Despite being taken in the second round of the NBA Draft last night, Pitt All-American DeJuan Blair has no regrets about turning professional after his sophomore season.
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"No, this is what I wanted," Blair said this morning on a conference call the day after the San Antonio Spurs drafted him with the No. 37 overall selection. "I think it was a good decision. I couldn't have landed in a better situation than I am in now. [San Antonio] just traded Kurt Thomas, their starting forward. It's a dream come true. I should have been a first-round pick, but God wanted me to drop to the second round."
Blair's agent Happy Walters said it was in Blair's best interest to turn professional because Blair has a limited number of years to earn money because of his two surgically repaired knees.
"He doesn't have any [ligaments]," Walters said. "No one has ever been drafted without [ligaments]. Teams didn't know how long he would hold up in the NBA grind. Going back to college would have made the situation worse. This was a decision to take care of his family."
Despite the concerns about Blair's long-term durability, Walters said this morning that he "guarantees" that Blair will sign a guaranteed contract with the Spurs and is confident that he will sign for more than the league minimum of $457,588.
"No doubts at all," Walters said. "He'll sign a guaranteed contract."
Walters said he will likely seek a two-year contract because he is confident that Blair will outperform the value of his first contract.
First Published: June 26, 2009, 8:15 p.m.