If you missed it, this past week I posted the top 5 busts of the NBA draft. It's all up on the blog website. The criteria for a "steal", from my point of view is pretty simple; 1) where they were drafted in relation to who was drafted ahead of them, and 2) the potential of them becoming an impact player for their respective team in the NBA. Let us commence.
1. Jae Crowder/Marquette/Drafted No. 34 by Cleveland & traded to Dallas:
The knock on this guy is that he's not as young as many others in the draft, he's not quick enough to play the 3 & not big enough to play the 4. These are the same NBA scouts who let Kenneth Faried drop to No. 22 & Isaiah Thomas drop to No. 60. Crowder was the player of the year in arguably the hardest conference in college basketball that being the Big East. I'm not going to go as far as saying he will be a starter in no time but I will say that he will fight for rotation time and be a high energy guy coming off the bench that will produce for the Mavs.
2. Perry Jones III/Baylor/Drafted No. 28 by Oklahoma City:
I would be real stupid not to put this guy on the list. He dropped because of his knee issues but what a catch for the Thunder. Jones game is taylor made for the NBA and he could possibly become a star with Kevin Durant as his mentor. I know he didn't produce in the NCAA tournament but that was a completely different style of basketball and his teammates were unable to find him in his comfort zone. He does need to work on his physical & mental toughness but boy oh boy the Thunder might have hit the jackpot here.
3. Will Barton/Memphis/Drafted No. 40 by Portland Trail Blazers:
I might be a little bias here because this guy was probably my favorite college basketball player last year. He did everything for Memphis (I mean everything) and is a real talented player. He has a lot to work on including his jumper and being able to control his emotions at key points as he can be like a chicken with his head cut off at times. But, he's young and is a workhorse and the Blazers could use one of those. Don't be surprised if you hear this guys name at the All-Star break.
4. Darius Miller/Kentucky/Drafted No. 46 by New Orleans Hornets:
This guy can ball, straight up. He was completely overshadowed by the freshman crop at Kentucky but when they needed buckets the most they went to this guy. He's a physical player who almost always makes smart decisions. He will have to work hard to crack the rotation and I'm going out on a stretch here but if he does crack the Hornets rotation your looking at a versatile guy who will make much smarter decisions than Austin Rivers, I can promise you that.
5. Quincy Miller/Baylor/Drafted No. 38 by Denver Nuggets:
I wanted so bad to put Kyle O'Quinn out of Norfolk State here, but I just couldn't do it. Miller much like his teammate Perry Jones III is made for the NBA. He's long and can shoot. He definitely has a lot to work on to be a good player in the NBA thats why he dropped to where he was, but if he can improve and can get there he will be a really good NBA player. Being as young as he is I had to put him here strictly based on potential. I'm really routing for O'Quinn though.
Notables: Draymond Green drafted No.35 by Golden State & Kim English drafted No. 44 by Detroit.
Written By:
Garrett Daly
@DalyGarrett on Twitter
No comments:
Post a Comment