2011 NBA Mock Draft: International Players Changing the Draft

Last year, 11 of the 60 draft picks were from other countries. In 2009, 17 were from different countries. In 2011, four of the first eight picks may be from other countries.

The NBA draft is letting in top stars from college that may have dominated their season, led their team to a championship-caliber season, won an award or accomplished something else special.

Is that what most people look forward to when they watch the draft? Yes. But this year, players like Enes Kanter, Jan Vesley, Bismack Biyombo and Jonas Valanciunas are taking over.

Kanter, a 6'10" center who weighs 255, hasn't even played a game this year. But scouts are so high on him that he could even go third, and will most likely be the first player from another country (Turkey) to get picked.

Jan Vesley loves to run and dunk the ball and has an excellent perimeter game. Even though he isn't your typical defensive player, he could still go fourth (at highest). Vesley is from the Czech Republic.

As for Biyombo, he is great on defense and can work well against a Dwight Howard, but he needs work on offense. Still, scouts are high on the 18-year-old Congolese star, who will probably go around No. 7 or No. 8.

Valanciunas has lots of upside and could even be better than Kanter, Vesley and Biyombo, but the Lithuanian product still has work to do on athleticism and strength. He'll probably go around eighth, maybe a pick or two within Biyombo.

It is possible that these four get picked in the top seven or eight, and while Kemba Walker, Brandon Knight, Kyrie Irving and Derrick Williams will steal the show, these four are definitely players you want to watch out for.

None have the dribbling skills of Kemba Walker (although none are shorter than 6'9"), none have the basketball IQ of Kyrie Irving and none have the passing ability possessed by Brandon Knight. However, Vesley and Kanter can shoot, Biyombo can keep a player from scoring and Valanciunas can score from close range.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have two lottery picks, since the L.A. Clippers gave them a pick in the Baron Davis-Mo Williams swap. They could take Kyrie Irving and Jan Vesley (Vesley may drop), Kemba Walker and Bismack Biyombo, Derrick Williams and Jonas Valanciunas—any two picks.

This year, a huge pool of talent is right there for the scouts. When they dive in, they'll get a player that dominated college, the Congo, Lithuania, the Czech Republic or Turkey.

Who knows? Maybe we'll see one of them on a magazine cover, a sports almanac or ESPN after a championship victory. These players can change the NBA with their unique skills.