2015 NBA Draft Thread

It looks like all the best four-year college players are white guys from Florida, as Chandler Parsons and David Lee (just slipping in under the "last decade" stipulation) have both had star-type stretches.

 

He's not a star, but he consistently averages around 15 or 16 points a game. He's a well above-average NBA player, I think, no?

But when J.J. Redick is on the short list, I guess it proves the point. And, yet, how many casual (white) fans would swear to you that these guys are so much better off when they stay four years so they can read "Beowulf"?

 

Blue font?

 

Lee was better in the NBA than he ever was in college. I think he was the last pick of the first round.

Obviously, not white, but Udonis Haslem is another 4-year player at Florida who has had a much better career than anyone could have predicted since he wasn't drafted and had to play a year overseas.

 

You could probably say the same about Parsons.

Haslem is another good choice, although "star" is a stretch. Draymond Green is another four-year guy who appears headed for a similar career.

 

Yeah, that one got me, too.

The key to success is recruiting worse players?

 

Oh, Haslem is nowhere close to being a star, but 10+ years with the same franchise, most as a starter. There are a ton of lottery picks who would have killed for that career.

 

Evan Turner did that once, too.

And, Turner is a far better all-around player than Redick. And, Turner's not a star either.

They are trending in opposite directions, but Redick is closer to his ceiling than Turner is to his floor.

 

The key to consistent success, Dick. Because, clearly, Calipari has not achieved consistent success. He's quite sporadic with a career win percentage of just .781, only five Final Four appearances and a national championship under his belt. That's just too inconsistent for a major college coach.

 

Billy Donovan said what hurt Florida after playing for the title in 2000 was recruiting guys who were more interested in how quickly they would get to the NBA than doing anything in college. He signed the top class one year which was Kwame Brown, David Lee and James White. Brown decided to go pro, White transferred to Cincy and Lee stayed all four years, probably in part because his draft stock wasn't high enough to come out.

There's a difference between "recruiting worse players" and recruiting players who you can get more out of, or who are a better fit for your program.

When Florida went back-to-back, I think Corey Brewer was the only McDonald's All-American among the starters on that team.

 

Draymond Green spent four years at Michigan State. (As George Karl once said: "Basketball or football?") He's a star in the making.

 

Getting back to the 2015 draft, in unsurprising news, Justin Anderson is leaving.