NBA Draft 2011: Can Jimmer Fredette Really Be as Good as Stephen Curry?

For some reason, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry is frequently used as an example to determine how good BYU guard Jimmer Fredette could potentially be, but is it really a fair comparison?

Both Curry and Fredette are exceptional scorers, they are about the same size and Fredette will have to adjust to the NBA point guard position just like Curry did.

But there is some doubt as to whether Curry and Fredette are actually the same caliber of talent.

When Curry was leading tiny Davidson college to the NCAA tournament in 2008-09 it was a memorable accomplishment because Curry was the only player on the team with major college talent.

Sure Curry's backcourt teammate, Jason Richards, led the NCAA in assists during the 2008 season, but that feat is much easier when a player like Curry is the recipient of most of your passes.

But Richards had graduated in 2009, which is the first season Curry had even played the point guard position since high school, yet former Indiana coach Bobby Knight called Curry the best passer in the college game that year.

Knight must have been onto something, because by the time Curry's rookie season ended he was runner-up for the NBA's Rookie of the Year award, and one of the league's brightest young point guard prospects.

In a rookie class that included such talents as Ty Lawson, Brandon Jennings and Tyreke Evans, Curry clearly proved that he belonged, but does Fredette have the ability to make that same type of statement?

Kyrie Irving's decision to enter the NBA draft knocks Fredette down a notch in the eyes of most NBA general managers, and a decision by Kentucky's Brandon Knight to enter the draft would knock Fredette down even further.

UConn guard Kemba Walker has seen his draft stock rise after his team captured this year's NCAA championship, and some people also list him as a better pro prospect than Fredette as well.

In order for Fredette to match what Curry did his rookie season, he would have to prove he is better than, or at least deserves to be mentioned with, the players above, and he would also have to be a strong contender for the 2011-12 Rookie of the Year award.

Curry's ability to carry a small school like Davidson almost singlehandedly to within a game of the Final Four was proof that he could be a legitimate star in the NBA, but can Fredette make the same claim?

Leading the nation in scoring with a group of true Division I talent is one thing.

Carrying a team of players who might not have started in high school to within one shot of knocking off eventual national champion Kansas Jayhawks is something else.

Even after Curry's amazing run at Davidson there were many people who wondered how Curry's game would translate in the NBA, and many questioned if he could get his shot off against professional talent.

We all soon learned that Curry's sweet shooting stroke is preceded by what is arguably the quickest release in the game, and it turned out his court vision and ball-handling skills were much better than anticipated.

Curry was able to eschew the criticism and prove that he is a future NBA All-Star, and Fredette must do the same before any reasonable comparisons to Curry can be made.

Fredette is already facing some of the same criticism that Curry faced before the 2009 NBA draft, but it remains to be seen if Fredette has enough depth in his game to silence his detractors.