Once again, this is just my opinion, which could change by draft time. At least the order I have them in.
1. Harrison Barnes: North Carolina, sophmore, 19 years old. 6'8", 223 Lbs, 6'11" wingspan.
29.3 MPG, 17.7 PPG, 46.1% FGP, 34.4% 3PP, 5.2 RPG. In his junior year of highschool, he led his team to the state championship while going 26 and 0. The following year his team repeated winning the state championship going 27 and 0. He was invited to, and played in the Nike Hoop Summit, The McDonalds All American Game, and the Jordan Brand Classic, where he was voted MVP. After being recruited by Duke, Ohlahoma, North Carolina, and UCLA, he finally settled on North Carolina.
I was disappointed with Barnes for at least half of last season. He lacked aggression, and at times he seemed too passive. However, sometime after the halfway mark, along with the addition of Kendall Marshall into the starting lineup, he started to look like the number one player in the country coming out of highschool.
This year, he's living up to expectations, which is why I have him at number one, although its a very close call. He's a good athlete, but not a Gerald Wallace type athlete. His jump shot is picture perfect. He's a good spot up shooter, and is excellent coming off screens. His weakness is his average ball handling, which reflects on his ability to drive to the basket and finish. But he has good BBIQ, and knows what his strengths and weaknesses are.
He has shown himself to be a pretty good defender, with good lateral quickness. With his length, he has the potential to be a good defender at the next level. He's an unselfish player and a team player, who also works hard on his game. I wouldn't call him a can't miss player, but he's about as close as you can get. He just has too much talent to not succeed.
2. Michael Gilchrist: Kentucky, Freshman, 18 years old. 6'7.5", 228 Lbs, 6'10" wingspan. 31.2 MPG, 12.3 PPG, 47.5% FGA, 28.2% 3PA, 7.7 RPG, 1.2 SPG, 1.1 BPG. One of, if not the best defensive SF in college. Non stop motor, and a terrific athlete. Defensively, he's the whole package. He gets right in you chest when guarding the ball, and with his great lateral quickness, and ability to slide his feet, he's great at keeping his man in front of him. When off the ball, he's excellent at playing the passing lanes. He's also a good weakside defender blocking a lot of shots from behind.
Offensively he only has one weakness, his outside jumpshot. Other than that, there aren't many holes in his game. He's a very good ballhandler and a great passer with the capablity of playing point forward. He has a good midrange game and is a very good finisher around the basket. Its not unusual to see him grab a rebound and take it all the way, weaving in and out of traffic and finish. He's also a very good rebounder for the SF position.
Gilchrist is one of my favorite college players. He's a warrior that won't quit. He's unselfish, and the consumate team player. He's also a leader on the floor who will get in your face if he thinks your coasting. If this kid develops a consistent jumpshot, your looking at a star.
3. Quincy Miller: Baylor, Freshman, 19 years old. 6'9", 210 Lbs, 7'4" wingspan. 25 MPG, 12.4 PPG, 46.6% FGA, 37.9% 3PA, 5.1 RPG. Quincy played PF in highschool, but will play SF in the NBA. He tore his ACL his senior year of highschool. Its reported that he used the time off to study the game. He's a very dedicated player. The first time you watch Quincy, you'll be lulled into thinking he's not quick or very athletic. He lulls the oposition into thinking that as well. He's such a smooth graceful athlete that he appears to be moving slower than he is.
Offensively, he's a pretty complete player. But not perfect by any means. He's a deadly spot up shooter from behind the line, but his shot becomes more inconsistent off the dribble. Something he needs to work on. Around the basket he will at times amaze you. I've seen him surrounded by opposing players under the basket, and he still manages to get the ball up and in. He has an excellent midrange game with a wide assortment of shots from Hookshots with either hand to floaters and a turnaround jumpshot in the key. He knows how to create his own shot using jabsteps, ballfakes and stepbacks, and if all else fails, he'll put the ball on the floor and go around you to the basket. He's also a good rebounder, and a decent passer.
My only knock on Quincy, is that at times he seems to coast, or look uninvolved when the action is away from him. I don't want to blow this out of proportion. Its not major, and doesn't happen that often, but its a habit he needs to break. Defensively, he works hard and seems dedicated. He's a good athlete, and extremely long, so there's no reason he can't be a good defender at the next level. Of course Baylor plays a 2/3 zone almost 90% of the time, so its hard to judge just how good he is.
Miller is a kid that could easily be a star in the NBA. He's loaded with talent and has great size for the SF positon.
4. Jeffery Taylor: Vanderbilt, Senior, 22 years old. 6'7", 225 Lbs, 6'7" wingspan. 32.4 MPG, 17.6 PPG, 53.4% FGA, 47.4% 3PA, 5.9 RPG. Taylor has been on my watch list for the last 3 years, and until this season, he managed to disappoint me to some extent. I always thought he was first round, possible lottery talent, but he never seemed able to get over the hump. But not this year! He's outplaying many of the players that are ranked higher than him on some mocks. His outside shot has been consistent all year long, and that was always my knock on him. He's shooting almost 50% from the three, and he takes his fair share.
He's a terrific athlete, and plays with a chip on his shoulder. He's very tough, and strong. He can be explosive around the basket. He runs the floor extremely well, and is a very good passer. His biggest weakness is his ballhandling, which is only average for his position, but he never forces things and plays to his strengths.
Where Taylor really shines, is on the defensive side of the ball. At the college level he's a lockdown defender, and is right up there with Kid Gilchrist. He has guarded all four positions in college from PG to PF. His lateral quickness is off the charts. Like Gilchrist, he's a team guy thats very unselfish. I don't know that he'll ever be a star, but he's a guy that an NBA team could insert into the SF position for the next 10 years and feel confident about. He's just a good solid basketball player.
5. Kris Joseph: Syracuse, Senior, 23 years old. 6'7", 215 Lbs, No wingspan. 31.2 MPG, 14.0 PPG, 43.8% FGA, 36.8% 3PA, 5.0 RPG. The biggest thing Joseph has going against him in the draft rankings is his age. Doesn't mean anything to me, but it seems affect players ranking. A conversation for another time. Joseph seems to have put on more muscle to me this season. He's a good spot up shooter, but struggles off the dribble. He's a very good ballhandler, and can put it on the floor and go to the basket.
Joseph is a very good athlete, and to some extent, he relies a little too much on his athleticism, which I think has slowed his skill development. Plus he's had to play PF at times for Syracuse, which hindered his development at SF. He's a talented player with four years of college under his belt. His BBIQ is good. Defensively, he puts in the effort, but Syracuse plays a zone most of the time with very little man switching, so its very difficult to get a good read on his ability. Once again, with his athleticism he should be at minimum, a decent, if not good defender.
I like Joseph, but I tend to shy away from Syracuse players a little. Something about their system that tends to make players look better than they are. Sorry Kris!
6. Khris Middleton: Texas A&M, Junior, 20 years old. 6'8", 210 Lbs, 6'10" Wingspan. 27.4 MPG, 11.5 PPG, 41.1% FGA, 27.3% 3PA, 4.9 RPG. Khris is a very good athlete, but not an freak athlete. Up until this season he's been a good shooter. He shot 36% from the three last season. However, he has been shooting the ball better of late and his average is on the rise. He has a very good midrange game and scores in a variety of ways with pullups, floaters etc. He's an excellent passer and is very good in transition offense.
His biggest weakness is ballhandling, which hinders his ability to attack the basket off the dribble. His lack of strength also affects his ability to finish around the basket. Its also the main cause of his turnovers. He really needs to improve his handles.
Defensively, he works hard, but has trouble staying in front of his man when guarding the ball. Off the ball, he works hard staying with his man, and is good at denying the ball. His lateral quickness looks suspect, and he appears a little rigid in man defense. Middleton is still very young, and has talent. I think offensively he will find a place in the NBA, but defensively he might struggle for while.
7. Rodney Williams: Minnesota, Junior, 20 years old. 6'7", 205 Lbs, 6'10" wingspan. 11.1 PPG, 57.9% FGA, 34.4% 3PA, 5.3 RPG. Terrific athlete, and explosive leaper whose extremely quick in transition. Good at finishing on the break, but not as good off the dribble due to his average ballhandling. He's not a great shooter, but, you don't want to leave him open. His jumpshot needs a little work. He's not that good at creating his own shot. Oddly, he's a good passer
He's an excellent defender with very good lateral quickness and great length. This will get him some minutes at the next level. He has a lot of potential. If he can develop his offense, I can see him as a good rotational player in the future.
8. Doug McDermott: Creighton, Sophmore, 20 years old. 6'7", 220 Lbs, No wingspan. 23.2 PPG, 60.7% FGA, 49.0% 3PA, 8.2 RPG. McDermott plays PF for Creighton, but I just don't see him at that positon in the NBA. Just not big or strong enough. So I'm projecting him as a SF, where unfortunately, he's also limited by his athletic ability. Despite being a PF, and a good inside scorer despite his size, (almost 40% of all his shots are in the post), he's a terrific outside shooter when spotting up, hitting almost 50% of his shots. He's currently one of the leading scorers in college.
However, he's poor at creating his own shot. He's a poor ballhandler and passer, so he's not going to create a shot for anyone else. Defensively, he puts in the effort, and the kid has a great motor, constantly moving without the ball on offense. But his poor lateral quickness is going to limit him. He's a very smart player with great BBIQ (He's the coaches son), so he knows his limits and plays to his strengths. There's probably a place for him in the NBA, but it has to be the right team.
He's amazing to watch in the post at times, getting his shot up in a crowd taller than him. He's also a great rebounder. How those two things translate to the next level is anyone's guess.
1. Harrison Barnes: North Carolina, sophmore, 19 years old. 6'8", 223 Lbs, 6'11" wingspan.
29.3 MPG, 17.7 PPG, 46.1% FGP, 34.4% 3PP, 5.2 RPG. In his junior year of highschool, he led his team to the state championship while going 26 and 0. The following year his team repeated winning the state championship going 27 and 0. He was invited to, and played in the Nike Hoop Summit, The McDonalds All American Game, and the Jordan Brand Classic, where he was voted MVP. After being recruited by Duke, Ohlahoma, North Carolina, and UCLA, he finally settled on North Carolina.
I was disappointed with Barnes for at least half of last season. He lacked aggression, and at times he seemed too passive. However, sometime after the halfway mark, along with the addition of Kendall Marshall into the starting lineup, he started to look like the number one player in the country coming out of highschool.
This year, he's living up to expectations, which is why I have him at number one, although its a very close call. He's a good athlete, but not a Gerald Wallace type athlete. His jump shot is picture perfect. He's a good spot up shooter, and is excellent coming off screens. His weakness is his average ball handling, which reflects on his ability to drive to the basket and finish. But he has good BBIQ, and knows what his strengths and weaknesses are.
He has shown himself to be a pretty good defender, with good lateral quickness. With his length, he has the potential to be a good defender at the next level. He's an unselfish player and a team player, who also works hard on his game. I wouldn't call him a can't miss player, but he's about as close as you can get. He just has too much talent to not succeed.
2. Michael Gilchrist: Kentucky, Freshman, 18 years old. 6'7.5", 228 Lbs, 6'10" wingspan. 31.2 MPG, 12.3 PPG, 47.5% FGA, 28.2% 3PA, 7.7 RPG, 1.2 SPG, 1.1 BPG. One of, if not the best defensive SF in college. Non stop motor, and a terrific athlete. Defensively, he's the whole package. He gets right in you chest when guarding the ball, and with his great lateral quickness, and ability to slide his feet, he's great at keeping his man in front of him. When off the ball, he's excellent at playing the passing lanes. He's also a good weakside defender blocking a lot of shots from behind.
Offensively he only has one weakness, his outside jumpshot. Other than that, there aren't many holes in his game. He's a very good ballhandler and a great passer with the capablity of playing point forward. He has a good midrange game and is a very good finisher around the basket. Its not unusual to see him grab a rebound and take it all the way, weaving in and out of traffic and finish. He's also a very good rebounder for the SF position.
Gilchrist is one of my favorite college players. He's a warrior that won't quit. He's unselfish, and the consumate team player. He's also a leader on the floor who will get in your face if he thinks your coasting. If this kid develops a consistent jumpshot, your looking at a star.
3. Quincy Miller: Baylor, Freshman, 19 years old. 6'9", 210 Lbs, 7'4" wingspan. 25 MPG, 12.4 PPG, 46.6% FGA, 37.9% 3PA, 5.1 RPG. Quincy played PF in highschool, but will play SF in the NBA. He tore his ACL his senior year of highschool. Its reported that he used the time off to study the game. He's a very dedicated player. The first time you watch Quincy, you'll be lulled into thinking he's not quick or very athletic. He lulls the oposition into thinking that as well. He's such a smooth graceful athlete that he appears to be moving slower than he is.
Offensively, he's a pretty complete player. But not perfect by any means. He's a deadly spot up shooter from behind the line, but his shot becomes more inconsistent off the dribble. Something he needs to work on. Around the basket he will at times amaze you. I've seen him surrounded by opposing players under the basket, and he still manages to get the ball up and in. He has an excellent midrange game with a wide assortment of shots from Hookshots with either hand to floaters and a turnaround jumpshot in the key. He knows how to create his own shot using jabsteps, ballfakes and stepbacks, and if all else fails, he'll put the ball on the floor and go around you to the basket. He's also a good rebounder, and a decent passer.
My only knock on Quincy, is that at times he seems to coast, or look uninvolved when the action is away from him. I don't want to blow this out of proportion. Its not major, and doesn't happen that often, but its a habit he needs to break. Defensively, he works hard and seems dedicated. He's a good athlete, and extremely long, so there's no reason he can't be a good defender at the next level. Of course Baylor plays a 2/3 zone almost 90% of the time, so its hard to judge just how good he is.
Miller is a kid that could easily be a star in the NBA. He's loaded with talent and has great size for the SF positon.
4. Jeffery Taylor: Vanderbilt, Senior, 22 years old. 6'7", 225 Lbs, 6'7" wingspan. 32.4 MPG, 17.6 PPG, 53.4% FGA, 47.4% 3PA, 5.9 RPG. Taylor has been on my watch list for the last 3 years, and until this season, he managed to disappoint me to some extent. I always thought he was first round, possible lottery talent, but he never seemed able to get over the hump. But not this year! He's outplaying many of the players that are ranked higher than him on some mocks. His outside shot has been consistent all year long, and that was always my knock on him. He's shooting almost 50% from the three, and he takes his fair share.
He's a terrific athlete, and plays with a chip on his shoulder. He's very tough, and strong. He can be explosive around the basket. He runs the floor extremely well, and is a very good passer. His biggest weakness is his ballhandling, which is only average for his position, but he never forces things and plays to his strengths.
Where Taylor really shines, is on the defensive side of the ball. At the college level he's a lockdown defender, and is right up there with Kid Gilchrist. He has guarded all four positions in college from PG to PF. His lateral quickness is off the charts. Like Gilchrist, he's a team guy thats very unselfish. I don't know that he'll ever be a star, but he's a guy that an NBA team could insert into the SF position for the next 10 years and feel confident about. He's just a good solid basketball player.
5. Kris Joseph: Syracuse, Senior, 23 years old. 6'7", 215 Lbs, No wingspan. 31.2 MPG, 14.0 PPG, 43.8% FGA, 36.8% 3PA, 5.0 RPG. The biggest thing Joseph has going against him in the draft rankings is his age. Doesn't mean anything to me, but it seems affect players ranking. A conversation for another time. Joseph seems to have put on more muscle to me this season. He's a good spot up shooter, but struggles off the dribble. He's a very good ballhandler, and can put it on the floor and go to the basket.
Joseph is a very good athlete, and to some extent, he relies a little too much on his athleticism, which I think has slowed his skill development. Plus he's had to play PF at times for Syracuse, which hindered his development at SF. He's a talented player with four years of college under his belt. His BBIQ is good. Defensively, he puts in the effort, but Syracuse plays a zone most of the time with very little man switching, so its very difficult to get a good read on his ability. Once again, with his athleticism he should be at minimum, a decent, if not good defender.
I like Joseph, but I tend to shy away from Syracuse players a little. Something about their system that tends to make players look better than they are. Sorry Kris!
6. Khris Middleton: Texas A&M, Junior, 20 years old. 6'8", 210 Lbs, 6'10" Wingspan. 27.4 MPG, 11.5 PPG, 41.1% FGA, 27.3% 3PA, 4.9 RPG. Khris is a very good athlete, but not an freak athlete. Up until this season he's been a good shooter. He shot 36% from the three last season. However, he has been shooting the ball better of late and his average is on the rise. He has a very good midrange game and scores in a variety of ways with pullups, floaters etc. He's an excellent passer and is very good in transition offense.
His biggest weakness is ballhandling, which hinders his ability to attack the basket off the dribble. His lack of strength also affects his ability to finish around the basket. Its also the main cause of his turnovers. He really needs to improve his handles.
Defensively, he works hard, but has trouble staying in front of his man when guarding the ball. Off the ball, he works hard staying with his man, and is good at denying the ball. His lateral quickness looks suspect, and he appears a little rigid in man defense. Middleton is still very young, and has talent. I think offensively he will find a place in the NBA, but defensively he might struggle for while.
7. Rodney Williams: Minnesota, Junior, 20 years old. 6'7", 205 Lbs, 6'10" wingspan. 11.1 PPG, 57.9% FGA, 34.4% 3PA, 5.3 RPG. Terrific athlete, and explosive leaper whose extremely quick in transition. Good at finishing on the break, but not as good off the dribble due to his average ballhandling. He's not a great shooter, but, you don't want to leave him open. His jumpshot needs a little work. He's not that good at creating his own shot. Oddly, he's a good passer
He's an excellent defender with very good lateral quickness and great length. This will get him some minutes at the next level. He has a lot of potential. If he can develop his offense, I can see him as a good rotational player in the future.
8. Doug McDermott: Creighton, Sophmore, 20 years old. 6'7", 220 Lbs, No wingspan. 23.2 PPG, 60.7% FGA, 49.0% 3PA, 8.2 RPG. McDermott plays PF for Creighton, but I just don't see him at that positon in the NBA. Just not big or strong enough. So I'm projecting him as a SF, where unfortunately, he's also limited by his athletic ability. Despite being a PF, and a good inside scorer despite his size, (almost 40% of all his shots are in the post), he's a terrific outside shooter when spotting up, hitting almost 50% of his shots. He's currently one of the leading scorers in college.
However, he's poor at creating his own shot. He's a poor ballhandler and passer, so he's not going to create a shot for anyone else. Defensively, he puts in the effort, and the kid has a great motor, constantly moving without the ball on offense. But his poor lateral quickness is going to limit him. He's a very smart player with great BBIQ (He's the coaches son), so he knows his limits and plays to his strengths. There's probably a place for him in the NBA, but it has to be the right team.
He's amazing to watch in the post at times, getting his shot up in a crowd taller than him. He's also a great rebounder. How those two things translate to the next level is anyone's guess.
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