CBS Sports didn't waste any time coming up with this list. Interesting that B. J. Mullins is #3 and he hasn't played a college game yet. No other Big 10 player is listed in the top 30. I was (at least) kind of expecting to see Raymar Morgam (Michigan State). It may be a "down year" for basketball in the Big 10.
Draft class for '09 a step down -- right now
The 2008 NBA Draft is over.
Obviously, it's now time to start looking ahead
The first thing you need to know is that next year's draft won't be as good at the top (or as deep) as this year's draft, mostly because this year's incoming freshmen stink as a whole when compared to their immediate predecessors.
Put another way, there is no incoming freshman as promising as Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley or O.J. Mayo, or at least it seems that way.
But we'd all be wise to keep in mind that at this time last year nobody thought Russell Westbrook or Joe Alexander would go in the top 10, and at this time last
week it seemed doubtful that Jason Thompson would be a lottery pick.
So what I'm trying to say is that this stuff changes. All the time. And it's hard to project.
But you know me, I'm always up for a good challenge!
So I've compiled a list of 30 NBA prospects who will play college basketball next season and ranked them from best to worst in terms of their NBA potential, which -- as Chris Douglas-Roberts learned late Thursday -- has absolutely nothing to do with their value as college players. Picking an All-American team is a totally different exercise than drafting for the NBA, which is why a guy like Tyler Hansbrough will be everybody's Preseason National Player of the Year despite being in nobody's projected top five of the 2009 NBA Draft.
Anyway, let's get to it.
Here are college basketball's top 30 prospects for the 2009 NBA Draft.
1. Blake Griffin (Oklahoma)
Griffin would've been a top 10 pick this year, probably as high as fifth to the Grizzlies. He's a big, strong, athletic power forward who averaged 14.7 points and 9.1 rebounds last season, and he'll have the Sooners competing for a Big 12 title in 2008-09.
2. DeMar DeRozan (Southern California)
At 6-foot-6, DeRozan has an NBA frame and great athleticism to boot. He'll make USC a Pac-10 contender as a freshman, and as long as he stays away from Rodney Guillory, his only year in college should go smoothly.
3. B.J. Mullens (Ohio State)
Mullens was famously up-and-down on the AAU circuit, drifting back and forth between great and ordinary, and Thad Matta must fix that when the 7-foot-1 center enrolls at
OSU. Either way, I'm a believer, probably because when I saw Mullens last summer he was spectacular, just grabbing and dunking everything in sight.
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Draft class for '09 a step down -- right now - NCAA Division I Mens Basketball - CBSSports.com Live Scores, Standings, Stats
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