It was great to be around the draft class at this point of their life when they are filled with so much optimism and aren't yet cynical about the media or the rigors of being a professional basketball player.

Thursday was the first day of interview sessions with the media of the 2010 NBA Draft class. The players were sorted into groups by position, with shooting guards going first and point guards arriving last.

Evan Turner arrived a little early and appeared jokingly overwhelmed by the throng of reporters, but already seems comfortable with this part of the job.

Turner didn't back down to questions about why he should go No. 1 overall, something I don't agree with, but I like the feistiness of his response. It was always apparent that Turner is a thoughtful and hard-working type of person, but I was concerned with how self-assured he would be. That's an excellent sign if I'm Ed Stefanski.

Lance Stephenson was a player that arrived at Cincinnati as one of the bigger names, but he had a disappointing season overall. He began to play much better down the stretch.

"It helped me a lot," said Stephenson when asked about his year in college. "There's better players in college, so you have to work on a lot of stuff you don't know. Also, getting ready for it."

Stephenson was asked how long it took him to adjust to the college game.

"It took me about the whole season."

Stephenson also talked about how he enjoyed playing at Madison Square Garden in front of his family and friends.

I asked Stephenson a question that I also posed to a lot of the other players throughout the course of the days; How do you expect GMs, scouts and coaches to describe you four or five years from now?

"He's a hard worker," said Stephenson. "He's a leader. He's a good person on and off the court and he's a good team players."

I was impressed with the sincerity of Stephenson and I believe the situation of him going from such a hyped prospect to someone more on the bubble will ultimately make him a much more productive NBA player.

We've seen a similar situation happen with Bill Walker, who finally began to emerge this season following his trade to the Knicks. With Walker it was largely an injury concern and with Stephenson it is more associated with fitness, something he appears fully committed to.

Derrick Caracter has had a longer road to the NBA, spending two seasons at Louisville with Rick Pitino, followed by a transfer year and one at UTEP. The maturity of his age was apparent and he appears to realize that he is already in a last NBA chance type of situation before even going through the draft. If the situation is right, with the right coach, Caracter could legitimately have his behavior issues behind him.

Xavier Henry was unquestionably one of the most impressive interviewees of the day. Teams will really enjoy speaking with him and have full confidence in his intangibles.

Henry was asked about a specific player he might be able to compare himself to.

"I think a decent comparison would probably be a Joe Johnson," said Henry. "A tall, athletic shooting guard that can shoot and take it to the rim, that's just active on all ends of the court.

"Hustles, plays defense, rebounds, does it all."

I asked Henry about his defense, if he's ready to guard the Kobes and Wades of the NBA.

"Maybe not the Wades and the Kobes, but I know I can come in and work hard and try my hardest. Whomever I'm assigned to guard, I'm going to try my best."

James Anderson of Oklahoma State and Darington Hobson of New Mexico are two players who will be competing with Henry, but I found Hobson to be much more engaging and have that similar high intangible quality.

One of the aspects of Hobson's game I've been most impressed by is the way he moves without the ball in his hands. I asked him if that's something that has always come naturally to him.

"When the ball is not in your hands, there's other ways you can get it," said Dobson. "That's just moving around, staying busy. I know where I'm supposed to be on the court at all times."

Hobson talked a little bit about the kind of offense he feels most comfortable playing in.

"I can play both (up-temp and halfcourt). We did both at New Mexico. We ran a lot of halfcourt sets and isolations."

Paul George of Fresno State talked about why he chose the small school Fresno State instead of some of the bigger schools like Georgetown that recruited him.

"I wanted to start my own stepping stone," said George.

I personally see a lot of Joe Johnson in George's game because of his size and ability to handle the ball.

"(He's) someone I tremendously admire," said George when I asked about the comparison. "I can be someone like him down the line, or like a Tracy McGrady. I'm one of those bigger guards that can ultimately become a superstar. It's something I can work at and something I can make myself out to be."

Luke Babbitt of Nevada was another player I sat down with for a few minutes.

I asked Babbitt what position he sees himself defending on the NBA level.

"I see myself as a three man," said Babbitt. "Defending the three, with also the ability to be a four man.

"The NBA phenomenon of a stretch four is growing, so I think I can do both."

Al-Farouq Aminu  was painfully shy and soft-spoken to a point where it was almost hard to hear him. He is a player with nearly as much upside as any other player in this draft, but he has a ton of question marks and he won't be wowing any teams in the interview process.

To be fair, I think that says he's a good kid, but just not a face of the franchise type at all and not capable of being a lead scorer that can put a team on his back.

I spoke with Charles Garcia of Seattle about how he would be viewed differently if he was coming out of Washington or UCLA and he is looking forward to this process to being judged on the workouts.

Garcia told me he grew up as a fan of the Lakers and that he actually had an interview with them Thursday night. He is familiar with their Triangle offense and the player he believes he compares to most closely is Lamar Odom, though he also mentioned Danny Granger.

Garcia was one of the players that I was most surprised by in terms of the interview.

Devin Ebanks of West Virginia talked about how he's working on his shot.

"I definitely need to prove I can shoot the ball at the NBA level."

Ebanks said a fast paced offense suits his game the best.

Ekpe Udoh of Baylor is the wise old man of this draft class, calling the Draft Combine a 'priceless experience.' It was his 23rd birthday on Friday as well.

Udoh will have a great locker room presence and his ability to block shots and his improving jumper means he will be a consummate professional that will still be an NBA contributor 10 years from now on his 33rd birthday.

I've been impressed by how Ed Davis of North Carolina plays on tape in the pick and roll and as a face-up power forward, so it was a good indicator to hear him talk about his game in similar terms.

"I really respect Chris Bosh, he being left handed (and a face-up four)," said Davis. "I watch his game a lot and respect him."

Davis measured at 6'9" without shoes, which was a little taller than I was expecting.

I asked Davis what type of advantages he might have growing up as the son of a professional ballplayer, as his father Larry was a professional basketball player.

"Just knowing the game," said Davis. "I grew up around it. Unlike some players who are tall and are forced to play basketball, for me, I love the game. I chose to play. It's something I just love to be around."

The DeMarcus Cousins show was probably the highlight of the day, at least in terms of having levity. He was asked a ton of tough questions, but held in like a champ. He didn't try to be any different than the person he truly is and that's to be respected. He will have some bouts of immaturity and he didn't attempt to hide from it, instead embracing it and in the process disarming it.

Maybe it's because they're both incredible rebounders, who have battled fitness issues and are from Alabama, but there is a lot of Charles Barkley in his personality. His delivery of answers is similar in the sense that he makes you laugh even if it is a one or two word answer.

"My work ethic is a lot better than it used to be," said Cousins, who says he's been on a diet of 'salad and seafood'.

Cousins was asked if a team was choosing between himself and Wall for the top pick, who would be the right selection.

"Depending on what the team needs," replied Cousins, in a serious but joking manner.

Toronto, Golden State and Minnesota had all interviewed Cousins before Thursday. The Raptors asked a lot of questions about his character, while the Warriors were concerned with his conditioning.

I asked Cousins if he's familiar with the Triangle offense, which is frequently run by Kurt Rambis and the Wolves.

"I know of it, but I've never played it."

"You saw a lot of back to the basket (from me) this year, because that's how I was told to play," said Cousins. "But I have a lot more aspects to my game."

As Daniel Orton began his media session, Cousins was leaving and jokingly yelled out 'Dan-iel.'

I asked Orton what it was like to go up against Cousins in practice.

"It's fun," said Orton. "It's a battle everyday."

He was later asked to describe the personality of Cousins.

"Umm, yeah. That's the best way i can describe it. Unpredictable.

"He's a funny guy, a great guy to be around. People don't realize it, but he's a loving spirit; sometimes," Orton jokingly said.

"I've seen it get out of hand, but he can control it. It's kind of like watching a kid throw a temper tantrum."

Orton says he was measured at 6'8" or 6'9" without shoes, which is shorter than I was expecting. He appeared quite a bit shorter than Cousins and I think that will ultimately hurt his stock that seemed to be rising as teams took a closer look at his film.

"My pick and pop is something I did well in college (at practice), but never got to do in the game."

I asked Orton if he's a much better shooter than what we've seen.

"I know I am," said Orton. "I'm definitely a much better shooter than what I've shown."

For as much as Cousins and Turner were stars of the interview session, this draft ultimately begins and ends with John Wall. He is going to be a great one on the floor and he is going to be a great one as the face of the Wizards and also one of the best faces in the NBA. Wall is forthright in his comments, intelligent, thoughtful and despite a massive group of reporters around him, he looked me in the eye when responding to questions.

Wall talked a little about legacy, so I asked him if it is his goal to eventually be considered a top-10 or even a top-five point guard of all-time when his career is over.

"That's the key," said Wall. "Growing up, I thought if you want to be a point guard, you want to be one of the top. You have guys like Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas that played and you have guys like Deron Williams, Chris Paul and Derrick Rose who are the top point guards now.

"It takes time studying the film and watching games and just working hard."

I also asked Wall to describe his court vision, which I feel is the most extraordinary part of his game.

"It's basically, you know you got to have (vision) the way LeBron sees guys. It's the vision, you have to have your head up at all times.

"You have to read and react to the defense ahead of time.

"There might be one play where I get a charge call, if i do the same play, I can tell what the defense is going to do and If your teammates moving into right position, you just have to deliver the ball to him."

Hassan Whiteside is a player that has been growing on me and given his age and inexperience dealing with the media, I found him to be in the upper tier on Thursday.

"I'm just working with Hakeem Olajuwon," said Whiteside. "He's like my mentor now."

Whiteside is a good shooter for a big and I asked him if he feels more comfortable out there and if he'll be willing to go down low in the NBA.

"I played on the perimeter when I was younger," said Whiteside. "I was a guard and then I grew seven inches (at 16) and became a big man."

I also asked Whiteside how much room he has to improve and whether he believes he can develop into an All-Star center.

"I'm looking to be a Hall of Famer. I have big goals."

The first question for Derrick Favors was a half-joking, 'So, how do you feel about the Nets?' as he is almost as likely to end up there as Wall is with the Wizards.

"I know they had a really tough season this year," said Favors. "I think they're a good team, just missing some pieces."

I asked Favors how he thinks he can play with Brook Lopez, should the Nets select him.

"I think I can play with him pretty good. He's a low post player. Since I was at Tech, I'm more of a high post player."

Favors expects his defense and rebounding to be instantly translatable to the NBA.

The remainder of the players in attendance on Thursday I spoke to just briefly, or observed peripherally.

Wesley Johnson and Gordon Hayward received a ton of media attention and handled it exceptionally well.

Greg Monroe's interview session overlapped with Cousins and Orton and he didn't get as much of a rush since he is a known commodity from a character perspective.

I liked Trevor Booker a lot and Patrick Patterson is as mature and well-spoken as anyone who has watched him play over the past three years would imagine.

Sherron Collins showed his age and maturity and Jordan Crawford talked about how the experience of transferring from Indiana to Xavier taught him.

Damion James wasn't in attendance because he had a busted lip that needed stitches.

Willie Warren, Eric Bledsoe and Avery Bradley weren't in attendance on Thursday, but Bledsoe did attend on Friday.

"I'm a pass first point guard," said Bledsoe when I asked him to describe the type of point guard he is.  "I like to push the ball up the floor. I'm an up tempo point guard. Me and John kind of did the same on the court."

Bledsoe cited Chris Paul as a point guard he modeled his game after.

During the week, I asked DeMarcus Cousins to offer his opinion on Bledsoe as a point guard.

"He's a true point guard," said Cousins. "He couldn't show that a lot because John (Wall) was there, but he's a true point guard."

Cole Aldrich is one of the top center prospects in the draft, as he's arguably the best shotblocker.

Aldrich has an unorthodox jump shot where he brings the ball back behind his head, which is something I asked him about on Friday.

"I started playing basketball in the fourth or fifth grade and I think I kind of came from the soccer throw with over the head out of bounds," said Aldrich. "Somehow it evolved from that. It's ugly but it has a soft touch to it.

I asked Aldrich if he has any plans to change it at all.

"We've made some minor things to it, just to kind of clean it up a little bit. It goes in quite a bit of time, so we don't want to mess with it too much."

On a related note of playing other sports, Cousins talked about how football is his first love and that he didn't begin playing basketball until the 8th grade. He credits some of his mentality on the court to having a football background.

Since Wall and Turner did not participate in the drills, they were part of the first group on Friday.

Wall ended up sticking around for an additional 45 minutes while watching the Combine on television and chatting informally with several media members.

My prejudices of already seeing all of these guys play extensively might taint things, but if I had an attempt at blindly guessing which player holds greatness within himself, I would undoubtedly say John Wall.