There are still 19 days left for underclassmen and high school basketball players to declare themselves eligible for the NBA draft. To date, a plethora of good and not-so-good players have decided to turn in their tickets to a free education for a chance to ride the pine in the NBA.
With 29 teams in the NBA, the number of underclassmen looking to make the jump will likely be high enough to fill an entire round of the draft.
We can’t forget that there are at least a few players like Juan Dixon, who have stayed in college for four years, who will be drafted. The draft has also become more competitive recently from an international standpoint. Foreign players like Dirk Nowitzki have found success in the league, thus encouraging more teams to look beyond U.S. borders to improve their rosters. The fact that Pau Gasol of Spain was named NBA rookie of the year will certainly encourage that trend to continue. Gasol was the third overall pick in last year’s draft — the highest ever for a European player.
This year there is talk of 7-foot-6 Yao Ming of China becoming the overall No. 1 or 2 selection in the draft.
A look at the list and credentials of the 24 underclassmen that have already declared for the draft begs the question: Who are some of these guys? It is true that some of these players are ready for life in the NBA, but the majority of them might want to think twice before hiring an agent.
There simply aren’t enough draft picks or roster positions in the NBA for all these players to make it.
Unquestionably ready:
Leading the way for this group of players is Duke’s Jason Williams. Yes, I don’t like Duke either, and I am happy to see him go to the NBA, where he will have a chance to make ESPN’s very own Dukie Vitale look incredibly smart or as dumb as he truly is. Vitale has boasted all season that he would take Jason Williams over any point guard in college or the NBA. Jason has accomplished as much as any college player in his years at Duke — and that includes graduating.
Also in the “ready to play” category is Kansas’ Drew Gooden. Gooden lead the Big 12 in scoring and rebounding while pushing his team to the Final Four.
Who can blame them?
There are several players attempting the jump to the NBA whose games are extremely raw and unrefined. These are players that have such tremendous upsides that NBA executives are willing to take bit of a gamble on them to find the next superstar.
With the incredible amount of offer staring at these players, no one can blame them for leaving college early. I certainly would be out the door faster than a prom dress hits the floor if Sports Illustrated wanted to pay me millions of dollars to do what I enjoy. But that’s not going to happen anytime soon.
Chris Wilcox will be a prime example of this type of selection. Wilcox’s value began to soar as Maryland made its championship run. Wilcox is considered one of the top power forwards in the draft, but his post game is undeveloped. His incredible leaping ability, however, has locked him into the lottery.
Memphis’s Dajuan Wagner is another player that had a tremendous freshman year but whose game is unpolished. Still, any player able to score 100 points in a high school game may be ready for the NBA after one year of college.
What were they thinking?
Roger Mason of Virginia believes he is ready for the NBA after scoring 18.9 points per game last year. Mason is certainly not a lock for the lottery, as scouts are not high on him. Frankly, declaring early for the draft is not in this player’s best interest. Another year of ACC play would allow him a chance to get into the top half of the lottery.
Yet, running the risk of not being drafted at all after declaring is something that most players should be smart enough to avoid. If you declare and aren’t drafted — well, that is just embarrassing. Jamal Sampson of Cal needs to get prepared to be embarrassed, because scouts do not believe he is prepared for the league. Sampson, just a freshman, needs to go back to school and continue his basketball education.
