Inside the Sixers: In Holiday's favor: Those high expectations

At Friday's news conference introducing the 76ers' draft pick, Holiday's brother Justin - a hoopster at the University of Washington - said that the strength of Holiday's game was "everything" but also that "everything" could be improved.

So we're left with a picture of a 19-year-old point guard who can shoot but could do it better, who can grab rebounds but certainly could add some strength, who can handle the basketball but could handle it more smoothly.

It's difficult to conjure a specific image when describing Holiday's game. North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson - selected 18th, one spot after Holiday - was easy: the speedy, sparkplug guard, a bullet in transition. Holiday doesn't fit so snugly into any quick-hit descriptions - which probably will be a good thing when he steps onto the Wachovia Center floor.

But maybe we shouldn't let one unimpressive college season fool us: Let's take a look at Holiday's company on the Parade first team, and the history of the Gatorade National Player of the Year.

Of course, past performance doesn't necessarily predict future success. That is to say just because many of the Gatorade players are now superstars doesn't mean Holiday will be, but in the absence of watching Holiday play - which we will be able to do at the Orlando Pro Summer League next week - this at least offers a frame of reference.

The 2008 Parade first team, made up of 10 players, was headlined by Brandon Jennings, the 10th pick of the draft. It had four other first-round picks: Tyreke Evans, from American Christian and Memphis, who was taken fourth by the Sacramento Kings; DeMar DeRozan, who was selected ninth by the Toronto Raptors; Holiday, who was selected 17th by the Sixers, and center B.J. Mullens, who was picked 24th by the Dallas Mavericks.

What about the other five?

The five who were not entered in this year's draft and still are in college are Louisville's Samardo Samuels, North Carolina's Tyler Zeller, Wake Forest's Al-Farouq Aminu, Ohio State's William Buford, and Georgetown's Greg Monroe.

Of those five, only two - Samuels and Zeller - are not projected to be first-round picks in 2010. Of course, no one knows which players will even declare for next year's draft, but Aminu and Monroe, in some mock drafts, are top-10 picks. That means out of Parade's 10 first-team selections, five eventually would be top-10 picks in the NBA draft.

Not bad, even if Holiday's stock took a wallop with his 8.5 points a game last season at UCLA and his 30.7 percent three-point shooting from the much-easier college three-point arc.

Since 1987-88, here are some notable Gatorade Players of the Year: Alonzo Mourning, Kenny Anderson, Chris Webber, Stephon Marbury, Kobe Bryant, Baron Davis, Al Harrington, Jared Jeffries, LeBron James (twice), Dwight Howard, Greg Oden (twice) and Kevin Love.

They account for 14 of the last 20 years, not including Holiday in 2007-08.

Some of the other winners are recognizable within basketball circles: Damon Bailey (1990), Corliss Williamson (1992), Randy Livingston (1993), and Felipe Lopez (1994).

Two winners - LaVell Blanchard (1999) and Kelvin Torbert (2001) - most likely ring no bell at all, unless you are an avid college hoops fan, especially in Michigan, where both played college ball.

Very soon we will get an opportunity to watch Holiday play for the Sixers - wearing the No. 11 jersey, but for now it seems that the Sixers, at the 17th pick, got a guy who not too long ago was earmarked for greatness.

And the Sixers hope he still is.

Christmas in summer league. Temple guard Dionte Christmas has accepted the Sixers' invitation to join their summer-league team.

Christmas, who went undrafted despite being projected as a second-round pick, will play with Holiday and last season's first-round pick, Marreese Speights, in the Orlando Pro Summer League scheduled for July 6-10.

The Sixers are fielding a team with the New Jersey Nets.

Contact staff writer Kate Fagan at 856-779-3844 or kfagan@phillynews.com.