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A look back at the MLS/Supplemental Drafts

 Perry Kitchen (ISIPhotos.com)

With the 2011 MLS Draft and Supplemental Draft now in the rearview mirror, it's time to take a closer look at the teams who did the best job of stockpiling talent.

No, we won't know for sure who the true winners and losers were for a few years, but we can certainly speculate about which teams we thought did well.

I gave a full rundown on how all 18 teams did for Fox Soccer, and the reality is I thought several teams did very well and I can't point to many teams you could look at and say they botched their drafts. Some teams reached for first-round picks, like Sporting KC and Columbus, but both teams did well with the rest of their drafts. Even a team like Los Angeles, which grabbed a project in the first round in Paulo Cardozo, came away with a supplemental draft steal in Daniel Keat.

Now that all the drafts are behind us, which teams do you think did the best in improving their rosters? Which teams do you think missed real chances to improve? Which new player are you most excited about your team drafting?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. No doubt this was a factor…but if these guys were good enough, teams would be willing to commit a slot. The draft is getting deeper each year. The league just has to figure out a better format.

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  2. I was impressed that RSL decided to put their money into locking up their already young experienced squad. Rather then wasting time and money on someone new. It would only have worried me that they did’nt select anyone in the draft if were’nt for the teams youth already. Very happy RSL fan!!!

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  3. What Ives, no love for the 2 Princeton guys? Left back, Ted Schneider in the 2nd round to the Red Bulls who need defensive help and Josh Walburn in the 2nd round to the Philadelphia Union. Walburn has good size and has played defense and midfield at Princeton where he was the 2nd leading goal scorer with 6 and team leader with 7 assists. Schneider might not have the size to make it as a back in the MLS, but he was a rock for P.U. Walburn has the instincts to turn up at the right place to make important plays and the skill to pull them off.

    (SBI-Couldn’t really talk about more than 100 players. I picked ones who stood out in my mind as good picks.)

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  4. …or maybe the actual first pick overall?

    I’m just busting your b’s, Ives…you know this.

    (SBI-I know man, and I would have run Salgado’s pick but we did that on draft day. So it was either Kitchen or Nagbe’s mom.)

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  5. I know this is off subject, but I was reading one of Tim Vickery’s (as usual) sterling articles on South American Soccer for the BBC and came across this great piece of writing by him:

    “No-one becomes as good as Ronaldinho at football without loving it. And no-one can fritter away such talent for so long without falling out of love with it.”

    Would love if you did an interview with Tim at some point, Ives.

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  6. Ives,

    Your man-crush on Kitchen appears to be growing by the day (at an alarming rate).

    (SBI-It’s a picture from the draft. Get over it. Don’t be mad I didn’t go with Anibaba. Maybe next time.)

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  7. SOunds about right for TFC, dont think we were ever trying to rebuild from the draft, not enough pro/technical experience with those players for our new FO’s liking. Hopefully will find a few diamonds in the rough with Mariners picks. Definitely looking forward to seeing what these fellas have to offer.

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  8. Ives, any clarification about how someone like Keat (who signs a contract with the league) falls to Supp. Draft. Someone speculated a lot of the international guys fell so far like Keat and Boxall and undrafted McKinnes and Braga because they would need contracts above league minimum and therefore could not be used for a reserve slot that would not count their contract or international status against the team. Do you think this was the logic?

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