By M.P. Nettleton

Yo, this is a story 'bout when to draft a center/
So if you wanna pimp your league, listen to your mentor/
The Shaq trade to Miami was a big deal - why?/
Cuz if you gotta dope center then your team be fly/
Witness the Pistons had Ben Wallace at the five/
His boarding and defense in the lane kept that team alive/
Importance of a big man is shown even by history/
Celtics with Russell, Lakers' Kareem is no mystery/
What's true in real life is mirrored in sports dot w s/
You need a solid big man to compete with the best/
The tricky part is that good centers are rare/
So when you're drafting one you need to take care/
The O'Neals, Shaq and Jermaine, are first round picks/
Even if Shaq has been in some weak ass flicks/
How is Yao gonna play, now teamed with T-Mac?
Great - if you don't take him top 12 then you are wack/
Best of the Centers plays in San Antonio/
Duncan's number 1 overall, tell your homeys, yo/
In some leagues Brand and Zach Randolph count as "C"s/
If your league's like this, draft one of these g's.
The biggest gamble for a high center pick is Ilgauskus/
Nice when he plays, but got knees that could cost us/
After those ballers it's best to wait for a minute/
Draft some ill forwards and guards and by round 3 or 4 jump back in it/
By this time, I'd start looking at drafting Magloire/
An allstar last year, he's a sleeper pick ready for war/
Another dude headed towards a career year/
Is the Mav's new center, Erick Dampier/
Lodi dodi, I likes to party/
For smaller minutes, decent production then draft Vlade/
He's back in LA, with the new look Lakers/
Teamed with Kobe, he could be a fantasy point shaker/
Now for dudes not to draft/
The centers on Seattle - they need to find a new craft/
Also, another guy about whom I'm warning/
I love you, Zo, but don't draft Mourning/
Concluding, with a dearth of good centers, I count 4 or 6/
That I would draft in the first 3 rounds of picks/
After the elite ones are gone, you need to think hard/
You can still build your team around forwards or a guard/
Yet centers are important, to draft one early is right/
Insure you're starting lineup doesn't include Jahidi White/