NBA Draft 2011: Josh Selby and 8 Players Who May Have a Bad Draft Day
The 2011 NBA Draft is right around the corner, and most college players have already announced their decision on whether they are staying or going.
While we are still awaiting the decision of star players such as Harrison Barnes, Brandon Knight and Terrance Jones, players like Josh Selby and Isaiah Thomas have put their names in the draft.
With Jared Sullinger and Perry Jones already announcing they will return to school, this draft class appears to be one of the weaker ones in recent memory.
If rumors are true regarding Barnes leaning toward going back to school, the class will get even weaker.
With that in mind, some of the players who have declared will be looking to go much higher than expected; however, the following eight players will be disappointed when their names are finally called.
8. Chris Singleton (Florida State)
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Singleton led Florida State in both rebounding and scoring last season, and was also their best defender, so it makes sense for him to go to the NBA, right?
Well, that is not entirely the case.
He may have been Florida State's leading scorer, but his offensive game is not as polished as it needs to be. He will find it very difficult to score at the NBA level since he does not have a go-to move and scores a lot of second-chance buckets.
Singleton will likely find his skill set on the defensive end very valuable, but he will likely be disappointed when he is not a lottery pick.
7. JaJuan Johnson (Purdue)
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JaJuan Johnson is coming off on an All-American season at Purdue and would likely expect to hear his name called in the first 15 picks.
However, he could fall to the end of the first round, and possibly into the second.
Johnson is referred to as a "tweener" at the NBA level, as he does not fit in perfectly at either forward position. He does not have the skills on the outside to be a small forward in the NBA, and his lack of strength will prevent him from playing inside.
When Johnson falls out of the top 20, he will likely think he is being screwed by every NBA team that passes him up. That motivation could drive him to finally bulk up and add the strength required to be a power forward in the NBA.
6. Jimmer Fredette (Brigham Young)
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Jimmer Fredette is the x-factor in this year's NBA draft, as his draft stock is very tough to predict.
Like Isaiah Thomas, he can light up the scoreboard, but also struggles on defense.He has superb range on his jump shot and does a solid job at penetrating, not to mention finding the open man.
Like JaJuan Johnson, he is also a "tweener" at the NBA level. He is somewhere between a point guard and a shooting guard, and he will need to find his niche.
His best chance for success would likely be at the point guard position, where he would not have to guard bigger players.
Fredette could be anything from a top-10 pick to a late first-rounder. While it appears he will be a lottery pick, anything could happen with a player like Fredette.
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5. Isaiah Thomas (Washington)
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Isaiah Thomas has declared for the NBA draft, but has yet to sign an agent.
If Thomas signs an agent and enters the NBA draft, it would be a drastic mistake.
According to ESPN, Thomas is done with college basketball and thinks his skills are ready to go pro. He was quoted as saying he does not believe this is a very strong draft class, and he can see himself being one of the first guards selected.
The highest Thomas is likely to go would be in the middle of the first round, but some mock drafts have him as low as pick No. 59.
Thomas is a scorer who can light up the scoreboard in an instant, but he does not excel on the defensive side of the ball and could see his draft stock plummet because of it.
Nate Robinson, the NBA player to whom he is most similar, was drafted in the first round, so it is possible Thomas enjoys the same fate.
He should not be too confident though.
4. Kemba Walker (Connecticut)
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Kemba Walker is coming off a remarkable run through both the Big East and NCAA tournaments, yet could still see his draft stock fall outside of the top 10.
Walker single-handedly carried his team to a National Championship, but NBA teams still have some concerns about how well his game will translate to the NBA.
Walker has blazing speed and has drastically improved his pull-up/step-back jumpers during the course of his college career. But he is undersized, and that could be the main reason why teams shy away from him. Walker also did make some poor decisions at times, but improved down the stretch by not forcing as many shots as expected.
When his name is not called in the first 10 picks of the draft, he will certainly believe he was screwed.
3. Nolan Smith (Duke)
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Nolan Smith has been one of the best college players of the past 10 years, but he is bordering on falling out of the first round.
Smith is an all-around player who does not do one thing particularly better than the next, and that is likely affecting his draft stock.
He shoots the ball well and puts in more effort than most players do on the defensive side of the ball, but lacks the explosiveness and speed teams look for in a point guard.
He is a natural point guard that gets everyone involved though, and while he will not be a star at the next level, he is the type of player every team needs coming off the bench.
2. Kyle Singler (Duke)
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Kyle Singler made the decision to return to Duke after his stellar junior campaign.
Duke did not make it back to the National Championship game, and Singler had an up-and-down season.
He likely cost himself some money at the NBA level, as he would have certainly been a lottery pick last year—possibly a top-10 selection.
Like Nolan Smith, Singler will not hear his name called until the end of the first round and possibly not until the second.
Singler shot the ball well for most of his career, but struggled greatly during long stretches during his senior year. He is going to be very disappointed in himself for not leaving school after his junior year when he does not hear his name called in the first round.
1. Josh Selby (Kansas)
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Josh Selby is a player that, frankly, is screwing himself.
Selby made the horrible decision of declaring for the NBA draft after a down freshman year at Kansas. Xavier Henry made the same ignorant decision last season, but he was at least secured a spot near the end of the lottery.
Selby will be lucky to crack the first round of this draft, even if it is one of the weakest draft classes in a long time.
He was expected to put up numbers similar to ones Kyrie Irving put up in limited time at Duke, but Selby was less than exciting. The talent was there, but the execution was nowhere to be found. He made a lot of poor decisions, both passing the ball and shooting the ball, and has a lot of work to do to be successful in the NBA.
Selby should have returned for his sophomore season at Kansas, where he could have been the star of the team and developed his skills, much like Kemba Walker did over the years at Connecticut.
Sometimes the allure of being a second-round pick is just too much to pass up though.
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