Feeling drafty in here
Last year was a year to remember for the Atlantic Coast Conference in terms of its contributions to the NBA draft - with three of the top five picks being ACC ballers (UNC's Marvin Williams and Raymond Felton, Wake Forest's Chris Paul).
This year, though, it's looking like slim pickins as far as the ACC and the draft is concerned.
OK, sure, there's the Duke dynamic duo of Shelden Williams and J.J. Redick - both of whom are projected as lottery picks by most analysts. But even there, I think both are reaches as far as what they're going to be able to offer whoever it is that ends up with them on their rosters.
Williams, a 6-9 center, does not have power-forward skills - not NBA power-forward skills, anyway. And Redick, at 6-4, is going to have a hard time getting his jump shot off against most two guards in the NBA - as was evidenced in two memorable games against Georgetown and LSU, both of whom forced Redick off his game at key points by throwing taller defenders at him.
Other than Redick and Williams, we have ...
- N.C. State's Cedric Simmons, a 6-10 four who is limited offensively (11.8 points per game as a sophomore in 2005-2006).
- Miami's Guillermo Diaz, an undersized (6-3) two guard who can't shoot (41.5 percent field-goal percentage in 2005-2006).
- Boston College's Craig Smith, an undersized (6-7) center who knows how to play the game but will not be able to find a position in the NBA.
And that's it, folks.
As I said, it's going to be slim pickins for us this year on draft day.
At least now we have a better idea as to why we only had four teams with invites to the Big Dance in March.
- Chris Graham