If you think a player like Angel is going to be passed up by everyone in the first round, then hold out until the 2nd round of the draft to get him. Then contract negotiations are a bit more lenient and they can possibly talk down the price. DCU still would have the first pick next week.

But you have to take Conrad with the first pick to give your defense leadership and experience.

What are the odds another team picks Jaime?
What are the odds Jaime goes with another team?

Conrad - On one hand, Conrad is expensive and will be 34 soon. On the other hand, Conrad’s best games in recent years have come when paired with someone with speed and strength (think Shavar Thomas rather than the less imposing Matt Besler). James and Jakovic both fit the bill. I think he’s too expensive, but at the same time we suck at finding center backs outside of MLS. The old heads we bring in are too old, and the younger guys we find can’t hack it. If we do take Conrad first, I’d have a lot of feelings that cancel each other out. He’s overpriced, but at least we’ll finally be allocating resources to our never-ending defensive needs. He’s old, but he’s a leader and this is a young team that needs those kind of guys. I doubt he’ll make us a top 5 defense, but he will improve our defending somewhat while providing some great qualities off the field.

Gibbs - I see a lot of comments pushing a Gibbs selection. My big problem with him is that a) he has been badly underachieving for 2 straight seasons, for whatever reason and b) he’s injury prone. He didn’t miss many games in 2010, but his career is littered with both long-term injuries (torn ACLs, etc) and medium-term muscle strains. I suppose we could do worse, but I worry that his head just isn’t in the game the way it used to be. If we could get him playing anywhere near the form that got him onto a World Cup roster (only to miss out after one of his ACL tears) and contracts in England and the Netherlands, he’d be a steal at $121K. I have my doubts as to whether that’s possible though.

Padula - Pass. I already think Burch is too slow at left back, and Padula’s just as slow and much older.

Kirovski - He comes pretty cheap at $84K, he’s got plenty of experience, and he’s versatile (LA played him as a central midfielder, an attacking midfielder, on the right wing, as a withdrawn forward, and as a target striker). On the other hand, he looks like a spent force physically. I think Arena got decent minutes out of him because of the youth and smarts throughout the Galaxy team. Smart teams don’t have to run very much, and I don’t think we have the soccer IQ that LA does. There’s also the fact that Kirovski is California through and through. I don’t think he’d want to switch coasts this late in his career. I think he might end up at Chivas.

Angel - Someone else (TFC?) might take him in round 1, but there’s no reason to believe it’ll be us. Until Chang finds another investor or two, we aren’t signing any more DPs. If he’s still out there after this round, I’d be stunned if we didn’t grab him in round 2 and hit the negotiating table.

Cunningham - I’ll be the pariah here: I wouldn’t mind signing Cunningham at all. He’s still fast, strong, and despite spending half the season as a sub in Dallas he managed 11 goals. You know why I wouldn’t mind seeing him break Moreno’s record in a DC shirt? It’s because I think it’s more insulting to Moreno’s legacy to continue our offensive ineptitude. We all know Moreno would prefer to be on the winning team than to have scored in a loss, right?. As for his off-field issues, I think you have to prioritize soccer first before you start focusing on the locker room. Who wants a team of great dudes who finish dead last? I’m not saying we should field an all-jerk eleven, but I’ll take Cunningham’s arrogance in the short term if it comes with 10+ goals.

Fred - Pass. We already have better wingers than him, and he’s overpriced considering his inconsistency. Great guy, but I think one Carreiro is plenty.

Here are some names that intrigue me (in no particular order):

Wolff - $220K is expensive for a guy that will be 34 soon, but I think he’s still got some quality left. He’s not as fast as he used to be, but he’s still crafty and adept both as a set-up man and as a finisher. He didn’t fit into KC’s 433 last year, but that doesn’t make him a bad player. He’s probably more of a round 2 selection at that price though.

Ngwenya - I’ve never thought Ngwenya was a top-class MLS starting forward, but at $72K he’d be a great option to have as our first sub up front. The biggest plus here is that Ngwenya is completely different from our other forward options. He has speed and likes to run at people 1v1. What United fan hasn’t demanded the addition of more speed up front? Ngwenya’s not particularly consistent and has occasionally struggled with his temper in games, but Dom Kinnear seems to like him (which points to him being a solid locker room guy). If we have our eyes on a true #9 playing abroad at the moment, I’d take Ngwenya and expect him to, at worse, be a regular sub that is pressing for starting work.