I going to see if I can't work my way through my current top 30 players. The only non USA player I have on my list is Enes Kanter and thats because he's a consensus top 5 pick. My list has nothing to do with where I think these players will actually be drafted. I just have them in my personal order of perference.
1. Kyrie Irving: A freshman, 6'2" PG from Duke. He's just now recovering from a toe injury, and may be back for the tournament. He only played in 8 games before the injury, and I only saw 3 three of those games. Irving is a more prototypical PG. By that I mean, he thinks pass first. He's a very good athlete and is very quick. I wouldn't put him in the John Wall or Derrick Rose realm of quickness, but he's very close. He has excellent court vision and is a very good passer. Unlike Wall, he has a good outside shot and is also good at driving to the basket to either finish, or dish. He plays more under control than Wall did, thus he doesn't turn the ball over as much. He is the best PG in the draft, and possibly the first pick in the draft.
2. Derrick Williams: A sophmore, 6'8", SF/PF from Arizona. I see Williams as a SF at the next level. Perhaps thats wishful thinking on my part since I think its a position of need for the Kings. He's an above average athlete who is comfortable playing just about anywhere on the floor. He has an excellent jumpshot out to 3 point range, but also has a very good post game. He's an excellent rebounder and handles the ball fairly well for a guy his size. He has excellent basketball IQ, and is someone I would call a closer. He knows how to win games with the clock running out. He leads all of college in 3 point shooting percentage, although he doesn't take that many shots from there. At the college level he's a good defender. He appears to have good lateral quickness, so there's no reason he can't be a good defender at the next level. There aren't many players in this draft that I would feel confident in saying, your looking at a future star. But Williams is one of those. I would include Irving in that small group as well.
3. Jared Sullinger: A freshman, 6'9", PF from Ohio St. Sullinger is your classic PF. At 270 pounds and very strong, he dominates in most games in the post. His technique around the basket is almost picture perfect. He has a very strong lower body, and he knows how to use it. He almost always leads his post move with his hips and never drops his shoulder into the defender. He's a terrific rebounder and he's not a bad passer out of the double. Defensively, he's a good man defender and is hard to move off his defensive position. If he has a downside, its that he's a below the rim player. If I had to make a comparison, it would be Al Jefferson. I'm curious to see what his true height is at the combine. I have no doubt he'll be a good player at the next level. I'm just not sure how good. He's very young, and already seems polished in areas that take other players years. I'm not predicting stardom, but its possible.
4. Enes Kanter: A 19 year old, 6'11", center. I saw him play in two games agains United States highschoolers. In those two games, he was the best player on the floor and simply dominated. He reminded me of Cousins at the time, and still does. He has good hands and is very strong. His entire game is around the basket and he's very physical. Like Cousins, his game is below the rim. He has an abundance of post moves, and is a very good rebounder. In the two games I saw, he appeared to have little or no game away from the basket. Doesn't mean he doesn't, it just means I didn't see it. Defensively, its hard to say. Both the games I saw were typical, undisciplined all star type of games. So who know's?
5. Harrison Barnes: A freshman, 6'8", SF. After hiding all year behind his press clippings, he finally showed up in the last 10 games. Its almost as if I'm watching a completely different player. And I like the one I'm seeing now. He has a picture perfect jumpshot with range out beyond the arc. He's also showed off some ballhandling skills of late which leads me to believe he could play some SG as well. He's a good, but not an freak athlete. He appears to have very good lateral movement, which would bode well for the defensive side of the ball. He's a decent rebounder, but so far, nothing to write home about. Physcially he has a small frame, which makes me wonder how he'll stand up against some of the stronger SF's in the NBA. He's one of the youngest, if not the youngest player in college basketball, so there's plenty of time for him to add muscle. It wasn't that long ago that I had him all the way down to 16 on my list. So he's made a huge jump back into the top 5 with me.
6. Terrence Jones: A freshman, 6'8", SF. Terrence is an interesting player. He's one of those guys thats either going to be an impact player and a star, or just decent role player. He excites me on certain levels, and disappoints me on others. Perhaps because I see so much potential in him. He's a very good defender and especially good as a weakside shot blocker. He handles the ball like a guard. Its not often that you see player his size with handles like that. He's a very good athlete and is a quick leaper. He has good length, which helps him on defense. He's also very strong and physcial around the basket, and is a good rebounder. Offensively, most of his scoring comes from within 10 feet of the basket. His jumpshot leaves a lot to be desired and will need a total makeover at the next level. Surprisingly, he has good touch on his jumper, and makes more than you would think. So there's hope! He plays with a lot of intensity, which sometimes leads to his being somewhat tempermental. If he can develop a good outside game, he can be a star in this league. At worse, he can be a lockdown defender.
7. Alec Burks: A sophmore, 6'6", SG. I probably have Burks ranked higher than most. I just like the kid. I see a lot of potential. He's a very good athlete with great quickness and leaping ability. At the college level he's a good defender. At the next level, he'll need to add strength in order to match up with the Ray Allens of the world. He has a good jumpshot, but is very erratic with it. Especially from beyond the arc. He has a good mid-range game, but has the habit of fading away at times and leaving the shot short. All correctable things. I'm high on him because I've seen him take over games, and the first thing I look for is whether a player impacts the game, and then how often. He has that ability. He also needs to work on his ballhandling, which hinders his ability to create his own shot at times. He tends to be a little one handed. With work, I see him as a two way player.
8. Perry Jones: A freshman, 6'11", SF. Perry, Perry, Perry! Just where is your head. This kid came into the season as the most highly touted player, and has ended up being the biggest disappointment. Think Donte Greene with twice as much talent, and you have him. So far he's been an underaccheiver surpreme. This kid can run like a deer, dribble and pass like a point guard, jump out of the building, and has a picture perfect jumpshot. And he has the intensity of a lump of coal. I think I've seen two games all year that I can say he had any impact on the game. And I've seen Baylor play over 20 times this year. Jones has the most potential of any player in college this year, and he's done nothing to display any of it. He plays token defense, and to be fair, Baylor plays a 2/3 zone, so its hard to make a decent judgement. He's a rebounder of convenience. If the ball bounces to him, he grabs it. But he seldom goes out of his zone for a rebound. He's a great passer, but doesn't rack up many assists. He handles the ball extremely well, but seldom uses it to create his own shot, or attack the basket. He scares me. I'm afraid to draft him because I'm afraid that what I see is what I get. And I'm afraid to not draft him, because I'm afraid the light will go in his head, and he'll become a superstar, because he has the much talent.
9. Kemba Walker: A Junior, 6'0", PG. Kemba reminds me a lot of Allen Iverson, and since I wasn't a big fan of Iverson, I haven't been a fan surpreme of Walker's. However, my personal bias aside, he's a very talented player. Offensively he has a terrific pullup mid-range jumper. He's also lightning quick, and if his defender turns his head for a second, he'll be by you on his way to the basket. He's a very good athlete, and despite his lack of height, he has no problem at all dunking the ball. He's not as creative a finisher as one would like and gets his shot blocked more than you would like. Its his shot from beyond the arc thats erratic. Its either on, or its off. The problem with Kemba, is that at times, he doesn't seem to know the difference. Thus, you'll get some games with 6 out of 20 from the floor at times. He's a good passer, but doesn't rack up as many assists as you would like, and unfortunately turns the ball over too much. Now all of these things are correctable, so I'm sure someone will take Kemba fairly high. PG's and Centers are at a premium, so you've got to take a shot when a good one comes along. When I said he's not one of my favorites, its because I don't see him as a good fit for the Kings. He's fun to watch though. And he plays with surpreme confidence.
10. Jimmer Fredette: A senior, 6'2", PF/SG. Fredette is a shooter surpreme. He can be unconcious at times shooting from 10 to 15 feet beyond the three point line, and making them. They showed him in warmups before one of the games shooting from half court for fun, and making around 7 of 10 from there. If your playing against him and he gets hot, your in serious trouble. The thing I love about Fredette, is that he seems to know instinctively when his shot is off, and he'll start taking the ball to the basket, where he'll either finish or dish to a teammate. Despite being known for his shooting, he's turned himself into a pretty good PG. He does tend to force things at time and it gets him into trouble and usually leads to a turnover. A lot of his turnovers are a result of being hounded and doubled and sometimes tripled every time the ball touches his hands. As a result a lot of his shots are off balance. He's a player that will see the NBA as a welcome sight where they can't mug you without a foul being called. The huge question hanging over Fredette is whether he can play defense at the next level. If the scouts thought he could, he'd be a top five pick. I think he's a better athlete than he's being give credit for. How that translates, we'll see..
The next ten later:::::
