Jimmy Graham making a good early impression

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton singled third round draft pick Jimmy Graham out Saturday as a player making a solid early impression at the team's rookie camp.

"If you were just watching he's a been a guy who has stood out," Payton said in between practices at the Saints facility in Metairie. "He has things to learn but he's willing to do that and he's smart."

Indeed, at 6-feet-6, 260 pounds Graham does stand out immediately. A four-year basketball player at Miami who finished as captain of the team his senior year, Graham then played one year of football for the Hurricanes before winding up as the Saints third round draft pick. He is considered an unpolished gem by many draft analysts and general managers,

"I was told by a lot of veterans who come back to 'the U' what to expect and how to prepare for it," Graham said, explaining how rookie camp has matched his expectations. "But it's all a wonderful opportunity and I've enjoyed every minute of it."

Graham hopes one day to meet the hoops-player-turned-tight-end bar set by Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates, but he's not fixated on that now.

"I'm trying to be Jimmy Graham today," he said.

Still, he said certain hardwood skills have served him well.

"The hand-to-eye coordination, the footwork, and going up and getting the ball, it's kind of like a rebound," he said.

Graham had played football as a 9th grader but then gave the game up for basketball. A part of the gridiron never left him, however - he finished his Miami career with more fouls than baskets.

Abandoned by his mother at a young age, Graham was raised by a guardian he met at church, Rebecca Vinson, and he comes to the Saints with a ringing endorsement from Miami University President Donna Shalala. She singled him out at graduation ceremonies, and is on record as saying Graham is precisely the kind of man one dreams about finding in a scholarship kid.

Today he has a relaxed demeanour and talks like a savvy public speaker. But he doesn't hide the fact he is loving life given what he has already accomplished.

"It meant a lot, especially coming from where I'm from," he said about Shalala's stamp of approval. "One of the things I'm trying to do is prove to her she made the right decision."



(nola.com)