Surprise Surprise

Almost a month ago—I’m not a professional analyst, yet—I wrote Should I stay or should I go? and proclaimed Jamont Gordon and Bill Walker, among others, would stay in school.

Well, they didn’t.

Walker’s decision wasn’t a big surprise, but Gordon’s was. But even more surprising was the college departures of George Hill and Luc Richard Mbah A Moute and the withdrawing of Ty Lawson, Chase Budinger and the nearly 24 year old Lester Hudson.

The league will have an official list out later on Tuesday.

Below is a list of the guys who were undecided going into Monday, per ESPN.

Staying In Draft
Player School
Joe Alexander, Jr. WVU

Ryan Anderson, So. Cal
Mario Chalmers, Jr. Kansas

Jamont Gordon, Jr. Mississippi St.
Richard Hendrix, Jr. Alabama

J.J. Hickson, Fr. NC State
George Hill, Jr. IUPUI

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Jr. UCLA
Marreese Speights, So. Florida

Bill Walker, RS Fr. Kansas St.

Returning To School
Player School
A.J. Abrams, Jr. Texas

Josh Akognon, Jr. Cal St.-Fullerton
Chase Budinger, So. Arizona

Lee Cummard, Jr. BYU
Robert Dozier, Jr. Memphis

Wayne Ellington, So. UNC
Danny Green, Jr. UNC

Lester Hudson, Jr. Tennessee-Martin
Ty Lawson, So. UNC

Jeremy Pargo, Jr. Gonzaga
Ronald Steele, RS Sr. Alabama

Robert Vaden, Jr. UAB

source

Lester Hudson, a guard from Tennessee-Martin, could not ask for any better of a draft stock than he has now, yet he still withdrew from the draft. He more than likely didn’t feel confident in the feedback he received from the teams, so his decision is probably a wise one, except for the fact that by this time next year he will be almost 25 years old. A bit old for a rookie point guard? 1st round pick… no. But 2nd round pick… yes. I would have liked to see him go. How much more can you prove by dominating Ohio Valley Conference competition again?

One of the smartest decisions was made by Gonzaga guard Jeremy Pargo. The player has a future in the league, but just didn’t fit well in this year’s draft. He needs to improve his ball handling and decision making skills to really reap the benefits of coming back to a very dangerous Gonzaga team. I see him being a mid to late 1st round pick next year.

I don’t believe Hill will be drafted, nor do I believe Moute will be drafted. Unless of course, both have verbal 2nd round guarantees. Could be the case, but things change. Don’t count on anything in the NBA, well, except for questionable refereeing.

Questions, comments and beefs are always appreciated.

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