Zach Randolph on Josh Selby: ‘He’s the Steal of the Draft’

Josh Selby has been tearing up courts in exhibition games during the NBA lockout, and new teammate Zach Randolph likes what he sees. From the Commercial Appeal: “With the calendar working against them, league officials will soon cancel another week of preseason activity. A decision about an on-time start to the regular season will likely come next week if there’s no deal in place. Players who left college early to enter this year’s draft did so knowing there was a good chance their rookie seasons could be adversely affected by the lockout. But Selby hasn’t found life after college basketball too distressing even though he’s not sure when he might be able to sign his first NBA contract. Instead of looking for a place to live in Memphis and preparing for training camp, Selby has managed to crisscross the country to create a buzz with his performances in several NBA-caliber exhibition games. He had a 42-point, seven-assist outing in one game last month at the so-called ‘lockout’ league in Las Vegas. Selby has also toured with Carmelo Anthony’s Baltimore-based squad, picking up highlights and high praise from established NBA players along the way. ‘It’s a blessing to learn from guys who are where you want to be,’ Selby said. ‘I’ve been playing with All Stars. And they recognize talent. Players are players. If you can play a little bit then they take you under their wing.’ Selby’s spent most of his time this summer with the likes of Anthony, Kevin Durant and Chris Paul. And it didn’t taken long for Griz pillars Mike Conley, Rudy Gay, O.J. Mayo and Zach Randolph to vouch for the 20-year-old Selby’s potential. ‘He’s the steal of the draft,’ Randolph said. ‘The young fella is going to help us.'”