NBA Draft: Who's Out, Who's In?

A trio of freshman declarations has made this draft class one worth paying attention to

April 24, 2008

By Mike Halford
Bodog Nation Contributing Writer

While it might seem a little early to start talking about the National Basketball Association 2008 Draft – hell, the NFL Draft is still three days away – it's really an opportune time to do it. The NBA regular season is still fresh enough in the minds of non-playoff teams; the postseason is young enough for a lack of compelling storylines to have been written yet.

With that in mind, let's break down the key players for the 2008 NBA Draft.

Michael Beasley, Freshman, Kansas State

There's little doubt that Beasley will go first overall. In keeping with the basketball tradition of always going big over small, the K-State phenom edges out Memphis point guard Derrick Rose as the top prize. The 26.2 points and 12.4 rebounds per game averages don't hurt either. People are wary that he'll end up like Glenn "Big Dog" Robinson, who averaged 30 and 10 at Purdue with a similar build and game to Beasley’s. But Robinson was a two-time All-Star who averaged 20.7 points per game over his 14 year career – hardly anything to laugh at.

Derrick Rose, Freshman, Memphis

Expect Rose to go second overall. (AP Images)

Had he done nothing all season and just played in the NCAA tournament, he'd still go No. 2 overall.

Rose has a real chance to be a Jason Kidd-Chauncey Billups hybrid, something we saw as he tore apart quality guards like Darren Collison, D.J. Augustin and Drew Neitzel on collegiate basketball’s biggest stage.

Kevin Love, Freshman, UCLA

Love's game doesn't translate well into the NBA. He's a lot like Sean May, who bumped and banged and butted his way to MOP honors as North Carolina won the 2005 National Championship. A wide posterior and soft hands are great at the college level but not so much at the professional one. Still, Love did the right thing by striking when the iron was hot. Had he gone back to school, he'd have allowed skeptics to pick holes in his game.

O.J. Mayo, Freshman, USC

Mayo's time at USC simply expired. (AP Images)

Having seen Mayo and the Trojans play several times this year, I can say that he's making a good decision by getting out of dodge. USC was the most inconsistent, mercurial and erratic group of talent in the country; they spent the entire season teetering on the verge of brilliance or blowing up.

Mayo won't be a lights-out scorer in the pros, but he will be an effective one. His game is quite similar to that of Chicago's Ben Gordon.

Brook and Robin Lopez, Juniors, Stanford

Now it seems like the Lopez-go-pro movement was a good one. Former Stanford coach Trent Johnson bolted for LSU and the Cardinal are still without a single half-decent guard on the roster. But even with all these negatives, the Lopez twins should've stuck around for another year. They're talented enough to carry a team to a national title, especially in what'll be a depleted Pac-10 next season. This won't affect Brook (a consensus top 10 pick) so much as it will Robin, whose tournament performance showed he might be more than a hustle guy who only blocks shots and rebounds. Had they shown they were consistent winners at the college level, they both could've been top 10 picks. As it stands, there are still a lot of questions about their mental makeup.

Eric Gordon, Freshman, Indiana

Gordon was great... for half of his freshman season. (AP Images)

He'll be a top 15 pick just on talent and potential alone. That's disappointing, because the kid mailed in half of his only year playing college basketball after his coach was fired.

That usually is the reddest of red flags; he'll probably get a pass because Indiana (admittedly) was a disaster last year.

Derrick Caracter, Sophomore, Louisville

Caracter has been described in predraft circles as "lazy," "selfish" and "a troublemaker." He spent two years in Rick Pitino's doghouse for breaking every team rule imaginable, and had an unremarkable sophomore campaign on a loaded Cardinals team that made him look better than he is. Get where this is going?

Blake Griffin, Freshman, Oklahoma

Big kid with a Carlos Boozer-type game who would've been picked in the teens. He's got a real chance to develop some more offensive moves next year. Hopefully, he'll be less reliant on putbacks and back-to-the-basket scoring in his sophomore season.

Stephen Curry, Sophomore, Davidson

Curry made the smart move by going back to school. (AP Images)

Could've cashed in on his darling status earned from the NCAA tournament, but he would've gotten mauled in the NBA next year if he did. Despite a silky-smooth game, he's still built like a 13-year-old. Davidson should be great to watch next year, though.

James Harden (Freshman) / Jeff Pendergraph (Junior), Arizona State

Both were big surprises for the surprise team of the Pac-10. The Sun Devils of next season have the potential to be the Washington State Cougars of last year; having these two return only bolsters that claim.

TOP PHOTO: Michael Beasley is the consensus No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft... for now. (AP Images)