Palehosefan Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 (edited) Not sure how long the March Madness board will stay open, but here is a list of players that have apparently made their pro intentions known this year. Feel free to add to the list, and admins can add the names to this list if I'm not around. Andrew Bogut - Utah JR Morris - Seton Hall Charlie Villanueva - UConn TJ Parker - Northwestern Pops Mensah-Bonsu - George Washington Mike Hall - George Washington Ike Diogu - Arizona State Andray Blatche - South Kent (Conn.) Prep School John Gilchrist - Maryland Hassan Adams - Arizona Francisco Garcia - Louisville Chris Taft - Pittsburgh Deron Williams - Illinois Rashad McCants - North Carolina Von Wafer - FSU Kennedy Winston - Alabama (thanks Rex) Ray Felton - North Carolina Edited April 10, 2005 by Palehosefan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Update on Garcia: Garcia's stock has bounced all over the place this season. After the first two rounds of the tournament, it looked like Garcia had propelled himself solidly into the first round with some amazing shooting and great ball-handling skills. That all came crashing down to earth against Illinois on Saturday. Garcia was awful, going just 2-for-10 from the field, grabbing just one board and dishing out two assists in 32 minutes. His tendency to disappear in big games has been a problem all season. He had seemingly overcome it in the tournament, but his stinker against Illinois will bring back a lot of bad memories for scouts. The fact that Rick Pitino is now backing off his Garcia-to-the-NBA push is telling. It's amazing how quickly a positive can turn into a negative. Garcia's stock is all over the board. Look for him to go anywhere between 20 and 40 on draft night, if he decides to declare. And: "I don't know," he said when asked whether he had definitely played his final college game. "I've got to talk to my coach about that and see what he is going to tell me. If you ask any player, they'll say they want to go pro. But I'm going to do what coach tells me to do." Pitino said that his recommendation will be based on where it looks as if Garcia is going to go in the draft. "If he's the 26th pick, I would recommend coming back," Pitino said. "If he's the 18th pick in the draft, I'd recommend going. I told him to keep his options open. We'll talk later on. He's a brilliant basketball player, trust me. He's going to be a great pro. But it might be in his best interests, if the 20-year age rule comes in, to stay." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 McCants update: The skinny: He was OK in the tournament, but is no longer the dominating lottery pick that scouts saw earlier in the season. Some will blame that on a myriad of personal problems that clearly took its toll on McCants. But he has basketball problems, too. He's too small for his position, doesn't have a great handle and completely disappeared in the second half when Deron Williams got more physical with him. McCants was quick to announce his intentions to declare for the draft after the game. It's probably a mistake. He's played himself down into the late first round at this point. He has more talent than that, however, and should use his senior year at North Carolina to prove it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AssHatSoxFan Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 expect carl krauser to declare as well too from what i read Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHarris1 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Why TJ Parker declared is beyond me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danman31 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 (edited) QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 04:00 PM) Why TJ Parker declared is beyond me I know Edited April 5, 2005 by danman31 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 For the Illinois fans: Deron Williams, PG, Illinois The line: 14.7 ppg, 8.3 apg, 47 percent shooting The skinny: Williams had some amazing games in the tournament; unfortunately, his performance against North Carolina wasn't the best. While he did a great job of playing under control and locking down Rashad McCants in the second half, he missed seven 3-point attempts and showed that quickness is still a legit issue. He was unable to get by his man most of the night, preventing him from penetrating and kicking to the open shooter. Still, overall, Williams had an amazing tournament and has seen his stock improve. We've had him ranked as the No. 2 point guard prospect in the draft since opening day, and he's still there, behind only Paul. But earlier in the year, we had him as a late-lottery pick. Given how the draft is shaping up, Williams could go as high as the No. 4 overall pick in the draft. Luther Head, G, Illinois The line: 16.7 ppg, 4.0 apg, 39 percent shooting The skinny: Head's shot wasn't falling the way he wanted it to in the tournament, but when scouts watch his shooting mechanics, they see a guy with a quick release and a very accurate jump shot. The question with Head all year has been the same – can he play point guard? He didn't prove it one way or the other in the tournament, but he got enough exposure, and scouts fell in love with enough of the other things that he does well, that he'll get a very serious look from NBA teams in workouts. He'll probably have to play in the Chicago pre-draft camp. If he can prove that he has what it takes to be a point guard in the NBA, he'll be a late first-rounder. If he can't, he'll be a nice pickup in the second round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danman31 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Deron Williams #2 PG? Whoever picks him will be very disappointed. He is a good passer, thus the assists, but he is far from a PG in my mind. He can't create shots in an NBA style system. So unless some coach adopts the Weber offense (not gonna happen) he has to be a SG IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 QUOTE(danman31 @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 04:19 PM) Deron Williams #2 PG? Whoever picks him will be very disappointed. He is a good passer, thus the assists, but he is far from a PG in my mind. He can't create shots in an NBA style system. So unless some coach adopts the Weber offense (not gonna happen) he has to be a SG IMO. I think he's a PG in the league for sure. The guy was clearly the second best player in the entire tournament and he did it running the point. He's got an NBA body and was the best passer besides maybe Felton that I saw. As an added bonus, you'll be able to count on him for 12-14 points per game. And his defense, well he shut down two sure fire NBA players in Salim Stoudamire and Francisco Garcia and made Rashad McCants disappear in the second half. He may lack some quickness, but with his size he's going to be tough to shoot over. How do you know that he can't create shots in an NBA style system? That is just a baseless assumption at this point that can neither be proven or disproven. There are a lot of guys playing point guard in the NBA right now that I wouldn't take over Deron Williams and this is coming from a Michigan State fan, not an Illinois lover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AddisonStSox Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Regarding Luther Head: "If he can prove that he has what it takes to be a point guard in the NBA, he'll be a late first-rounder. If he can't, he'll be a nice pickup in the second round." Now, I love Luther just as much as the next guy, but a late first-rounder? Are you kidding me? The team that selects Luther in the first round is making a big mistake. IMHO, selecting Luther in the second round is still a major strech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AssHatSoxFan Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 wait since when does a PG create shots for himself?? deron is going to be a good pro with his big body, defense, and court vision above anything else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHarris1 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Luther is late 1st early 2nd...and thats not a mistake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danman31 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 QUOTE(AssHatSoxFan @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 04:37 PM) wait since when does a PG create shots for himself?? deron is going to be a good pro with his big body, defense, and court vision above anything else I meant for his teammates Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AddisonStSox Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 03:43 PM) Luther is late 1st early 2nd...and thats not a mistake Please tell me what merits a late first round selection of Luther Head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomSlowik Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 I personally think that Felton will be a better pro point guard than Williams. One major reason is his driving and finishing in the half court offense. Whenever Williams drives, he almost always tries to dish it to someone else. That ability to finish is a major factor for PG's, and from what I have seen Felton is better at it. Felton also is probably the best passer of any of the PG prospects, and has greatly improved his jumper. I stilll think Deron is a better shooter than Felton because of the mid-range game, but from the games I have watched I have more faith in Felton being able to hit the NBA three. Most of the time Deron is on the line or damn close when he hits them, I don't see him hitting them from the parking lot like Brown or Felton very often. Williams does have an advantage because he is bigger, but I really think that as soon as Felton cuts down his turnovers he's going to be a very good pro player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomSlowik Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 I like Head's pro potential. He's not going to be a star, but I think he can be a solid player. He's got good athleticism, he can finish, and he has a pretty good jumper. With some experience he should also be a pretty good defender. I don't really see why he is any different than guys like Tony Allen. I don't really know where he is going to be drafted because that depends greatly on how pro GM's view him. I personally don't think he needs to play PG, but from everything I've seen so far it sounds like that is how they feel. I see no reason he can't be a solid contributor on the pro level, maybe not as a starter on a good team, but a solid bench player, or a starter on a weaker team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 There is always room for a shooter in the NBA, which is something Luther Head is very good at, IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palehosefan Posted April 5, 2005 Author Share Posted April 5, 2005 I think you will see Felton's TO's cut down in the pro's simply because they are better finishers than anyone outside of May at UNC. The rest of the guys don't expect the passes and end up turning it over, I can't tell you how many times David Noel has fumbled a beautiful pass out of bounds and it ends up being a Felton TO. Sometimes his passes are TOO good for the college level, thats why I think he will lead the NBA in assists atleast one year. Especially once Kidd retires :-). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwerty Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 QUOTE(ZoomSlowik @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 05:41 PM) I like Head's pro potential. He's not going to be a star, but I think he can be a solid player. He's got good athleticism, he can finish, and he has a pretty good jumper. With some experience he should also be a pretty good defender. I don't really see why he is any different than guys like Tony Allen. I don't really know where he is going to be drafted because that depends greatly on how pro GM's view him. I personally don't think he needs to play PG, but from everything I've seen so far it sounds like that is how they feel. I see no reason he can't be a solid contributor on the pro level, maybe not as a starter on a good team, but a solid bench player, or a starter on a weaker team. Put him on the bobcats he would average 15 a game if not more. He would either be a starter their or one of the first off the bench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aboz56 Posted April 5, 2005 Share Posted April 5, 2005 Reportedly Sean May is not going pro according to greasy who was watching sportscenter.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palehosefan Posted April 5, 2005 Author Share Posted April 5, 2005 http://northcarolina.scout.com/2/366940.html OH GOD YES! He just saved our season next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch and Judy Garland Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Kirk Hinrich is prrof that you don't have to be a true point guad to play it in the nba. I think Deron Williams will be a very good pro. I also feel that Head will be a nice contributor for a contending team Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitetrain8601 Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 I think DeRon will be better than Kirk and I do think he's the #2 PG in the draft. I said he's a little overrated, but let's not underrate him now. I certainly would take Felton ahead of him, but not anyone else really. I think Luther will be the Tony Allen of this draft. A very nice pickup. He does alot of things that NBA players these days don't do(90%) of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rex Hudler Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Add Kennedy Winston from Alabama to the list....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodAsGould Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 QUOTE(qwerty @ Apr 5, 2005 -> 10:49 PM) Put him on the bobcats he would average 15 a game if not more. He would either be a starter their or one of the first off the bench. I think your reaching a little bit.... Okafur might avg 15 for them but he is right next to the basket and is a lot better player than Head... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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