The city of New Orleans caught a rare break on Wednesday evening. In a place riddled by murder, inadequate public education and general blight, the redeeming nature of sports put everything else on hold if but for a moment when the Hornets won the draft lottery and the right to select Kentucky's Anthony Davis. The franchise that saw Chris Paul leave via trade and David West sign with the Pacers within the last year has the chance to build a foundation for success heading forward thanks to the pairing of a legitimate big man and a healthy Eric Gordon. With the addition of new owner and New Orleans businessman Tom Benson to rehabilitate the general health of the franchise, the future is surely bright for basketball in the Crescent City.
The 13 teams involved in tonight's NBA draft lottery may be dreaming of Anthony Davis, but according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, landing Davis won't necessarily be enough for the Nets to re-sign Deron Williams. Here are the details from the Yahoo! scribe….
Determining the potential success of an NBA prospect continues to be a great enigma. In 2005, David Lee went from being an unknown at the 2005 Chicago Pre-Draft camp to an eventual NBA All-Star in 2010. Joe Alexander, who wowed scouts as arguably the best athlete in the 2008 Pre-Draft Camp, struggled to find a niche in the NBA after being selected eighth overall. Even with the uncertainty that comes along with talent evaluation, the importance of teams doing their homework on players is highly-emphasized. Here are a few links to keep you oriented and familiar with the top names you'll be hearing about in late June:
- Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated understands the risk of drafting on potential, but identifies his list of "jackpot" players, namely those whose talent and upside are trustworthy. In descending order, Amick highlights Anthony Davis, Thomas Robinson, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Bradley Beal.
- Speaking of potential, Sam Amico of FoxSports Ohio looks at the question marks associated with potential lottery-pick Andre Drummond. The former UConn Husky stands at 6'10'' and boasts a 260-lb frame, and although he arrived as a prized recruit for Jim Calhoun last year, Drummond disappointed many with his inconsistent play. One scout believes that his upside is his selling point, and his mobility and skill set have reminded some people of Andrew Bynum.
- Starting Blocks of Cleveland.com gives a brief rundown of what various mock drafts have been projecting for the Cavaliers, who will have the 24th pick in the draft along with their lottery selection. The team currently has the third-best odds to win the number one selection.
Draft night is still over six weeks away, but a number of important draft-related dates are inching closer. The NBA's first official draft workout is schedule for this weekend in New Jersey, while the May 30th lottery will take place two weeks from Wednesday. Here are today's draft updates and links:
- Like Kentucky teammate Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb has hired Arn Tellem as his agent, tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com.
- In an Insider piece, Chad Ford of ESPN.com previews this weekend's workout and lists the players in his top 100 who have accepted invites.
- TNT's David Aldridge continues his draft preview on NBA.com by looking at this year's deepest position: Power forward.
- Agent David Falk tells Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer that there's a giant gap between Anthony Davis and the rest of the draft class. Falk predicts that many teams with top picks will try to trade down, because the difference between the second-best prospect and eighth-best prospect is "minuscule."
12:43pm: Monroe won't be the second addition to the U.S. Olympic pool, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
12:18pm: Anthony Davis will be one of the two finalists added to the Team USA pool, according to SI.com's Sam Amick. Along with Monroe, Al Jefferson is a candidate to be the second finalist, says Amick.
11:08am: Lamar Odom hasn't been ruled out for the 2012 Olympic roster yet, Colangelo tells Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Colangelo also said that Cousins won't be added to the player pool this year, according to Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee.
WEDNESDAY, 8:09am: DeMarcus Cousins, Greg Monroe, and Anthony Davis are among the big men being considered for the Team USA pool, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Hibbert, unfortunately, is ineligible to play for the U.S. team because he played for Jamaica's senior national squad during the 2010 Centrobasket tournament. FIBA rules prevent players from representing two different countries at the senior level.
TUESDAY, 8:29pm: Jerry Colangelo told reporters (Associated Press link via ESPN.com) that he is leaning towards adding a couple of players to the pool from which the final Olympic team will be drawn. He gave no indication as to who those players might be, however.
7:30pm: With the U.S. Olympic team's projected roster increasingly depleted due to injuries, Jerry Colangelo is reportedly reconsidering his stance against adding new players. According to Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star, Pacers center Roy Hibbert has expressed interest in joining the team should they look to add new talent.
“It would be nice to be able to do something like that,” Hibbert said. “I always said I wanted to play in the Olympics for the US. I played with Team Jamaica last year. Hopefully I can get a quick release. It would mean the world to me to be able to participate for Team USA.”
With Dwight Howard and LaMarcus Aldridge out for the summer, the frontcourt rotation for Team USA is looking thin outside of Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, and Tyson Chandler. If Colangelo does decide to bring on new players, Hibbert, who made his first All-Star appearance in 2011/12, would appear to be a logical candidate.
The latest news and notes regarding the NBA Draft on Tuesday evening:
- SI.com's Sam Amick says that Kentucky's Anthony Davis has drawn high reviews from scouts and general managers. Davis is expected to be drafted first overall.
- Amick also says there is plenty of talent in the draft beyond Davis, singling out Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Thomas Robinson, and Andre Drummond as names to watch.
- CBSSports.com's Jeff Goodman has posted his latest mock draft. Goodman has Davis going first and Florida's Bradley Beal going second.
On Tuesday, NCAA champion University of Kentucky's full starting five declared for the 2012 NBA draft. Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb, and Marquis Teague will all be going pro, with Davis expected to be the first pick overall. Which of these highly-touted prospects do you think will have the best NBA career?
Five players from the NCAA Champion Kentucky Wildcats declared for the 2012 NBA Draft in a press conference on Tuesday (Associated Press link via ESPN.com). As expected, Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, Marquis Teague, and Doron Lamb, the entire Kentucky starting five, will all turn pro.
Davis, the winner of the 2012 Naismith College Player of the Year award, is the overwhelming favorite to go first overall in June's draft, with Kidd-Gilchrist and Jones also expected to be lottery picks. HoopsRumors writers have previously covered Davis and Kidd-Gilchrist in our Prospect Profile series.
TUESDAY, 9:41am: The press conference for the five Kentucky underclassmen has been delayed until Tuesday evening at 7:00pm local time due to travel issues and class schedules, tweets Kyle Tucker of the Courier-Journal.
MONDAY, 4:09pm: Five Kentucky underclassmen expected to declare for the NBA draft will announce their decisions at a Tuesday afternoon press conference, according to Gary Parrish of CBSSports.com. Barring a surprise, Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, Marquis Teague, and Doron Lamb will all officially declare for the NBA draft.
Earlier today, it was reported that Davis, Teague, and Jones will be entering the draft pool, though Kidd-Gilchrist's and Lamb's final decisions were still unknown. The five underclassmen made up most of the core of a Wildcats team that won the 2012 NCAA national championship.
Davis, a freshman, will likely be picked first overall, while Kidd-Gilchrist (freshman) and Jones (sophomore) are also expected to be lottery picks. Teague (freshman) is also a likely first-rounder, while Lamb (sophomore) could crack the first round as well.
Hoops Rumors' full list of early entrants for this June's draft can be found here.
Kentucky's Anthony Davis and Marquis Teague will join teammate Terrence Jones in entering this year's NBA draft, reports Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (via Twitter). Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Doron Lamb are also expected to forgo their remaining college years, though nothing is official yet.
Davis is, of course, a near-lock to be the first overall pick in June. The AP Player of the Year averaged 14.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 4.7 blocks per game during his first and only season at Kentucky. While Davis is considered the number one prospect by both DraftExpress and ESPN.com, his teammate Teague is ranked 18th and 25th respectively. Both freshmen helped lead the Wildcats to a national championship.
Earlier today, it was reported that Jones would enter the draft, with an official announcement coming as early as tomorrow. Players have until April 29th to formally declare their intent to enter the draft pool. Hoops Rumors' full list of early entrants can be found here.