NBA Draft 2013 Prospects: Predicting Who Will Shine During Rookie Season

Even in a weak class, much like the one that will stride across the stage one by one during the 2013 NBA draft, there are three types of players: those who are ready to shine right away, those who will take some time to start looking good and those who will never live up to their potential. 

In this article, we're taking a look at the players who fall squarely into the first classification. The ones who will compete for Rookie of the Year and make immediate impacts on their new teams. The ones whose names you'll remember after the 2013-14 season. 

As you'll soon find out, not every top selection is guaranteed to make an impact from Day 1. Not even the expected No. 1 pick has to fall into the category in question. 

It takes a special set of skills to bypass the transition period from the collegiate level to the professional one, but all 10 players featured here have the tools necessary to do exactly that. 

Anthony Bennett

School: UNLV

Position: PF

Age: 20

Vitals: 6'7", 239 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 15.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.7 steals, 1.2 blocks

When you have an unstoppable motor and a veritable arsenal of offensive skills, chances are good that you'll stand out as a rookie in the NBA. Sadly few of us boast that set of tools, but Anthony Bennett certainly does. 

The UNLV product has a solid jumper that will allow him to immediately serve as the screener in pick-and-pop sets, but he also thrives when he's facing up in isolation plays. Bennett could stand to add a few more post moves to his repertoire, and that will just come with time. 

With his remarkable athleticism and 7'1" wingspan, Bennett can drive by bigger, slower players, and he can also just flat-out bully the smaller ones. He might be a little undersized for a power forward, but he's still a physical specimen. 

Bennett has received some comparisons to Thomas Robinson, but expect the former to have a much more successful rookie season than the latter. 

Trey Burke

School: Michigan

Position: PG

Age: 20

Vitals: 6'1", 187 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 18.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.6 steals, 0.5 blocks

Trey Burke is the clear-cut No. 1 point guard in this draft class, and he'll quickly live up to that reputation as soon as he begins his professional career. It's tough to draw legitimate comparisons to Chris Paul if that's not the case. 

The Michigan floor general is just that: a floor general. 

He completely controls the action whenever his team has the ball. Whether he's calling his own number and draining jumpers or setting up his teammates, Burke thrives. He always plays within the flow of the offense unless it's absolutely necessary for him to go into one-on-one mode. 

No matter what system Burke lands in, he'll find success because he's such an adaptable and smart point guard. 

I see this diminutive 1-guard as the eventual Rookie of the Year runner-up. 

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

School: Georgia

Position: SG

Age: 20

Vitals: 6'6", 204 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 18.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.5 blocks

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope looked like a fantastic shooter while he was playing with the Georgia Bulldogs. He consistently created his own looks and found the bottom of the net quite often, no matter how much defensive attention was focused on him. 

This is particularly impressive because UGA's team was awful. There was no offensive protection for KCP, and just about everyone was well aware that he was going to take an inordinate number of shots. 

He still looked great. 

Now, just imagine how effective KCP will be spotting up while surrounded by legitimate NBA players. He's not going to draw double- and triple-teams, and his percentages will rise accordingly.

Caldwell-Pope's stock has been on the rise for a while now. Don't be surprised if it continues his ascent until he's considered a near lock for the top 10. 

C.J. McCollum

School: Lehigh

Position: PG

Age: 21

Vitals: 6'3", 197 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 23.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.4 steals, 0.3 blocks

C.J. McCollum has a knack for scoring that will immediately translate to the next level. He's just naturally gifted when it comes to putting up points. 

What makes McCollum truly special in this area is his ability to create shots for himself. The 21-year-old from Lehigh is a natural sixth man because he can come in right away, playing either guard spot and serving as the primary offensive option. 

A devastating shooter from the outside, McCollum isn't one of the typical rookie marksmen who need to spot up on the wings and wait for another player to create their look for them. Instead, he's more than capable of setting himself up off the dribble. 

In fact, that's his biggest skill. 

Expect to see McCollum compete for the rookie lead in points per game, scoring quite a few buckets from downtown after dribbling right into his shot. 

Ben McLemore

School: Kansas

Position: SG

Age: 20

Vitals: 6'5", 189 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 15.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals, 0.7 blocks

Ben McLemore is the closest thing we've seen to a Ray Allen clone in a long time, and it wouldn't be at all shocking to see the Kansas shooting guard posting similar stats to the ones Allen put up during his own rookie season. 

Back in 1996-97, the young member of the Milwaukee Bucks averaged 13.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.1 blocks per game. Expect those numbers to apply to McLemore, other than the defensive ones. 

McLemore has much more defensive potential and should blow the steals and blocks out of the water. 

Between his athleticism and ridiculously good-looking and potent jumper, the 20-year-old is ready to be an immediate contributor en route to winning Rookie of the Year. It's hard for McLemore to find a bad landing spot in the top three, and he'll be counted on for scoring regardless of where he ends up. 

You heard it here first: McLemore for ROY. 

Victor Oladipo

School: Indiana

Position: SG

Year: 21

Vitals: 6'4", 213 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 13.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 2.2 steals, 0.8 blocks

Let's say that Victor Oladipo's shot completely abandons him and his explosiveness no longer allows him to get to the basket at will. He's rendered fairly ineffective on offense as a result. 

It's worth noting that I don't expect this to happen. It's solely a hypothetical. 

Even if Oladipo is an offensive non-factor, he's going to make a major impact during his rookie season. The Indiana shooting guard is one of the safest picks in this draft because, at the very worst, he'll be a lockdown defender from Day 1. 

Oladipo has incredible defensive instincts, the athleticism to put those instincts to use and the motor to constantly use that athleticism. It's a fantastic combination, and it's one that ensures Oladipo a relevant spot in any rotation. 

The 21-year-old can immediately be one of the top perimeter defenders once he's drafted, and his offense should still translate. 

Kelly Olynyk

School: Gonzaga

Position: C

Age: 22

Vitals: 7'0", 234 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 18.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.7 steals, 1.1 blocks

Kelly Olynyk is one of the more intriguing players in this draft class, simply because he's a guard trapped in a center's body. 

The longhaired Gonzaga product has impressive handles, and he can create shots for both himself and his teammates. He has smooth touch on his jumper, and the post moves are developing rather quickly. 

Remember, Olynyk decided to take a redshirt year during the middle of his collegiate career so that he could fit into Mark Few's system perfectly. That shows an impressive work ethic, especially because he returned and immediately showed off those new skills. He went from a nondescript big man to a household name in no time at all. 

As weak as the center position is in the NBA—although it is growing stronger—Olynyk should be able to make an impact as soon as he puts on his first professional jersey. 

Otto Porter

School: Georgetown

Position: SF

Age: 19

Vitals: 6'9", 198 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 16.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.8 steals, 0.9 blocks

It's tough for players who excel on both ends of the court to flop during their rookie seasons. Well, tougher than it is for one-end players, at least. 

Otto Porter is an incredible shooter, despite what his unorthodox stroke might lead you to believe. He's particularly deadly from mid-range, and he used his final season at Georgetown to improve his range and become all the more impressive in catch-and-shoot situations. 

Don't expect to see the 6'9" small forward get blocked often either. He's tall and possesses a 7'1" wingspan that gives him a remarkably unswattable shot. 

Those lanky arms also help Porter contain players on the other end of the court. Even though he doesn't have all that much lateral quickness, he's so long that he can still disrupt players. 

Porter isn't the most glamorous prospect because he lacks one truly impressive aspect of his game. However, we said the same thing about Chandler Parsons, and look at him now. 

Glen Rice

Team: Rio Grande Valley

Position: SF

Age: 22

Vitals: 6'6", 211 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 14.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.0 steals, 0.9 blocks

It's amazing how quickly Glen Rice has turned around his basketball career.

In just the blink of an eye, Rice went from getting kicked off his Georgia Tech team and floundering away on the bench of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers to making a name for himself in an admittedly weak draft class. 

When Terrell Harris was injured and Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones received NBA opportunities with the Houston Rockets, Rice immediately thrived in his expanded role. 

He ended up leading the Vipers to a D-League championship, even averaging 29 points, 11.5 rebounds and four assists per game during the final series of the season. Talk about a turnaround. 

Rice has a fantastic jumper and ridiculous hops, but the most impressive thing he brings to the table is experience. Although he's only 22 years old, Rice has already played professional basketball, adjusting to that lifestyle and a higher level of competition than he would have faced in the ACC. 

If he's thrived against D-League players, he should be significantly more ready to shine as a rookie in the Association. 

Jeff Withey

School: Kansas

Position: C

Age: 23

Vitals: 7'0", 222 pounds

2012-13 Per-Game Stats: 13.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.8 steals, 3.9 blocks

There's always a place in the rotation for an elite shot-blocker, and there's no more accurate description for Jeff Withey. 

As it's unlikely that Withey develops into anything more than an upper-tier role player, you might be wondering why he's being featured here. Well, this is a historically weak draft class at the top, and Withey is one of the few players capable of living up to his potential during his rookie season. 

Two years ago, the Kansas center was a better rim-protector than the eventual No. 1 pick, Anthony Davis. The Unibrow finished the 2011-12 season with more blocked shots, but Withey spent less time on the court and actually finished higher than Davis in terms of block percentage.

No NCAA player topped Withey's 15.3 percent that season, and he backed it up in 2012-13. Finishing sixth in the category, Withey beat out every other prospect in this draft class and was a better overall defender than any of the five small-school players who finished above him.

They say you can't teach size, but you can't teach instincts like Withey's either.