FanHouse College Eye For The NBA Guy

LSU's Glen 'Big Baby' Davis is ready to take the next step to the NBA, and from the sounds of this quote, not believing in himself will never be an issue:

"It's just about being ready and I'm ready," Davis said. "The game is still called basketball. I'm well qualified to play the game. Basically, I was ready for the next level. I feel I have nothing to prove. ... I believe no other power forward can do what I do. I can score and I can rebound."

Hm. Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard, Carlos Boozer, Al Jefferson, Tim Duncan, Shawn Marion, Zach Randolph, Jermaine O'Neal, Amare Stoudamire, Dirk Nowitzki, and Elton Brand will all be disappointed to hear that Glen Davis is the only one one earth who can score and rebound. It seemed like they were all so close, too.

Davis's unwarranted egotism aside, though, how will has game translate to the NBA? Well, it depends on how well he adapts. I'm not buying any of the Oliver Miller or Tractor Traylor comparisons ... yes, Davis, is a widebody, but he's got incredible strength, nimble feet that awe Jerome Bettis, and can score in a variety of ways.

That said, though, he's got major adapting to do. In college, his size and athleticism just overwhelm most defenders. Not only is he physically bigger, but he's quick enough and a skilled enough ball handler to score off the dribble. This won't come so easily in the NBA. Most of Davis's effectives away from the basket will be nullified at the pro level.

That doesn't mean he's screwed, though. He can score in the post, and he can bang down low and get tough rebounds ... even if those aren't things he particularly enjoys. He'll have to stop playing like a 3, and make himself more of a 4. Of course, when this happens, his height becomes an issue, too, an issue that, quite frankly, hurts his draft status more than his weight does.

The timing is also poor, though I don't necessarily mean that he'd have been better off coming out after last year's Final Four run. No, he'd have been better off in the NBA of 10 years ago, before the 4-spot started on this trend towards basically being taller 3s who can run the court and stretch the defense.

The FanHouse realizes that not everyone digs March Madness. Some of us enjoy our basketball on a taller, more expensive, professional level. Even so, it's almost impossible to completely ignore the media buzz around the tournament, so we present you with this handy guide to potential 2007/2008 NBA prospects who will be, for a couple of more weeks anyway, playing basketball and filling CBS airtime for free.

Also see:
East Regional, Parts One & Two
Midwest Regional, Parts One & Two
West Regional, Parts One & Two
South Regional, Parts One & Two

Likely to one day wear an NBA uniform:

Greg Oden, 7-0 Freshman, Ohio State. A lot of guys get drafted for their freakish qualities ... freakish athleticism, freakish wingspan, freaking leaping ability. You know what Oden has in freakish quantities? Maturity. Greg Oden has freakish maturity. You know the book on him. Potential to be a legendary shot blocker, has all the physical tools, but the offensive repetoire lacks polish. Fine. But the maturity and down-to-earth-edness (I realize that's not a word) are the reasons he'll improve on anything he has to. They may also be the reasons he stays in school another year. Or more.
Best Guess: There's really no one like him in the NBA right now. I project him as a combination of David Robinson, Alonzo Mourning, and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Acie Law, 6-3 Senior, Texas A&M. I'm in love with him. Absolutely in love. There are a lot of college point guards who can score, but few who can score like Law and run the team, distribute, lead, and win. He's such a smart player. He'll be the best point guard in the 2007 draft, and has the ability to save a point-starved NBA team. I wish I could date him.
Best Guess: Chauncey Billups, minus the upper body strength, but with a quicker learning curve. I pray that he ends up with the right coach/team.

Nick Fazekas, 6'11 Senior, Nevada. Since there's no way I'm putting this name in the "Best Guess" section, Fazekas is like a weaker, less athletic Dirk Nowitzki. He has the range, the variety of shots, great touch, a turnaround, even a little bit of post ability. He's a pretty good passer, too. But in the NBA, strength is a factor. Fazekas could get outmuscled by Shaq's right leg. Looks like a late first-rounder.
Best Guess: Hard to say. Not many people with that size play the way Fazekas plays, and Fazekas probably isn't getting to the level of the ones that do. The best I can do is this: a taller, way smarter, Antoine Walker, but I doubt he gets to that level because he lacks the physical strength.

The FanHouse realizes that not everyone digs March Madness. Some of us enjoy our basketball on a taller, more expensive, professional level. Even so, it's almost impossible to completely ignore the media buzz around the tournament, so we present you with this handy guide to potential 2007/2008 NBA prospects who will be, for a couple of more weeks anyway, playing basketball and filling CBS airtime for free.

Also see:
East Regional, Parts One & Two
Midwest Regional, Parts One & Two
West Regional, Parts One & Two
South Regional, Parts One & Two

Likely to one day wear an NBA uniform:

Chris Lofton, 6-2 Junior, Tennessee. He probably isn't coming out this year, but will probably be one of those guys who tests the waters at draft camps and such. He's a deadly shooter, and expanded his game beyond that this year ... still, he's a 6'2" non-point guard. Good luck with that.
Best Guess: This can best be answered next year, but for right now ... Damon Jones?

Joey Dorsey, 6-9 Junior, Memphis. Dorsey belongs in the "Some Other Time" category, but I note him here because it's interesting that no Memphis players are generating any 2007 draft buzz. If they're all back next year, my goodness ... the rest of Conference USA should just quit and join the Southland Conference or something. Next year's 2nd-best C-USA team will be Memphis' JV squad.
Best Guess: Ask again next year.

Derrick Caracter, 6-9 Freshman, Louisville. He's had his eye on the NBA for the longest time, but is nowhere near ready from a maturity standpoint. In that respect, he's barely ready to be a Louisville Cardinals. Much like Memphis though, if everyone who should come back for Louisville does come back ... they'll be disgusting next year.
Best Guess: If he enters the 2007 draft, within two years, he'll be mopping up bathrooms in some NBA arena.

The FanHouse realizes that not everyone digs March Madness. Some of us enjoy our basketball on a taller, more expensive, professional level. Even so, it's almost impossible to completely ignore the media buzz around the tournament, so we present you with this handy guide to potential 2007/2008 NBA prospects who will be, for a couple of more weeks anyway, playing basketball and filling CBS airtime for free.

Also see:
East Regional, Parts One & Two
Midwest Regional, Parts One & Two
West Regional, Parts One & Two
South Regional, Parts One & Two

Likely to one day wear an NBA uniform:

Joakim Noah, 6-11 Junior, Florida. Noah is well-known throughout the basketblogosphere. He picked a fight with a Kentucky cheerleader, he's a far worse dancer than Mark Madsen, he tells opponents that he's their daddy. If you walk into a sports bar this weekend anywhere other than Gainesville and announce "Joakim Noah is a douche," you'll probably get some free drinks. But take off the hater goggles and you'll see Noah could be a very good pro. Douche or not, his defense is top-notch, he won't be outworked by anyone, and he seems to have that thing all the great roleplayers do.
Best Guess: Andrei Kirilenko with biceps, ADD, and bad hair. Already an evolved Anderson Varejao.

Al Horford, 6-9 Junior, Florida. Horford should end up as the best pro player out of the Florida bunch. He might be as good as Al Jefferson right now. Tremendous hands for a big, fully developed physically, excellent rebounder and defender. If some coach can teach him some of Karl Malone's moves, Horford has a real chance to be 2007's clear third banana behind Oden and Durant.
Best Guess: A tougher Chris Webber minus the jumper.

The FanHouse realizes that not everyone digs March Madness. Some of us enjoy our basketball on a taller, more expensive, professional level. Even so, it's almost impossible to completely ignore the media buzz around the tournament, so we present you with this handy guide to potential 2007/2008 NBA prospects who will be, for a couple of more weeks anyway, playing basketball and filling CBS airtime for free.

Also see:
East Regional, Parts One & Two
Midwest Regional, Parts One & Two
West Regional, Parts One & Two
South Regional, Parts One & Two

Likely to one day wear an NBA uniform:

Julian Wright, 6-8 Sophomore, Kansas. Wright does almost everything well ... scoring, rebounding, passing, defending. He says he won't come out this year, but if he does, he's probably a top-5 pick. If he never progresses at all, his absolute floor is as a valuable NBA glue-guy. His ceiling, though, is off the charts. I love him. He would be my favorite guy in the draft not named Oden or Durant.
Best Guess: Luol Deng, with more of a knack for scoring.

Josh McRoberts, 6-11 Sophomore, Duke. It's a shame I only have one paragraph; as a Blue Devil and someone who's never really filled his enormous potential, there could be volumes written about this guy. Love him or hate him, he does have the tools to be a versatile NBA big man. Unfortunately, he also carries a gigantic "soft" label, and he totally lacks assertiveness. Those are traditionally very, very bad signs. Would've been a lottery pick if he came out earlier ... if he comes out now, he'd be lucky to be Top 20.
Best Guess: Really hard to say. Kwame Brown without the body?

The FanHouse realizes that not everyone digs March Madness. Some of us enjoy our basketball on a taller, more expensive, professional level. Even so, it's almost impossible to completely ignore the media buzz around the tournament, so we present you with this handy guide to potential 2007/2008 NBA prospects who will be, for a couple of more weeks anyway, playing basketball and filling CBS airtime for free.

Also see:
East Regional, Parts One & Two
Midwest Regional, Parts One & Two
West Regional, Parts One & Two
South Regional, Parts One & Two

Aaron Gray, 7-1 Senior, Pitt. It may not be fair to Aaron Gray to write this right now, so soon after Georgetown's Roy Hibbert made him look like a little girl. He's got the size, work ethic, and a nice scoring touch, but I don't see anything resembling the quickness or athleticism necessary in the NBA.
Best Guess: Vlade Divac. But Vlade Divac right now, not when he was an active NBA player.

Scottie Reynolds, 6-2 Freshman, Villanova. He was the Big East's best freshman, and the rest of the conference desperately wants him to go pro. He came on strong late in the season, and just dominated games with his shooting and his ability to create off the dribble. Could be a future lottery pick, but probably not this year.
Best Guess: Eventually, Gilbert Arenas.

DJ White, 6-8 Sophomore, Indiana. White's maybe a borderline first-rounder if he comes out, and that's being optimistic. He reminds me a little bit of Jason Maxiell, being undersized and athletic, but using his body to play a big man's game. He's had some injury problems, and might not be the freakish athlete he once was.
Best Guess: Corliss Williamson.