THE 08 NBA Draft is fast approaching and I for one love to predict when certain players will get drafted and whether they will become the next Eddy Curry disaster or the next Monta Ellis find.

O.J. Mayo USC

O.J. has been talked about ad nauseam on this site as you probably already know (sorry Kevin).

Where will he go in the draft?

Talent wise, he’s right up there with Rose and Beasley, but NBA teams don’t always go for the most talented, sometimes they just go for need instead.

The T-Wolves need difference makers and Mayo would certainly fit that label. Al Jefferson and O.J. Mayo on the same team… now we’re talking.

Jonathan Givony’s blog from Draft Express.com has Mayo covered, as well as some other top names.

Lopez Twins Stanford

I don’t see either as eventual All-Stars, but I do see them both as down the road starters, maybe 15 and 8 guys at the best. Brook’s lack of quickness/agility might just be the downfall that keeps him from being an elite center. Robin will have no problem rebounding and playing defense at the NBA level.

Jon Wilner of Mercury News discusses the pros and cons of the Twins.

Joe Alexander WVU

The Melo Backpedal has very detailed write-ups on the top 25 players (in their eyes anyway) in this year’s draft.

Here’s a tidbit about Joe Alexander from The Melo Backpedal

Analysis: Alexander is a very hot name right now because of how he finished the season. He’s an athletic forward with good length, and has a fairly solid inside-outside game. He has good touch around the basket, knows how to finish, and can get to the line with ease. He has a very good post up game, passes well out of double-teams, and according to scouts, has good lateral quickness.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports wrote about Joe on Monday in “Who’s Joe Alexander”

Joe in New York?

Joe might be the right guy to go to New York. He could win over the fans with his hard work and smooth offensive skills. Let’s face it, besides Nate Robinson and David Lee, who really plays all out all the time there?

He might not contribute much his first year or two, but I think the team who’s willing to be patient will love the eventual outcome.

Overrated draft?

I’ve heard that this year’s draft is the strongest we’ve had in awhile, but I’ve also heard this draft could be a total laugher, though I’ve heard far fewer of the latter. Somebody on talk radio in Detroit on Monday said his whole reasoning on thinking this draft is poor is because of the possibility of Russell Westbrook going in the top 5. He said if Westbrook was slated as a 20 something pick, the draft would then be pretty strong—but not if he’s going so early, like top 5 early. Far from a valid explanation in my opinion (I agree though, Westbrook was nothing a year ago and now he’s top 5 material??), but that does beg the question, who’s overrated?

More specifically put, who will be drafted too high?

Kevin Love UCLA- His limited athleticism just might be an obstacle he cannot overcome. College style and pro style basketball are two very different worlds.

Eric Gordon Indiana- I’m not going to say he will not be a good scorer in this league, I’m just saying there will be many players picked behind him that would have been better choices. Ben Gordon’s game closely resembles Eric’s, though Eric can throw some rock down with the best of them.

Roy Hibbert Georgetown- Grotesquely getting too much attention. Take a 2nd round flyer on him but don’t waste your time or $ in the first round on a guy destined to be another Nazr Mohammed, at best. The folks over at hoyasaxa.com probably won’t agree with me.

Now I’ll rehash for you some of the guys being overlooked in this draft, especially the forgotten about seniors.

Malik Hairston is high on my list. The skill is all there. Can he just put it together and make consistent progress?

D.J. White could be a first round pick, but you wouldn’t know it the way his name has been kept essentially silent.

Sasha Kaun and Pat Calathes are still guys to keep tabs on as well.

Bill Walker, not of the senior variety, is most likely going to end up on an already strong team, a playoff contender you might say. So in terms of value for a good team late in the first round, Bill is a safe pick. He’s got a scorer’s mentality with a bit of attitude.

Jason Thompson, a senior from Rider, has an intriguing skill set. He has Tim Thomas like range for a big, but is he strong enough to guard the low post?

Hoopsaddict interviews Jason to see how draft preparation is coming along. It seems like he has a lot of faith in himself. Will a team drafting in the top 20 feel the same way?

One more senior to be aware of is Gary Forbes from Massachusetts. Back on the first of June I said he would crack the first round. I must have been a bad omen because I haven’t heard anything, good or bad, about him in recent days. I actually just read that Forbes has been having trouble playing against some of the more top notch players, you know, guys that decided not to participate in the Orlando camp. You’re letting me down Forbes.

Ever think of what it would be like if there was a 3rd round like there was prior to 1989?

Well if you click on just one link in this post, I recommend you try The Pyramid of Excess’s humorous picks for the 3rd round of the draft.

Quick blurb of what you can expect

92. Boston Celtics
Sebastian Telfair/6’0”, 183/Abraham Lincoln H.S.
With the last pick in the third round Danny Ainge finally reacquires the guy he gave up Brandon Roy for two years ago.

Anyways

Draft night should be a tight affair as it always is.

And when you hear Pat Calathes’s name called, or even Malik Hairston’s, don’t choke on your licorice… or whatever the hell people wasting their time watching the draft eat, because you did not hear they would be drafted from a draft expert like Chad Ford, you heard it from the undeniably clueless me instead. Believe it!

NBA dweebs and geeks unite!

Any thoughts, suggestions, beefs, and Wal-Mart references are appreciated. No compliments!

The NBA Pre-Draft camp got under way on Tuesday in Orlando, Florida. Great coverage of all of the action so far has been provided by many reputable websites, but draftexpress.com has always been tops on my list.

Jonathan Givony, president of DraftExpress, characterized the first day as hectic and not a fair barometer of the talent at the camp.

It was hard to read too much into anything we saw in day one—players are being sent in and out of the game constantly, whistles are being blown in all directions, and turnovers, over-dribbling and bad shots abound. Isolated possessions gave you brief glimpses into some of the things these players can bring to the table, but for the most part today was about putting faces and names to the jersey numbers as your eyes constantly darted back and forth between the court and the roster list. Although we’ve seen all of these players on film repeatedly, and many of them in person during the regular season or in private workouts over the past few weeks, even we didn’t recognize everyone, largely due to the fact that many of the players here have lost significant amounts of weight since the season ended.

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Likewise, Day 1 was deemed as “disappointing” by draftexpress.com writer Joseph Treutlein. But he states Day 2 went much better and figured many of the first day nerves had subsided for most of the players.

Treutlein categorizes certain players whose stock he believes are rising, staying the same and dropping. Some players are on his list that I actually talked about in some earlier posts. Sleeper Seniors Should I stay or should I go?

Rising

Malik Hairston Oregon

While he didn’t have a noteworthy statistical game, Hairston has clearly benefited from getting in better shape. He showed improved elevation, quickness and explosiveness and looked like a new player. He had some nice dunks and was particularly impressive with his vision and unselfishness. His team has great chemistry and he’s a big reason for that.

This is definitely a huge plus for Malik. A couple more solid days of play and you can mark him down as a 2nd round pick.

Pat Calathes St. Joes

Played a very well-rounded game, scoring 10 points with five assists in just 15 minutes. He showed off ball-handling skills unique for a player of his size. There aren’t many 6-10 players who can do some of the things he did today. He was in rhythm almost immediately both times he was called off the bench, showing terrific creativity and feel for the game.

Looks like I’m two for two so far. Where do I sign up DraftExpress? Can I start immediately?

Dropping

Wayne Ellington UNC

Struggled mightily, hitting 3-of-10 from the field with six turnovers. Looked unimpressive athletically and with his ball-handling. Hasn’t been hitting his jump shot since he arrived.

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I’m telling you he’s got to come back for his junior year. Another couple of bad days and Wayne’s looking at shooting himself right out of the draft altogether.

Treutlein covered many more players than just these three. Some of them are

Patrick Ewing Jr. Georgetown

Ewing was on the “rising” list. As far as I’m concerned he can rise all he wants but there’s no way he gets drafted. Averaged 4.3 ppg in his four year career. Good luck.

Othello Hunter Ohio St.

Othello was on the “no movement” (staying the same) list. Saw this guy play a half a dozen times or so during his senior year. Athletic player but will have to settle for a playing career overseas.

George Hill IUPUI

George was also on the “no movement” list. I actually had the treat of seeing George Hill play in person once this past season. “Treat” might be overstating things a bit (a lot), but I came away sort of on the fence on whether or not the guy can even play in the D-League. He’s smooth, can handle the ball fairly well and has one of the best career field goal percentages I’ve ever seen for a guard, 53%. But not yet a NBA caliber point guard in the least bit. And at 6’2, a point guard is all he’ll ever be. Basically I’m saying George needs to return for his senior year and watch Steve Nash tapes or something.

Surprisingly Kyle Weaver (Washington St.) and Jamont Gordon (Miss. St.) passed up their camp invitations and are not participating. Both of their draft stocks are probably plummeting and are under the “dropping” category as of now. Does Weaver, a senior, know that he’s exhausted all of his college eligibility? At least Gordon can decide to pull out on June 16th and go back to school.

Hopefully I’ll have news from Day 3 of the Pre-Draft camp shortly.

Do you love to listen and read about what is being said regarding your school’s player(s) who stayed for all four years? All too often these guys who stay until they’re seniors are not going to be lottery picks, and most will not even be first rounders. It’s almost as if these players have become boring and predictable. But many fans and alumni of the school enjoy seeing their guys get drafted despite not getting tons of attention.

Here are some seniors I believe will be drafted higher than expected and will carve out respectable careers in the NBA.

SF Pat Calathes St. Joes (Sr)- A very good performance in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament last month gave 6’10 Calathes some extra publicity. According to Draft Express.com, some of the scouts in attendance had never seen Calathes play before. Most scouts came away impressed with Calathe’s effortless ability to shoot three pointers and seemingly solid know how of the fundamentals of the game. Strength and quickness will be obstacles Pat will need to overcome if he is to be drafted. Many mock draft boards I’ve looked at are void of any “Pat Calathes”. But how many 6’10 guys can shoot from downtown as well as Pat? I believe that strength alone will propel him to be a late 2nd round pick. A ten year career in the league would not surprise me.

PF D.J. White Indiana (Sr)- Being from Big Ten country, I’ve seen White play many games. His all around game is what has always impressed me. He has improved his jump shot enough to where he can be a legitimate threat from outside of ten feet, something he had trouble doing early in his Hoosier career. He blocks shots well and positions himself well on rebounds, but will not Wow you with athleticism or determination. Averaging a double-double as he did his senior year is no easy task in the rough and tumble Big Ten. He’s projected to be anywhere from an early to late 2nd round pick. My feeling is that a late first round team will take a chance on him, knowing what he already brings to the table is quite sufficient for an already good team.

C Sasha Kaun Kansas (Sr)- Sasha has the ability to be much better than a handful of current backup centers in the league. Kaun’s stats will never jump out because of the limited minutes he logged throughout his career. Statistically his best season was his sophomore year, but I believe his consistency he displayed during this year’s Jayhawk title run will go a long way in impressing NBA teams. He is deceptively athletic, fundamentally sound and able to put the ball in the basket forcefully. Active is a word I think of when I see Kaun lumbering up and down the court. Remember Chris Richard’s career at Florida? Well that college sixth man is now playing for an NBA team. Sasha can too.

SG/SF Malik Hairston (Sr)- This rather young twenty-one year old four year vet from Oregon U. has huge upside. I would be shocked if he fell down to a late 2nd round pick, but that situation might be the best case scenario for him, considering the last four teams to pick in the 2nd round happen to be the last four teams standing in the NBA playoffs. A very good four year career at Oregon, where he scored in double figures every season, will bode well for him. But the fact remains, can he get a lot better? If he does improve mightily, especially with ball control and defense, Malik could be a lock for a starting role down the line in his career. His 6’6 frame is very appealing, and really, he doesn’t have one glaring weakness to speak of, except maybe his lack of having one exceptional skill. All in all, I’ve always thought Malik’s game was NBA-like. And I wish he would have stayed in Michigan!

Photo Credit Newscom

We’re nearly a third of the way into the college basketball season, and with the conference battles set to begin in a few weeks, let’s do a quick review of the teams that many analysts and prognosticators picked to go to the Elite 8. Read more