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Picked No. 4 by Chicago, Fizer is a hulking forward who should impact the NBA like a bowling ball dropped on a windshield.
The man can outmuscle Goldberg, snatch offensive rebounds with better timing than a Marine Corps drill team, score inside against Sequoias, score outside against pesky guards and display a combination of jaw-hanging agility with eyebrow-raising hops.
Sounds simple for Chicago. Write Fizer into the starting line-up, sit back, and sip a Gatorade while the 6-8 262-pound Fizer transforms into the next Sir Charles.
Well, there's a glitch.
The big question for the 22-year-old player from Iowa State is positioning. Do you like him as a power forward, where he'd be a few inches shorter than his competition? Or do you like him at small forward, where he may be slightly oversized?
Fizer, with all his Barkley-esque skills, is a classic tweener. But there's more to the glitch.
The Bulls surprised the entire league by drafting Fizer in the first place. His presence makes you wonder about Elton Brand, who is a 6-8 260-pound fixture at the power forward position (despite also being undersized) after winning the co-Rookie of the Year award last season. And what about forward Ron Artest, who had a surprisingly strong rookie season as well?
Like depressed Cub fans and deep-dish pizza joints, there is an abundance of forwards in Chi-town.
But Fizer, commenting before the season, indicates the Brand Dilemma shouldn't become a big deal in the sports page. 'You're going to see,' he says. 'No matter what position Elton Brand plays, they have a great organization, they have a great coaching staff that's going to put the best team on the floor.'
Although the season is still young, and the roster is laced with more youth than Dawson's Creek, the early-season returns indicate there is a problem. Now you have to ask this question: Should the Bulls trade Brand or Fizer for a legitimate center? How about switching Fizer to small forward?
When asked what position he feels most comfortable in, the 2000 First Team All-America selection wouldn't bite.
'I consider myself a basketball player,' he says. 'I consider myself a player that's going to do whatever it takes to win. Whatever position Coach Floyd wants me to play, or whomever my coach is going to be, I'm going to do my best to make them proud.'
Perhaps that sounds like spin, but it shouldn't. Fizer, who left Iowa State after his junior season, shares a unique bond with the young Bulls coach. Floyd was Fizer's original college coach and knows what his forward is capable of. Don't think Floyd wasn't instrumental in picking Fizer after he averaged 22.8 points and 7.7 rebounds last year while quickly becoming one of the hottest names in college basketball. And don't think Fizer isn't thrilled about being selected by a guy who recruited him to Iowa State.
'To be in Chicago with him again seems like I've been totally blessed ever since I stepped foot at Iowa State,' Fizer says. 'To be coached by him, and then by Larry Eustachy. His ways are just the same as Coach Floyd. And now to be reunited with Coach Floyd, it's a great feeling to know that if I continue to succeed as a player the way I have with their tutelage, I'll be one of the better players in the NBA.'
A bold statement considering the NBA is jam-packed with talent. But Fizer speaks the truth. He has the game to become a perennial All-Star.
'He's my favorite player in the draft,' says New York Knicks GM Scott Layden. 'He is very strong, well coached and has the ability to score from all over the court.'
Charles Barkley was the same way. People said he was undersized, but he defied the critics. He became one of the best ever. If Fizer has the same will and determination
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