2012 NBA Draft Prospects

[RiotPunch]

With thing a little slow around these parts, I thought a new thread focused on next year's potential draft prospects might stir up some new discussion. It is widely regarded as a "stacked" class, depending on who all goes pro versus who stays in school, so I thought I would share some players that have piqued my interest lately.

PG Myck Kabongo -

The guy doesn't have great size, athleticism or scoring ability, but he is an absolute magician with the ball in his hands. He is the most unselfish PG I have seen in quite some time, always looking for teammates and delivering them the ball without hesitation and in flashy fashion. His vision is extremely impressive for his age, anticipating his teammates' next moves. He gets after it on the defensive end as well, buying into the team concept fully. And although he isn't known for his shooting, he displays very nice form on his J and tends to bury the few 3's he pulls the trigger on. He would be the perfect guy for Skiles.

PG / SG Tony Wroten Jr. -

I just don't know what to make of this guy. Is he a PG or point forward? There is no denying that he is loaded with talent, but where does he fit on an NBA team. He is a phenomenal "on-the-move" passer, but I don't think he can effectively run sets on offense, which in my mind rules out full-time PG duties. He could make a great point forward, a la Dwyane Wade, but he really struggles to shoot well consistently. His competitive streak is elite and has most of the tools to be a star in the NBA. (he is already making John Wall look goofy with his crossovers in pick up games / camps) What are your takes on him for those who know more about him?

I also love Andre Drummond, Harrison Barnes, Quincy Miller and Perry Jones. If a lot of these guys declare for the draft next year, it should be a pretty epic draft class. My top 10 looks something like:

1. Drummond
2. Barnes
3. Miller
4. Jones
5. Davis
6. Sullinger
7. Kabongo
8. Gilchrist
9. McAdoo
10. Wroten Jr.

And then you have guys like Marquis Teague, LeBryan Nash, John Henson, Terrence Jones, Austin Rivers, etc.

Who do you guys like lately?

[emunney]

I really like Beal and Lamb.

[RiotPunch]

Yeah I forgot to mention those guys, I am a big Brad Beal guy as well. Should have name dropped him before Rivers since Beal is a much better all-around player.

[Debit One]

For my money Barnes has to be at the top of the list. He's a legit 6'8" SF with good wingspan and a polished offensive game. If his ball handling improves, which I believe that it will, you're looking at a guy with no holes on the offensive end of the court and the tools to be as good as he wants to be on defense.

[SheedsWeed]

Landing Barnes would be amazing.

[mattg]

I like Barnes more than anyone else right now. Not sold at all on Perry or Terrence Jones. Miller's past injuries worry me. Drummond has all the tools, but I don't know if his attitude is there. Wroten is all style no substance in an organized setting. Both Kabongo and Teague really aren't that good, definitely not on the level of the top PGs of the past few years. I like Davis except for his unibrow. I like Rivers a lot despite the criticisms people have of him, his offensive repertoire for a HS player is the best I've seen since Durant and the best out of a guard in a long time. I like Beal too, just don't think his ceiling is nearly as high as Rivers for a 2 guard.


I still have to see these guys play NCAA first though before making a real judgment. These guys all have monster talent so I wouldn't be surprised if guys I'm concerned about came out and dominated next season.

[RiotPunch]

I like Barnes a lot, like most of you, but why the hell wasn't he the consensus #1 overall pick leading up to this past draft before he decided to go back to UNC? He was consistently in the top 5, but Kyrie and Williams were ahead of him throughout that whole process. Why now should he be the #1 guy in a substantially more talented draft class?

[emunney]

I think the idea is that with a full year playing like he did down the stretch last year, he'll have the numbers to go with the reputation. And as talented as this coming draft class is, there's no obvious #1. The difference is going to be where you had maybe 6 guys with top 10 grades this year, next year you might have 15.

Barnes wasn't the consensus #1 this year because he struggled out of the gate.

[DrugBust]

Barnes left a lot to be desired for most of the season but looked like a potential superstar once UNC switched point guards. Of the guys who returned to school he's the guy I'd love to land most. As for where he should go next year, I haven't seen the incoming class yet.

In terms of guys we may be able to pick at our position, I'd love to land Lamb.

[fam3381]

Who is Barnes' NBA comparable? Seems like his floor is very high because of his body and shooting, but I always struggle with the fact that he's not a great ball-handler, doesn't make others better, and doesn't get to the line. That would seem to suggest he won't be a superstar-type since all the elite wings do all three, but maybe I'm missing something. I always come back to a Rudy Gay-type...maybe less explosive but better defensively, which would still make him a very valuable player.

[DanoMac]

i'm not too high on lamb, yet. he had kemba walker to help distract the defense. we'll see how he does this year as the star of the team.

i'd rather have brad beal than lamb. easily.

huge fan of marquis teague too. josiah turner's gonna be a beast too. kabongo too.

if jennings doesn't pan out this year, then we at least don't need to worry about finding a new PG. this draft is PG rich.

and i'd obviously love harrison barnes. future superstar.

[aboveAverage]

I don't think we can go wrong with LeBryan Nash. Even if Hammond admitted that he only picked him because of his name, I would be totally OK with that

[mattg]

I am not super high on this year's PGs. Teague screams Lou Williams to me. I need to see how Kabongo is able to score at the college level to assess his NBA potential too. I just have a feeling he won't be a good enough scorer to be extremely effective.

I wouldn't take any of the PGs in this draft over any of the top bigs or wings that's for sure.

Lamb is nice, but I just don't think he's as good as people think. I really don't think he can create off the dribble like an elite 2 guard should be able to. He's obviously got the length and athleticism, but I question his change of direction ability and handle in traffic, especially as the focus of the defense.

[DrugBust]

If Beal had PG ability I'd be high on him. But at 6'3" he sounds like Ben Gordon.

[emunney]

More like Ray Allen in Eric Gordon's body.