The Sounders certainly surprised many by selecting Creighton defender Andrew Duran with the first round pick, ignoring some enticing Generation Adidas players like Enzo Martinez and Dom Dwyer in the process. Later with their second round pick they selected UAB forward Babeyele Sodade. As previously mentioned, there was much surprise surrounding their picks, especially of Duran. Those critics are simply looking at the pick according to the players available at the time of the pick, not from the perspective of a team that has has positional needs that need to be fulfilled. While the team finished second in the league last season, defense was becoming a bit of a concern and an area that was promised to be addressed in the off-season; the pick of Duran reflects that. While the team scored the most goals of any team last season, forward was another position of concern, as Fredy Montero was the only forward last season to reach double digits when it comes to goals. O'Brian White certainly looked good early on into the season, but he was quickly sidelined with a blood clotting issue. Sodade is intended to fill the void left by White while he remains out, as well as providing the size that left with Nate Jaqua.
Of Sodade, Schmid said:
"Sodade is a big presence up front, he's got good pace, he showed well at the combine. He's had a good career at UAB and he's the kind of player who could be a surprise guy like [Sporting Kansas City forward] C.J. Sapong was last year."
Of Duran:
"He is a player that's very two-footed. He's comfortable playing on the left side of the center in the back as well as the right side. He was the main defender on the team that was the best defensive team in the country last year so he's got to be doing something right."
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