.” \nAccording to ESPN.com’s Chad Ford’s most recent NBA mock draft, Gordon is slotted No. 5 to the Memphis Grizzlies, a team with two first-round draft picks.\nGordon reportedly worked out in Minneapolis, Minn., Monday with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The T-Wolves hold the third pick in the draft and are looking to build around standout big man Al Jefferson, the bait in the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics’ trade for All-Star Kevin Garnett.\nD.J. White joins Gordon as another hopeful first round draft pick. The last time two Hoosiers were taken in the same first round of a draft was in 1993 when guards Calbert Cheaney and Greg Graham were selected at No.’s six and 17, respectively. Three members of IU’s 1976 National Championship team – Scott May, Quinn Buckner and Bob Wilkerson – were selected in the first 11 picks of the 1976 draft.\nWhere Gordon will be selected won’t be determined until at least 7 p.m. Thursday.\n“He might be going to the Knicks at No. 6,” senior Dan Hidder said. “I think he’s a little overrated, but he should go closer to No. 9.\nSenior Brian Masfield thinks Gordon may be better suited to run the floor rather than just score, which he proved he could do last year by leading the Big Ten in scoring with 20.9 points per game.\n“Gordon could be someone similar to Chauncey Billups,” Mansfield said. “He could be a good shooting guard and potentially a very good point guard.”\nGolembo is glad he was able to witness what all indications prove will be the next Hoosier drafted in the first round.\nWhen asked how he’ll feel when he sees Gordon suit up for whatever team chooses him, Golembo didn’t hesitate.\n“I’ll feel proud to see someone who went to the same school as me in the NBA,” Golembo said.