Originally published Friday, June 6, 2008 at 12:00 AM

UCLA's Kevin Love is among draft hopefuls working out for Sonics

UCLA forward/center Kevin Love highlighted a quartet of draft hopefuls that began workouts for the Sonics on Thursday. Love was joined at...

By Percy Allen

Seattle Times staff reporter

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KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / AP

Kevin Love, who played for UCLA, is also drawing interest from Minnesota and Memphis.

UCLA forward/center Kevin Love highlighted a quartet of draft hopefuls that began workouts for the Sonics on Thursday.

Love was joined at the Furtado Center by Ohio State 7-foot center Kostas Koufos, North Carolina State 6-9 forward J.J. Hickson and 6-10 Australian Nathan Jawai.

Today the Sonics will bring in Georgetown center Roy Hibbert, UCLA 6-4 guard Russell Westbrook, Illinois 6-9 forward Shaun Pruitt and George Hill, a 6-2 guard out of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Seattle has the fourth and 24th picks in the June 26 draft, and the team apparently wants to upgrade in the post and at point guard.

It's unlikely the Sonics would use their first pick to select Love, but it's thought the Pac-10 player of the year is drawing interest from Minnesota, which has the third pick, and Memphis, which selects fifth.

For the Sonics, Koufos and Hibbert are possibilities for the 24th pick; each would be a project. Koufos or Hibbert could serve as a Plan B if injured centers Robert Swift and Mouhamed Sene are unable to return healthy next season.

The defensive-minded Westbrook has impressed scouts recently and will likely be off the board when the Sonics select later in the first round. Hickson and Jawai are also late first-round to mid-second-round candidates. Pruitt and Hill could be available in the second round, where the Sonics have four picks.

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