I gotta say this: There has been a lot of talk about the upcoming draft scheduled for the WWE. Vince McMahon appeared on RAW and announced what everybody already knew; That they were going "shake things up!" again with a draft lottery and - dramatic pause - nobody is exempt. They've already set several different angles in motion with the tease of Christian going over to Smackdown! where he actually has a chance of getting a respectable push. Also they've made clear that Randy Orton wants to stay on RAW away from Undertaker, who Orton claims will pull strings to stay on Smackdown! to stay away from him. There's been rumors circulating about Shawn Michaels & Chris Jericho going to SD!, and Kurt Angle & Bradshaw going to RAW. No matter what the outcome, interest will remain high until the final moment, and they've decided to stretch the draft over several weeks. Good idea. Now the way I see it, there's four different perspectives involved as far as the WWE Superstars are concerned. They are:

The RAW to Smackdown! Excitement: There are actually several wrestlers out there would benefit from being switched to Smackdown!. For the last 3 years Christian has floundered on RAW with no chance in hell of making it to the top of the ladder, despite being an underutilized MVP on the RAW roster. Over on SD!, he would fit in nicely with the main event division of Bradshaw, Guerrero, Cena etc (All fresh new feuds). They've obviously been teasing this for weeks, and if they screw us with a swerve it would be very unfortunate, both for us AND for Jay Reso. With La Resistance recently crumbling before our very eyes, it might be a nice touch if Sylvain Grenier was traded over to SD! and reunited with Rene Dupree. Chris Jericho, like Christian, has been given the shaft on RAW for the last four years, mostly due to the fact that Triple H doesn't like him. But if he still has that fire within him, imagine the battle of wits he could have with Cena, Bradshaw or Kurt Angle. Not to mention the entertaining matches he could have with Guerrero, Mysterio and EVEN The Undertaker! I'd also like to say I was against Chris Benoit going to RAW in the first place; I want him back on SD! again so he can get back into wrestling matches with Kurt Angle, and (don't laugh) Nunzio! If only one of my ideas come to fruition let it be the following. I don't care what show it is on, but I am frothing at the mouth anticipating the possibility of a Benoit vs Bradshaw feud. Nobody is talking about this but I think those two guys would share a chemistry equivalent to Rock vs Austin, Angle vs Mysterio, or HHH vs HBK. I want it Vince, and I want it NOW!

The Smackdown! to RAW Excitement: For some of the wrestlers on Smackdown! busting their asses week after week for a show that nobody (management and fans) cares about. Such stars as Bradshaw, The Big Show, Kurt Angle, would absolutely DOMINATE on RAW and get the exposure that they deserve. With Smackdown! going to Friday nights and expecting a major drop in ratings, who would even want to stay on that show? Let's face it, Smackdown! is a sinking ship right now. The idea of jumping to RAW right now has to interest each and every wrestler right now.

The RAW to Smackdown! Fear: In the same breath, if you're a current wrestler on RAW you have got to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown waiting to learn the fate of your career. The very notion of being switched from the WWE marquee show to the show that is being slammed in the ratings and nobody seems to care about. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to recognize that Smackdown! has been going way downhill in the last two years because they are not putting any effort into pushing it up to the same level as RAW. With all due respect to JBL, Eddy Guerrero, Kurt Angle, Undertaker, and Rey Mysterio that show simply sucks, compared to its potential. There are a whole bunch of RAW wrestlers on the verge of stardom on that show who are scared to death of moving to Smackdown! only to be lost in the shuffle and demoted. There are rumors of Edge being switched to Smackdown!. This would be a huge mistake in my opinion since his mega-push has all happened on RAW and it would be useless to jump to SD! and start from scratch after so many people put him over on RAW. Kane is another wrestler rumored to be traded to SD!. I will admit that SD! is the land of the Giants and Kane could feud with Big Show, Matt Morgan, Heidenreich, and -- wait that would be a complete demotion from feuding with the RAW guys. Muhammad Hassan has been shoved down our throats for months and putting him over onto SD! would kill his act since it is a taped program. Triple H, even though he would only get switched if he wanted to, must be the most paranoid. Triple H has been over on RAW portraying himself as the biggest Star in history. According to HIM, he's the reason people watch WWE. The "biggest star" should be the one to save Smackdown!, but if he goes over to that show and it fails, then he will be exposed for the fraud he is. Unless he took some the supporting cast from RAW with him. I mean let's face it, after his feuds with Angle, Taker and Bradshaw where can he go? We can definitely agree that for a WWE Superstar, the idea of jumping from the stud show to the dud show is scary as hell.

The Smackdown! to RAW Fear: On the other hand, some of the guys who are getting over huge on Smackdown! (Guerrero, Angle, Bradshaw, Cena, Booker T) have got to be feeling the pinch with the idea of going over to RAW. I'm sure they watch on Monday nights as talented wrestlers consistantly get buried by the almighty Triple H. At least on Smackdown! there is a level playing field and guys will get rewarded for their efforts. Do you think Cena, Bradshaw, Guerrero, Mysterio, Booker T, Carlito or Hardcore Holly would have achieved the same exposure on RAW. Hell no. It's a two-sided coin however as these same wrestlers have to worry about the prospect of Triple H coming to SD! and dominating that show while burying its existing talent. Sucks to be you.

With all of that said, there are always several break-out stars that come out of the draft. Last year it was Shelton Benjamin, Booker T and Edge. It would be really had to predict a break-out star, as you're not really supposed to see it coming, otherwise it defeats the purpose. Christian is the no-brainer. I could really see a main event run in William Regal's future if he were traded to Smackdown!. I also believe if Rob Conway stays on RAW by himself, he could really "break on through to the other side", so to speak.

I think a great way to introduce Frankie Kazarian would be for one of the General Managers to pick his name out of the lottery bin and say "What? Who the hell is Frankie Kazarian?" and the other GM says "Oh no! I signed him two months ago and was hiding him until after the draft!" and then people would be like, "I wonder who this guy is?!" And on the winning program, they would play vignettes about his arrival.

In conclusion, I'd just like to clarify my stance on Triple H. He is a great wrestler, one of the best, if not THE best. But he has to modify is political motives. And I also think he should stay on RAW and let the hungry stars save Smackdown!.

by Brad Dykens