By David Aldridge
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 28, 1996

The Washington Bullets fought rumors about the possibility of their getting Danny Ferry down to the end and beyond, but they wound up delighted with the selection of Tom Hammonds, the 6-foot-9, 215-pound forward from Georgia Tech, with the ninth pick overall in the NBA draft last night.

The Bullets continued their quest for strength underneath in the second round with the 39th pick overall. Surprisingly, 6-8 forward Ed Horton of Iowa, the second-leading rebounder in Hawkeyes history and seventh-leading scorer, was still available. And Washington took him. He led Iowa with 10.6 rebounds a game.

And with the 41st pick overall (obtained from Golden State in the Manute Bol-Dave Feitl trade), Washington took Doug Roth, a seven-footer from Tennessee. Roth is legally blind in one eye. He played four years for the Volunteers and led the Southeastern Conference in blocked shots last season with 60.

"We have some rebounding guards in Darrell Walker, Steve Colter and Ledell Eackles," said Bullets General Manager Bob Ferry. "That really makes up for some deficiencies in rebounding."

Hammonds, a two-time all-Atlantic Coast Conference selection and the Yellow Jackets' all-time leading scorer, could immediately step in at power forward for Terry Catledge, according to Washington coaches. Catledge was left unprotected and was taken by Orlando in the expansion draft earlier this month. Or Hammonds could play some at small forward. Either way the Bullets have a player they think can give them scoring from the front court, along with the rebounding they always crave.

"I feel great right now," Hammonds said. "I'm really looking forward to a new challenge . . . I think that I can add a little more versatility to what they have, also a little more athletic ability to be able to go in and get the rebound, and also be able to hit that 15- to 18-foot jump shot."

While concurring that perimeter offense may be Hammonds's weak point, the Bullets are much happier to teach a player with an inside game how to play outside, rather than vice versa as they had to do with last year's first pick, Harvey Grant.

"That's probably his weaknesss {perimeter offense}, but he's so strong underneath," assistant coach Bill Blair said. "And he's got a body that's already built. He doesn't have to spend three years getting his body in shape. He's got an NBA body. That's exciting."

At Georgia Tech, Hammonds played center as well, but both he and the Bullets think that was more the result of the Yellow Jackets' offensive system than with his abilities.

"I had to do what I had to do for Georgia Tech to win," he said. "Unfortunately, I had to play inside at center, and it took a lot away from my game. There are other parts of my game that I can show. I can shoot the ball from 15, 18 feet."

"On tape, I have seen him take the ball, square up and take the jump shot," Coach Wes Unseld said. "He's maybe a tougher, stronger Terry Cummings {the Spurs' forward}. Maybe he doesn't have the outside shot of Terry Cummings but he's that type of player."

Right to the last minute, there were rumors that Washington would cut some deal -- seemingly a trade involving guard Jeff Malone or John Williams, perhaps both -- to take Danny Ferry, son of the Bullets' general manager.

"We attempted to see if we could find some way to get Danny," Bullets owner Abe Pollin said. "They {the Clippers and Spurs} were very adamant in not wanting to make a trade to allow us to move up and get him. They wanted to keep their pick and make their choice."

Said the elder Ferry: "Danny is a little shook up right now. Right now he's not sure about how he fits into their {the Clippers} scheme. I'd say he's a little confused."

When Chica ok Stacey King with the sixth pick overall, that left Louisiana Tech forward Randy White and Hammonds available. Indiana, picking seventh, took George McCloud, second on the Bullets' wish list behind Hammonds.

The Mavericks, who didn't take Karl Malone in the 1985 draft, wanted either Hammonds or White, but with White available, they didn't want to miss another opportunity at a Louisiana Tech rebounding machine. (Malone also was from Louisiana Tech.) So they picked the 6-6 forward with the eighth pick, right before the Bullets. That left Hammonds.

Hammonds started 122 of 123 games in four years for the Yellow Jackets. He finished third on the ACC's all-time rebounding list and was one of many Georgia Tech players this decade to be selected ACC freshman of the year in 1986.

In four years he became Tech's all-time leading scorer with 2,081 points. He was first-team all-conference in his junior and senior seasons. He averaged almost 21 points and a little over eight rebounds a game in his senior season at Tech.

Horton averaged 18.3 points per game for Iowa last season, finishing fourth in the Big Ten in field-goal percentage (56.3 percent) and fifth in scoring. He was named to the Big Ten first team.

Horton, who visited with the SuperSonics, Clippers, Bulls, Pistons and Bucks, was surprised he wasn't picked much sooner.

"I thought I would go in the first round sometime," he said. "But hey, I'm happy. I'm just happy to get drafted. When I think of Washington I think of a team {and} I think of Wes Unseld. He's the type of player that I like watching. He kind of puts me in mind of myself."

Roth averaged 9.9 points and 8.1 rebounds for Tennessee last season, shooting 53.1 percent from the floor. He's a career 47-percent shooter and his 146 career blocks is five short of the Tennessee school record.

His mother said last night that Roth suffered an infection in his right eye when he was 8 years old. Surgery didn't restore his sight completely.

"He doesn't have complete 20/20 vision," she said. "He does have some vision, but not all. It really hasn't harmed him. He's been playing ball since he was 9 years old. He can shoot three-pointers. He can shoot free throws. It's never affected him."