WASHINGTON -- The Chicago Bulls began their massive rebuilding process by selecting Duke forward Elton Brand with the top overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft Wednesday night.

Guards were selected in the Nos. 2 and 3 positions, with the Vancouver Grizzlies picking Maryland's Steve Francis at No. 2, and the Charlotte Hornets selecting UCLA's Baron Davis at No. 3.

	Picayune, Miss., high-schooler Jonathan Bender, right, and personal trainer Mackie Shilstone celebrate after hearing that Bender was drafted at No. 5 by Toronto.

As expected, the draft turned quickly into a showcase for guards and Duke. Seven guards -- five of them pure point men -- went in the first 14 selections, and four Duke players were picked in that same span of 14.

Whether he is ready or not, the 6-foot-8 Brand becomes the starting point of the reconstruction of the Bulls, who won six NBA championships in eight years but suffered through the worst season in franchise history following the retirement of superstar Michael Jordan.

Brand was chosen after the Bulls took a serious last look at Rhode Island's Lamar Odom, bringing him to Chicago for a workout on the eve of the draft. In the end, though, Bulls general manager Jerry Krause went with the safer of the two picks, choosing to try to rebuild his dynasty with a solid frontcourt player.

"I didn't know where I was going to fit in this draft. I did want to be the No. 1 pick," Brand said. "I feel I am the best player and I can improve a lot. I think I can be the cornerstone in their rebuilding."

Asked if he knew he would be the No. 1 overall pick, Brand said: "Not at all. I didn't have the slightest idea. I feel blessed."

Brand did everything at Duke except win an NCAA title. He opted to leave the Blue Devils after his sophomore season but had a monstrous campaign, averaging 17.7 points and 9.8 rebounds as Duke reached the NCAA Tournament title game. He was named Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year and won the Wooden Award as the nation's best college basketball player.

With a remarkable 7-foot-5 wingspan, Brand has exemplary low-post skills and used his 260-pound body to overpower almost everyone in college basketball and shoot 62 percent from the floor.

Brand must adjust from playing center to power forward in the NBA. He also needs to develop better upper-body strength to deal with the rigors of playing power forward.

Francis, who had indicated he would be less than enthralled to play in Canada, kept his head buried in his hands as his name was announced at No. 2. Then he raised his arms in the air to a loud ovation as he walked onstage to meet commissioner David Stern.

"Hopefully, when I wake up tomorrow, I'll be happy," said Francis, who has never been to Canada. "I feel relieved now more than happy."

Francis played in college at nearby Maryland, averaging 17.0 points in his only season for the Terrapins. Francis, 21, was a first-team All-ACC selection last season and was widely considered one of the most exciting college players to watch.

A shooting guard in college who was expected to be a point guard in the pros, Francis might play along side point guard Mike Bibby with the Grizzlies.

The Hornets continued the string of underclassmen by selecting Davis, who was coveted by the Los Angeles Clippers at No. 4. But the Hornets opted for the 6-2 point guard even though they have David Wesley.

Davis averaged 15.9 points and 5.1 assists and helped the Bruins to the NCAA Tournament. He missed the first four games of the season completing rehabilitation for a torn ACL in his left knee suffered in the NCAA Tournament during his freshman season. Incredibly quick and an explosive leaper, Davis developed into a leader. He began to show a promising perimeter game in the latter half of the season and has the moxie to take the big shot, hitting 34.3 percent from 3-point range and 48.1 percent overall.

The Clippers let Lamar Odom drop no further, taking the multi-talented forward fourth overall.

The 6-10 Odom has skills that fit four positions but hurt his stock with a series of inexplicable moves, including failing to show up for his physical examination and trying to re-enter Rhode Island after hiring and firing an agent.

Those were only the latest travails involving Odom, who attended three high schools during his senior season and originally planned to enroll at UNLV before the validity of his entrance exam scores were brought into question.

"Some decisions I made may not have been the best at that time," Odom said. "I'm 19 years old. I'm thankful I didn't make those mistakes when I'm 29 and it's too late."

Picking fifth, Toronto selected high schooler Jonathan Bender from Picayune, Miss., only to send him in a trade to Indian for Pacers veteran forward Antonio Davis. The trade will be announced formally on Aug. 1, Davis' agent said.

Bender, 18, ties Darryl Dawkins in 1975 and Kevin Garnett in 1995 as the highest choice of a high school player. He is the second high school player in three years chosen by Toronto, which picked Tracy McGrady in 1997.

The Minnesota Timberwolves finally selected the first senior of the 1999 draft, grabbing Miami (Ohio) forward Wally Szczerbiak with the sixth pick.

The 6-8 Szczerbiak might start alongside Kevin Garnett, whom the Timberwolves picked directly out of high school four years ago.

Although Szczerbiak went to a small school, pro scouts have known about him the last three years. "Wally World" was fully thrust onto the national scene this past season when he averaged 24.2 points and 8.5 rebounds while leading the RedHawks to a regional semifinal appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

With their first first-round pick since 1995, the host Washington Wizards selected Connecticut guard Richard Hamilton with the seventh pick.

The choice of Hamilton was met by cheers by the hometown crowd but may signify the end of Mitch Richmond's brief tenure with the Wizards. Richmond is a free agent and is looking for $40 million over four years. Hamilton is a prototypical shooting guard.

Hamilton opted to leave Connecticut one year early but had nothing left to play for. He led the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament title, averaging 21.5 points and 4.8 rebounds. He shot 44.3 percent from the field and 34.7 percent from 3-point range but excels at hitting the mid-range jumper.

The Cleveland Cavaliers added depth with the selection of Utah point guard Andre Miller with the eighth overall pick.

The Cavaliers already have young veteran Brevin Knight at point guard. But Knight was hurt last season and the offense suffered in his absence.

The 6-foot Miller was the second senior to be selected. In his final two seasons with the Utes, he willed himself into a top-notch point guard. His coming-out party came at the 1998 West Region final of the NCAA Tournament when he had a triple-double in Utah's dismantling of then-defending champion Arizona.

Miller posted solid numbers in his senior campaign, averaging 15.8 points, 5.6 assists and 5.4 rebounds. He also became a leader his senior campaign, directing the offense and playing within it.

The Phoenix Suns used the ninth pick on UNLV's Shawn Marion, a prototypical small forward with plenty of athleticism. Marion was one of the top junior college transfers this season but did not help the Rebels to an NCAA Tournament and skipped his final year of eligibility. He could step in at small forward for George McCloud and Chris Morris, both of whom are free agents.

An explosive leaper, the 6-7 Marion averaged team highs of 18.8 points and 9.3 rebounds but struggled from 3-point range, hitting less than 30 percent. His overall percentage was 53 percent, highlighting his ability to slash and drive to the basket.

One day after trading Mookie Blaylock, the Atlanta Hawks filled the void by selecting Arizona point guard Jason Terry with the 11th pick.

The Hawks traded Blaylock to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, also packaging the 21st pick for guard Bimbo Coles, forward Duane Ferrell and the 10th pick. With Blaylock gone, Terry will have a shot to start at the point.

The 6-2 Terry was described by Cavaliers general manager Jim Paxson as the qucikest player in the draft. He carried a very young Arizona team to the NCAA Tournament, averaging 21.9 points and 5.5 assists in his first year as a starter after serving as an understudy to Mike Bibby his sophomore and junior campaigns.

Then came the fifth guard in the first 11 picks when the Cavaliers surprised some by selecting Duke's sweet-shooting Trajan Langdon with their second first-round pick

Langdon was expected to be one of four Duke players selected in the first round but no one anticipated him being chosen ahead of college teammates Corey Maggette and William Avery. Langdon is the best pure shooter in the draft but may have some trouble creating his own shot.

With their initial first-round pick, the Raptors went young. With their second pick, they went big. Seven slots after selecting high schooler Bender, the Raptors chose Yugoslavian center Aleksandar Radojevic with the 12th overall pick.

The 7-3 Radojevic was the first center taken in the draft. He has been favorably compared to Zydrunas Ilgauskas because of his height, slight build and exceptional shooting range.

Radojevic was forced to enter the draft after the NCAA deemed him ineligible to play for Ohio State next season. He played a total of 19 minutes over four games for a Yugoslavian professional team in 1997 and the NCAA refused to let Ohio State repay the amount he made and sit a portion of the season.

At Barton Community College in Kansas, Radojevic averaged 15.4 points and 9.0 rebounds and blocked a school-record 241 shots. He made 60.6 percent of his shots from the field and averaged four blocked shots per game last season.

The Seattle SuperSonics used the 13th overall pick on Duke swingman Corey Maggette but later traded him along with veterans Dale Ellis, Don MacLean and Billy Owens to the Orlando Magic for power forward Horace Grant. In addition to Grant, Seattle received second-round draft choices in 2001 and 2002.

The 19-year-old Maggette did not even start for a talented Duke squad that reached the NCAA title game. However, scouts drool over his tremendous upside. He averaged less than 18 minutes per game but averaged 10.7 points and 4.0 rebounds and scored a season-high 24 points in a win over North Carolina State.

Duke then became the first school to have four players selected in the first round when the Timberwolves tabbed point guard William Avery with the 14th pick. Avery was the fifth point guard selected and the second pick of the Timberwolves, who chose Szczerbiak at No. 6.

The 6-2 Avery left Duke two years early against the wishes of Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski. While making strides of progress from his freshman to sophomore seasons, Avery still seems to be lacking the intangibles of leadership to be a successful point guard.

He averaged 14.9 points, 5.1 assists and 3.5 rebounds as a starter last season after serving as an understudy to Steve Wojciechowski his freshman campaign. He shot 48.3 percent from the field and 41.1 percent from 3-point range.

The New York Knicks, looking for a back up to center Patrick Ewing, selected 7-2 Frederic Weis of France with the 15th pick.

The Knicks reached the NBA Finals but Ewing, a 14-year veteran, missed the series with a partially torn Achilles tendon. The Knicks were overmatched by the size of the San Antonio Spurs.

Weis is just 21 but has played four years for Limoges, which is a squad in France's top professional league. He averaged 13.4 points and 7.3 rebounds last season and has a soft touch around the basket but also is soft regarding the rigors of the game. There are medical questions surrounding Weis, who had back surgery following the season, but he is well-known to NBA scouts as he has grown.

After taking power forward Brand with the top pick, the Bulls tabbed St. John's small forward Ron Artest with the 16th selection.

The 6-6 Artest could also play shooting guard but has a frame better suited for small forward. He opted to leave the Red Storm after two seasons, forgoing his final two years of eligibility.

One of the most well-rounded players in the draft, Artest averaged 14.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists and had a team-high 44 blocked shots as he helped St. John's to the South Region final in the NCAA Tournament.

The Hawks used their second first-round pick on Old Dominion forward/center Cal Bowdler at 17th overall. The 6-10 Bowdler can play either of the big positions. He played himself into draft consideration with a strong showing in the predraft camps.

Bowdler averaged 14.7 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocked shots his senior season as the Monarchs went 25-9 and lost in the second round of the NIT. He raised his shooting percentage from 42.9 percent as a junior to 49 percent as a senior.

The Denver Nuggets selected Xavier's James Posey, a natural small forward, with the 18th pick. The 6-7 Posey was finally given the chance to start after being one of the best sixth men in the nation his sophomore and junior seasons. He did not disappoint, averaging 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds.

Perhaps taking out some insurance on the possible free agent departure of Shandon Anderson, the Utah Jazz selected Minnesota forward Quincy Lewis with the 19th pick.

It was the first of three first-round picks for the Jazz, who needed to add athleticism after their loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference semifinals.

The 6-7 Lewis fits the bill. He is an excellent inside-outside player who helped Minnesota to a strong start and an NCAA Tournament berth before an academic scandal wrecked the program. He led the Big Ten in scoring at 23.2 points per game.

The Hawks stayed close to home with the third of their four first-round picks, selecting Georgia Tech guard Dion Glover at No. 20. Glover would have played his home games in the same building as the Hawks had he played last season. He was sidelined with a torn ACL and entered the draft with three years of eligibility remaining.

The 6-5 Glover averaged 18.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists as a freshman in the 1997-98 season. The selections of Glover and Terry give the Hawks a potential new backcourt.

The Golden State Warriors traded down to select unknown Southwest Texas State big man Jeff Foster with the 21st pick, then traded him to the Indiana Pacers for the rights to Pittsburgh guard Vonteego Cummings and a future first-round pick. Golden State also received a future first-round pick in the deal.

The 6-3 Cummings saw his numbers slip as a senior after a breakout junior season in which he averaged 19.5 points and 5.9 assists. In his final college campaign, he averaged 16.1 points and 4.3 rebounds.

The Warriors had dealt the 10th pick to the Hawks on Tuesday, netting point guard Mookie Blaylock and the 21st pick.

The Houston Rockets selected forward Kenny Thomas of New Mexico with the 22nd pick. The 6-7 Thomas averaged 17.9 points and 10.0 rebounds last season for the Lobos, who reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Thomas also has a very solid outside game, hitting 37 percent of his 3-point shots last season. In addition, he is considered one of the best interior passers among those available in the draft.

The Los Angeles Lakers made the first reach of the NBA draft by selecting Division III Player of the Year Devean George with the 23rd pick.

The 6-8, 220-pounder captured the attention of scouts with his performance at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, where he averaged 13.7 points and 10 rebounds per game. At Augsburg College in Minnesota, George scored 2,258 points and grabbed 868 rebounds, both second in school history.

George was expected to be drafted but not in the first round. The Lakers have Glen Rice at small forward and Robert Horry at power forward but there has been trade talk regarding both.

The Jazz used the second of their three first-rounders on 6-9 Russian forward Andrei Kirilenko, tabbing him 24th overall and perhaps hoping to stash him overseas for a year or two. Kirilenko, just 18 years old, joined Bender as those born in the 1980s selected in this draft. He was a member of the Russian League champion CSKA, averaging 13.2 points and 4.1 rebounds as the squad went 23-1.

The Miami Heat stayed in their own backyard with their first-round pick, choosing Miami forward Tim James with the 25th selection. Although James is listed as a small forward, he enters the NBA with an undefined position. A good athlete, he averaged 18.6 points and 8.2 rebounds last season but played more power forward than small forward.

The Pacers, who had aleady swung a deal for the fifth pick, used the 26th selection on Cummings before trading him and the future first-rounder to the Warriors for Foster, a 6-11 forward/center who had gone at No. 21.

Foster made a name for himself at the NBA predraft camps after toiling in obscurity at San Marcos. He averaged 14.2 points and 11.2 rebounds his senior season for the Bobcats, shooting 50.0 percent from the field.

The Hawks used the last of their four first-rounders on a tearful Jumaine Jones, the 6-7 Georgia forward who was the last player in the waiting room at the MCI center and finally was chosen 27th overall. But minutes later, the Hawks traded Jones to the Philadelphia 76ers for a future first-round pick.

The four first-round picks tied the record of the Sacramento Kings in 1990. The Hawks used the last two of those on local products, taking Georgia Tech's Glover at 21 and Jones six picks later. The two played together on the 1998 Goodwill Games squad that won a gold medal.

The Jazz used their last of three first-round picks on Kentucky forward Scott Padgett, making him the 28th overall selection. The 6-9 Padgett has skills that somewhat belie his size. He is one of the better shooters in the draft and has adequate inside skills, which he will find sorely lacking on the next level.

An effective inside-outside player, Padgett was one of the unsung players in Kentucky's run to the 1998 NCAA Tournament title and showed a knack for hitting clutch shots in his senior season. He averaged 12.6 points and 5.8 rebounds while hitting 46.1 percent of his shots and 38.1 percent of his 3-pointers.

Chicago high schooler Leon Smith was the final pick of the first round, but soon after the Spurs called his name at No. 29, they traded him to Dallas for a pair of Mavericks second-round picks: Croatia guard Gordan Giricek, who was taken at No. 40, and a future second-rounder.

A ward of the state of Illinois, the 6-10, 235-pound Smith played at powerhouse Martin Luther King High School, which also produced Rashard Griffith and Thomas Hamilton, a pair of 7-footers who never panned out. Smith was named 1999 Illinois Player of the Year by USA Today after averaging 25.5 points and 14.5 rebounds as a senior. He was the second high schooler selected, joining Bender.

The Mavericks had no first-round pick this year, and general manager Don Nelson said he "just couldn't resist" the opportunity to trade up for Smith.

"This was the only player in the first round that we had an interest in. It just fell the right way we were able to get him, and I feel good about it," Nelson said.