Top 10 College Basketball Draft Prospects

I have decided to put a mid-year post up of my top 10 prospects from college. See the list below:

1. Blake Griffin–PF–Oklahoma–6′10″, 239 lbs.– Griffin has good size, and is strong and athletic–a good combination for any PF in the NBA. He possesses a good feel around the basket and gets great position on rebounds. I think his good body will enable him to carry his game over to the NBA easily, and he will be a nice fit on any team. If the Thunder have the first pick, not sure how they do not grab him.

2. James Harden–G–Arizona State–6′5″, 220 lbs.–Many of you on the east coast probably haven’t had too much of a chance to see Harden play. He is a very skilled and fantastic player, who has good strength for a perimeter player. He does not have explosive quickness, but he does contain the ability to get to the rim and score, while having a nice stroke from the outside. Think of him as a Paul Pierce type but left-handed. Probably one of the most impressive attributes of Harden is his unselfishness and letting the play come to him–have to love that in a 19 year old.

3. Hasheem Thabeet–C–UConn–7′3″, 260 lbs.–You can not teach height and, at 7′3, Thabeet is a shot-blocking and rebounding force – which any NBA team covets. Having Thabeet at No. 3 is probably high for most mock draft boards, but I think he can be a game changer on the defensive end in the pros. Centers in the NBA always take some time development, and whatever team drafts Thabeet will have to be patient, he does need plenty of work on his offensive game.

4. Greg Monroe–PF/C–Georgetown–6′10″, 225 lbs.–Monroe is only a freshman. I think he will prove in the second half of the season how talented he is. He possesses a good amount of offensive post-moves, including a number of hook shots. He has a good athletic body but needs to bulk up some, which will happen since he is still very young. My downside on Monroe is that he is pretty soft and not a great rebounder, both areas that he needs to work on. However, there is so much potential with Monroe that he gets this high on my draft board for now.

5. Jeff Teague–G–Wake Forest–6′2″, 180 lbs.–Teague is much more of a combo guard than a point guard.  He is an electric slasher with a solid shot from the outside. He has proven to be a leader on the floor, carrying his Deacons to a No. 1 ranking, and beating everybody’s favorite to win it all–North Carolina. I question whether he is a good enough scorer to just be a two guard or a good enough point guard to be the point. Seems to me, he may end up floating between the two positions, which I don’t think will bode well for his NBA career.

6. Stephen Curry–G–Davidson–6′3″, 185 lbs.–You can check out George’s scouting report on Curry here. I am pretty much in agreement with him and do think he will be a solid pro. I think he can make the transition to the point and he has proven to me the ability to score on anybody. Jameer Nelson was a small excellent scorer in college and is having an excellent year for the Magic at the point. Everybody questioned whether Nelson could make the adjustment to the point in the NBA and I think he is proving people wrong this year. Why can’t Curry do the same and then some?

7. Earl Clark–SF–Louisville–6′9″, 200 lbs.–Clark has a great NBA body and good athleticism and will not have any trouble making the transition to the NBA from a physical standpoint. However, he does need work on his skills, particularly shooting. He has a pretty good post-up game, but  I do not think that will be overly beneficial in the NBA as he won’t oversize opponents like he does in college.

8. DeJuan Blair–PF–Pittsburgh–6′7″, 265 lbs.–Rating Blair here is probably much higher than everybody else feels, but I think he is a very solid NBA prospect. For one, he is only 19 years old and has a 7′3 wing-span. His large body and expansive wing-span reminds to a certain extent of Elton Brand. I do not think he is as skilled offensively as Brand and definitely an area Blair needs to work on. But, he is a very tireless rebounder who will only improve on his offensive skill-set.

9. Ty Lawson–PG–UNC–6′0, 195 lbs.–Lawson is probably the fastest player in the nation from end line to end line. A team who drafts him is going to want to be a running team, who can exploit how quickly he gets the ball up the floor. He has a strong upper body and can finish well around the hoop for his size. He has a pretty good shot but it does need work. His biggest weakness is his defense–exploited badly by Teague of Wake and Rice of BC–which is surprising given how quick he is in the open court.

10. Darren Collison–PG–UCLA–6′1–165 lbs.–Another player most people probably do not agree with, but I can not get over the fact on how competitive Collison is and how much of a winner he is. His shot maybe ugly but he hits it in the clutch and scores when his team needs. His defense is very solid. My biggest question about him is if he will has the quickness to create shots in the pros with the unorthodox shooting form he has?