Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Posted: 1:03 p.m.
By Sean KaneCSNPhilly.com Contributor
Point guard may be the deepest position in the 2011 NBA draft. The top floor general is expected to be the first name off the board, while two others should join him in the top 10. In all, as many as five could go in the top 17 to 20 picks.
Here is a breakdown of the five best point guards available:
1. Kyrie Irving, 6-2180, Duke
The Cavaliers need a point guard, and Irving figures to be their man with the first pick. The biggest knock on the 19-year-old Irving is that he played just 11 games during his lone season at Duke because of a toe injury. However, Irving averaged 17 points and five assists in the first eight games of his freshman season before getting hurt. He returned after three months on the sidelines to average more than 17.5 points in three NCAA Tournament games, including 28 in the Blue Devils' season-ending loss to Arizona in the Sweet 16.
Irving is a more than capable outside shooter, connecting on more than 46 percent of his three-point attempts at Duke. And while he may not have the extra gear of a Derrick Rose or John Wall in terms of getting up the floor and to the basket, he showed the ability to navigate his way into the lane to create scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates.
Had Irving not gotten hurt, he likely would have been the national player of the year and even more of a lock to go No. 1 in the draft. He's a complete point guard with a winning pedigree from his time at St. Patrick's High School in North Jersey and Duke.
2. Brandon Knight, 6-3185, Kentucky
Knight could go as high as No. 3 to the Jazz, but could also slip to the Raptors at No. 5. Either way, he's a top-5 pick for good reason. Knight was the driving force behind Kentucky's Final Four run as a freshman, taking and making all the big shots for the Wildcats. He is polished beyond his years offensively and his size makes him the total package in terms of what NBA executives look for in a point guard.
Knight averaged 17.3 points per game, 4.2 assists per game and shot 38 percent from three-point range last season. His make-up is solid off the court as wellKnight compiled a 4.3 GPA during his one year in college.
He doesn't have the same skill set and name recognition as Wall, his predecessor at Kentucky. But he's a big, scoring point guard who will only improve defensively. Knight may not be the sexiest point guard prospect in this draft, but he's a very safe bet.
3. Kemba Walker, 6-1180, Connecticut
Walker is the biggest name among this year's point guard class after leading UConn to a national championship. He should be one of the top-10 picks of the draft, with the most likely landing spot being the Kings at No. 7. Walker is an NBA-ready talent who will help whomever drafts him immediately both on the court and at the box office.
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Walker was a shoot-first point guard during his last season in college, averaging 23.5 points as a junior. But that was out of necessity on a team lacking other scoring options. Walker averaged more than five assists two years ago as a sophomore, so he has shown the ability to be a table-setter as opposed to just a scorer.
His size will be an issuehe's listed generously at 6-1. But his intangibles can't be ignored. Walker almost single-handedly willed UConn to a remarkable 11 straight wins in the Big East and NCAA Tournaments, hitting big shot after big shot throughout that run. Walker is a winner and will no doubt have a chip on his shoulder when a few point guards are drafted before him.
4. Jimmer Fredette, 6-2195, BYU
Fredette is far from a conventional point guard, but his size makes it all but impossible for him to play the off-guard position in the NBA. He was more of a combo guard at BYU, and the long-range marksman became the darling of college basketball as a senior.
Fredette led the nation with just under 29 points per game and shot 40 percent from three-point territory. But he's not just a one-trick pony. Fredette demonstrated the ability to get to the basket in college, which compliments his shooting stroke perfectly. It all added up to 2,599 collegiate points a BYU and Mountain West Conference record. He garnered all the major player of the year honors, including the Wooden and Naismith awards. Whichever team drafts Fredette will create quite a buzz on draft night.
That's the good news. The bad news: his defensive shortcomings. Fredette was never confused for a stopper during his time at BYU. And over the next month, most NBA executives will be asking themselves, Who will this guy guard?
Fredette will surely work to improve to his defense, but he'll always be a below-average perimeter defender. The ultimate question when it comes to Fredette: Will his natural scoring abilities be enough to mask his deficiencies on the other end of the floor? Only time will tell.
5. Reggie Jackson, 6-3210, Boston College
Jackson has tremendous size and athleticism for a point guard, and he really came on as a junior at Boston College. He averaged 18.2 points per game last season while shooting over 50 percent from the field. Jackson also made good on 42 percent of his three-point attemptsa 13 percent jump from his sophomore season.
NBA teams will surely be intrigued by Jackson's improvement over the past 12 months, banking on the trend to continue thanks to his work ethic. He also averaged 4.5 assists per game as a sophomore and a junior.
Other names to watch: Darius Morris (Michigan); Josh Selby (Kansas); Shelvin Mack (Butler); Nolan Smith (Duke)
E-mail Sean Kane at skane@comcastsportsnet.com
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