By Ridge Mahoney, Senior Editor
in Carson, Calif.


TRADE TOP PICK? Picking the clear No. 1 choice in the SuperDraft, right back Marvell Wynne (UCLA), isn't the no-brainer it may seem at first glance. By all accounts, he's an amazing athlete still learning the game who will need time and patience to correct his defects.

CD Chivas USA, which holds the top pick, is riddled with holes, and if Mexican international defender Claudio Suarez signs, the team will have no more slots for senior internationals. Also by all accounts, Coach Bob Bradley is fielding some attractive offers for that top pick.

Bradley doesn't have another pick until the fourth round, and at least four teams with picks in the first round — Kansas City (fourth), MetroStars (fifth), FC Dallas (sixth), and Houston (eighth) — play a four-man back line at which Wynne could slot right in.

Bradley hasn't said how he'll revamp CD Chivas USA; his Chicago teams favored a 3-5-2, his Metros played more with four in the back than with three.

Kansas City also has two picks apiece in the second and third rounds, from which many teams round out their rosters. Of course, having missed the playoffs, the Wizards may do some rounding out of their own and have already traded veteran Diego Gutierrez. Sasha Victorine could also be headed out of town.

Wynne may be too good to pass up, regardless of which systems or psychologies are factored into his development. Yet one rookie right back, no matter how good, isn't going to transform CD Chivas USA.

Or Bradley can always pick him and see if any offers are forthcoming after the draft shakes out and teams have — or haven't — dealt with their own issues. MLS rosters are dotted with players Bradley has coached in the past.

CLASS OR CONSISTENCY? Another thorny decision is whether to take a bona fide college star who might not fit neatly into an MLS role or go with a less heralded yet fundamentally sound player.

The remarkably gifted Mehdi Ballouchy (Santa Clara) can drift in and out of games, yet has a wonderful touch and a powerful shot. He also showed at the combine a willingness to mix it up, which he didn't always relish in his college career.

If he can't play as an attacking mid, he might find himself out on the wing. As a second forward paired with a true striker is another option. But those college stats (four goals and 16 assists in 42 games his junior and senior seasons) aren't impressive even though the skills are.

How Sacha Kljestan (Seton Hall), who didn't play at the combine, fares in MLS will depend on how well he adapts to tougher, tighter marking.

At 6-foot-1 and 150 pounds, he's a bit spindly.

Straight to the gut, as it were, are players like Dax McCarty (North Carolina), Brandon Moss (New Mexico), Justin Moore (Clemson) and Justin Moose (Wake Forest). They're not destined to be stars, although McCarty is just 18 and may have the most room to grow, but teams know what they're getting.

Brian Plotkin (Indiana) has all the credentials but combine reviews were mixed. Same for Pat Ianni (UCLA). Still, both figure to be among the first 18 picks if not first-rounders.

DEFENDERS RULE. It will be interesting to see if Tyson Wahl (California) goes as high as former teammate Troy Roberts went last year. Roberts was taken by Galaxy coach Steve Sampson as the eighth overall pick, three slots behind Ugo Ihemelu, and saw a lot less playing time than the former SMU defender.

Nathan Sturgis (Clemson) surprised nobody with his intelligent, skillful play at the combine. He can get balls off the big forwards even though he's only 5-foot-10, 150 pounds, and can also knife in front of them to trap them offside or intercept passes aimed their way. Sturgis, like Ianni and a few other draft prospects, were teammates for the U.S. under-20s at the World Youth Championships, so they've been tested internationally.

Jed Zayner (Indiana, again) and Moore (Clemson) look like outside backs with bright futures.

THE SCORING CHARTS. Is there a consensus among coaches, observers, or anyone else about who is the best forward prospect? Sort of. U.S. under-17 Josmer Altidore could be nicknamed "Sara Lee," because nobody doesn't like him. But he's probably not the answer right away to teams that need goals right away.

Jacob Peterson (Indiana) has good college stats as well as under-20 and under-17 experience. He'll go high but wasn't all that effective last year in the WYC against Italy and Argentina.

Jason Garey (Maryland) doesn't seem to be the second coming of Chris Carrieri, but he has his critics. And Willie Sims (Cal State Northridge) hasn't convinced everyone he can hack it in MLS. Ditto Kei Kamara (Cal State Dominguez Hills).

Worth a gamble are Omar Jarun (Dayton) and Yura Movsisyan (Pasadena City College). Calen Carr (California) has his faults but does have blazing speed and more trickery than some coaches may have first thought. He has winger written all over him, in contrast to Jeff Rowland (New Mexico), who scored a goal on the second day of the combine while displaying no pace whatsoever. Yet he did score 35 goals in his junior and senior seasons. Karim Dietz (Birmingham Southern) could sneak onto a roster.

NGUYEN TO PSV. Despite strong interest from numerous MLS teams, Lee Nguyen is headed to PSV Eindhoven following a freshman season at Indiana that earned him Freshman of the Year honors from Soccer America. He logged five goals and 12 assists for the Hoosiers, which were ranked No. 3 in the nation heading into the 2005 NCAA playoffs but were beaten by Notre Dame, 2-0, in the second round.