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3rd May, 2009 - 11:16 pm
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| Current Features |
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SCOOP DU JOUR: 32 Fearless Predictions For The 2011 NFL Draft
The draft is less than a week away. Draft boards from teams are essentially set and are now being carefully guarded. Here are some predictions for what we'll see next week. Some are serious, some are fun, and less than five will probably come to fruition.
TEAM RANKINGS: Euroleague Top 16 Power Rankings
Barcelona, Olympiacos, Panathinaikos, Maccabi, Madrid and Siena enter the Top 16 phase as likely contenders to win the 2011 Euroleague.
STANDING 10: Non-National Games Of The Week (1/17-1/23)
The Knicks make three appearances this week, along with several from Blake Griffin and the Clippers.
PLAYER RANKINGS: 2010-11 NBA Player Rankings Through Dec. 14th
Now that more than a quarter of the season is in the books, we don't have many aberrations in the player rankings as Pau Gasol, Kevin Love, Deron Williams, Chris Paul and LeBron James comprise the top-five.
LOCKER TALK: Nash, Cleveland, & Orlando
Steve Nash could draw trade interest this summer and Cleveland isn?t overlooking Orlando?
CLASSICS: Hakeem Vs. Ewing: Who Was The Better Center?
Born within six months of each other in opposite corners of the world, two seven footers who are finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame this fall are two of the best ever to play the center position.
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By Christopher Reina
Following the official release of the early entry list, we have a clearer idea of who will stay in the 2009 NBA Draft.
If you were a big and you were an underclassman, this was definitely the year to declare because there is very clearly a dearth of them. Patrick Patterson and James Johnson are two examples of players that will surely be selected higher than they typically would, due to the lack of positional competition.
Greg Monroe will be a top pick regardless of when he enters the draft and though he clearly wasn't ready for the NBA, he still would have been a top-10 selection based on undeniable potential and that dearth of bigs. But Craig Brackins' stock couldn't have climbed anymore than it did leading up to the announcement to stay at Iowa State and he may potentially regret the decision, though you always hope not in those types of situations.
On the other hand, there is a flood of point guards, which might have led Willie Warren to remain in Norman for one more season. I believe he was better than many of the other guard prospects and would have remained in the top-10 and would have been a particularly good fit for New York at the eight spot.
This mock assumes that everybody who is in will stay in, even though several of these prospects are obviously not diving in with both feet.
As far as teams, positional need and the type of player they normally covet is taken into consideration, but how they rank amongst all prospects is weighed more heavily. There are a few second round picks that are going to different teams than what is listed, but teams tend to draft almost exclusively based on the player the like the most and are unafraid of fliers on players that don't fill a need.
Power Forward. Oklahoma
Unlike the Oden/Durant showdown and last year's Rose/Beasley debate, Griffin has no peer at the top of this draft. He is the undisputed best player in the pool and his combination of athleticism and a very high skill level will almost immediately make him one of the NBA's best power forwards.
Point Guard. DKV Joventut
Whether or not Rubio will even be in this draft has been a back and forth unknown, but it looks extremely likely that he will now stay in it. He is a transcendent point guard offensively, a very good defensive player and has a huge wealth of big game experience.
Power Forward. Arizona
For the 2008 draft, I really liked Hill as a selection early in the second half of the first round and he came back to Tucson for his junior season with a vastly improved skill set. He has improved his raw offensive game with more refinement and control, which matches his athleticism.
Center. Connecticut
Thabeet has undoubtedly improved his game on the offensive end, but his only difference-making contributions in the NBA will be on defense. In terms of All-Star potential, you would like a lot more out of the fourth overall pick, but he gives the Thunder exactly what they need.
Shooting Guard. Arizona State
In recent years, there haven't been too many pure shooting guards that are more sophisticated scorers as a sophomore than James Harden.
Combo Guard. UCLA
Holiday is a tremendous athlete and has been playing the Russell Westbrook role this year. He has an excellent handle and when he gets into the paint, he will be able to bounce off defenders and finish much the same way as Chris Paul. If Darren Collison didn't stick around for his senior season, we would have a bigger sample size of his point guard abilities and his stock would be higher than it is presently. He will be a measurement/workout stud and dismiss many of those doubts as the next few weeks play out.
Combo Guard. Memphis
Evans initially had some struggles when arriving at Memphis, but his play has been much better of late. He has shown the ability to play the point position, which is tremendously valuable given his size and build. He's also shooting the ball efficiently from the perimeter. He would be the perfect solution for Golden State because he would solve the Monta Ellis positional conundrum, due to his ability to play the point and defend big wings.
Point Guard. Wake Forest
Teague may not have the explosiveness of many of the other top guards in this draft, but he's everything you can ask for as a scoring point guard.
Shooting Guard. Louisville
Williams is someone that looks much better live than on paper. Even though his shooting percentages are far from ideal for a wing, he has good mechanics and a compact form. He has excellent athleticism, a good handle, a great feel for game and should have an Antonio Daniels type of career in the NBA as an incredibly productive combo guard. If the Raptors are serious about taking the Chris Bosh-era beyond the upcoming season, Williams has the best chance of making an immediate impact and at a position they need an upgrade at.
Point Guard. Roma
Jennings is a really good jump shooter and will have one of the NBA's best crossover dribbles. He is quick enough to beat his man nearly at will, especially because he's so slippery and with his very good in-air body control, Jennings is a skilled finisher.
Guard/Forward. USC
His athleticism and natural skill are off the charts, but he needs considerably more improvement in his consistency to become a reliable NBA player.
Combo Forward. Louisville
With great ball skills considering his height, Clark is eerily reminiscent of a Ron Mercer. He does a whole bunch of things on the floor, especially with the dribble, that few players his height are capable of at any level. He has a quick release with his jumper and a capable shot, though his efficiency is disconcerting.
Power Forward. Kentucky
Patterson is a classic power forward and most power forwards rely at least a little bit on their teammates to get them the ball and be good enough shooters to prevent the defense to collapse; he hasn't had that luxury at Kentucky. He has been a relative disappointment, but given the absence of other skilled bigs that are even out there, he has definite lottery potential.
Point Guard. North Carolina
Lawson's game is almost completely predicated on the extreme speed of his dribble and he will be an ideal point guard for an athletic young team that likes to run with him. He has matured in his decision-making this season and has also dramatically improved his perimeter shot. With that said, his injuries are concerning and there aren't too many 5'11" players that have had successful careers, so he has to be even more special than he's been for UNC.
Combo Forward. Gonzaga
His lack of athleticism and slow physical maturity will hurt him in the NBA initially and is why he should stay at Gonzaga for his junior season, but he has all of the natural skills and instincts to become everything Jared Jeffries couldn't at the next level. He has an excellent inside/outside game, both in the post and shooting off the dribble.
Shooting Guard. Duke
Henderson is incredibly smooth and sound in just about every facet of the game. He is a little small and underwhelming to be anything more than an average NBA shooting guard.
Point Guard. Syracuse
A few sources told me a lot of teams were interested in Flynn in last year's draft before he decided to return to Syracuse for his sophomore season and he took a nice step forward this season. He has great intangibles and I expect him to actually be a better pro than he is a college player depending on the offensive system he ends up in.
Small Forward. Arizona
Budinger has shown tangible improvement, but his ceiling has been decidedly lowered since that McDonald's All-America game with Oden and Durant, largely due to his softness.
Point Guard. UCLA
Since arriving as a freshman so many years ago, Collison is a much better shooter and has decreased his turnovers. I'm not sure he is talented enough to be a starting point guard on a good team, but he'll make a superb backup due to his defensive abilities and consistency.
Combo Guard. Davidson
It is not entirely surprising, in my opinion, that Stephen Curry is being overvalued at this point in the draft process. Every GM and beat writer has a fairly solid idea of his 2008 tourney exploits, but those glaring limitations haven't emerged as they have for other scouts. It is the syndrome we saw last year with someone like Darrell Arthur falling, while Marreese Speights went higher than some were expecting and would go even higher if there was a re-draft.
Point Guard. Florida
Calathes is an excellent facilitator, clearly a pure point guard and his shooting percentages improved as a sophomore.
Power Forward. Wake Forest
Johnson really enjoys attacking the rim and will need to prove that he is big enough to be a 4 since he doesn't have the skill set of a wing.
Small Forward. Maccabi Tel Aviv
Casspi is a great scorer and that is largely a result of how much work he does prior to catching the ball. He is always moving and intelligently moves into space and proves to be a tough cover for this very reason. He is always cutting to the ball and then he looks to finish buckets physically and dunk on people when possible.
Center. Ohio State
Mullens has good elevation and strength to go with a sophisticated set of post moves. Mullens also has good vision as a passer, though the college game was a little too quick for his decision-making.
Power Forward. Pittsburgh
Blair is ridiculously strong and without a lot of lift or much height, he'll need that to power through NBA defenders.
Shooting Guard. North Carolina
(This pick belongs to Chicago.) Ellington has a good pedigree, solid athleticism and has made marked improvement as a perimeter shooter.
Small Forward. Pittsburgh
(This pick now belongs to Memphis) Young was an unstoppable beast in the Big East, but will he have enough length and skill to work inside in the NBA?
Point Guard. VCU
The buzz on Maynor has undoubtedly been staring me in the face, so penciling him into the 28th spot gives me a chance to at least comment on him ahead of my forthcoming full draft report. With all of the other guards that are out there, I don't see him as anywhere close to the other guards. He is unquestionably a very pure scorer, but is more of a scoring point than a pure point; a four-year point guard that commands as much attention as a scorer as Maynor did at VCU should get more easy shots for teammates than he did. Also, how will he adjust to a system where he can't overdribble and isn't the focal point? Lastly, I'm not uniformly skeptical of small school seniors, but the upside of said players is almost always dubious.
Small Forward. Tennessee
The way Trevor Ariza has succeeded in the Lakers' system makes me think that Smith could have a similar type of impact. He isn't quite as athletic, but he is far more skilled at this point in his career than Ariza was during his Knicks' days.
Small Forward. Georgetown
Summers' development this season was disappointing, but he is the kind of player very good teams love to have. He is a blue-collar player with some All-Star skills. He has good range on his shot, can play some point forward, has great strength and will be able to guard multiple positions.
Second Round
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Point Guard. St. Mary's
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Small Forward. Texas
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Power Forward. Mississippi State
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Point Guard. France
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Shooting Guard. LSU
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Combo Forward. Memphis
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Power Forward. USC
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Point Guard. Cholet
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Point Guard. UConn
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Combo Guard. Marquette
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Power Forward. North Carolina
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Power Forward. Gonzaga
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Forward/Center. Georgia Tech
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Power Forward. St. Joseph's
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Power Forward. Missouri
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Combo Forward. Xavier
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Power Forward. Texas
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Small Forward. North Carolina
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Power Forward. Georgia Tech
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Shooting Guard. Alabama
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Forward/Center. Nederlands
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Combo Forward. Serbia and Montenegro
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Power Forward. LSU
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Power Forward. Arizona State
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Shooting Guard. Texas A&M
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Small Forward. Sweeden
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Shooting Guard. Marquette
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Point Guard. Florida State
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Point Guard. Maryland
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Shooting Guard. Kentucky
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