(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
(Above: He just isn't quite there yet.)
Villanova point guard Scottie Reynolds has withdrawn his name from this month's NBA Draft and will return to finish his college career as a senior.
After leading Villanova on a courageous run through the NCAA tournament, going all the way to the Final Four, Reynolds' stock was apparently as high as it was going to get.
However, it wasn't high enough.
Instead of risking a free fall, or worse—not getting drafted at all—Reynolds finally caved and realized he still had some doubters to impress.
After exhibiting his ability to both take games over as a scorer, as well as set teammates up and run the offense, Reynolds was still not a lock to make it in the first round, and was left off of many mock boards due to his lack of ideal size, as well as lack of experience at the point.
Reynolds has good athleticism and quickness, and one of the finest strokes in the country. However, despite being extremely talented, he was easily ranked below 10 other players at his position.
Needless to say, he made the right call.
Often compared to former Illinois point guard Deron Williams for his clutch ability and knack for taking the big shot, Reynolds has all the fundamentals and intangibles that coaches look for.
After defeating Pittsburgh with a running layup with under a second left in the Elite Eight, Reynolds decided to ride the wave that his sudden popularity created.
Unfortunately, his stock died down considerably due to other higher-profile point guards, and was forgotten amongst the rest of the elite talent.
Other knocks on Reynolds were his average assist-to-turnover ratio, which was almost 1:1 for all three years in college.
Scouts and NBA GM's look for point guards who are either already polished decision-makers, or athletic freaks with the ability to learn from their mistakes.
Considering Reynolds has a cozy spot somewhere in between the two, a 2009 draft stuffed with point guard talent no longer seemed like the place for him.
Reynolds will have the opportunity to improve to improve his court awareness, and with another deep tournament run, could prove to scouts that he has the skills and intelligence needed to direct an NBA team.
With so many players being one-and-done, or cutting their losses and heading overseas, it's both refreshing and exciting to get an NBA talent like Reynolds back in the NCAA scene.
Something tells me a bunch of people in the Big East don't agree.
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