Okay first of all, Carl Landry is only a mediocre defender, and he can only guard against post players. Marcus Dove on the other hand, is well known for guarding the opponent's best player, which includes players like DJ Augustin. Carl Landry is an awesome player and all, but some of you guys are getting way too overhyped on him.
Oh, here's another underrated prospect: Joe Alexander, WV. Another athletic white boy (the other being Chase Budinger), except he can play defense. Draft Profile
FYI, for those of you living in the west, you can catch Arizona play against Stanford on ABC. Jordan Hill is starting to become a mini Hakeem.
Not really sure if this counts as an "underrated" prospect, especially in the eyes of scouts, but Jerryd Bayless of Arizona is extremely talented and a gifted athlete Here's DraftExpress's Profile on him: Profile I've seen basically every Arizona game, and they have three legitimate lottery to mid-first round prospects: Jerryd, Chase Budinger, and Jordan Hill. Out of the three, I think Jerryd has the most potential. Think of stronger and more athletic version of Gilbert Arenas. J-Bayless's biggest strength is probably his strength, and he's only going to get better. His jumpshot is also a beauty, and the form and elevation on it has the most potential I've seen in a long time. Tremendous first step and change of direction skills. Good kid too. People talk about OJ Mayonnaise and Micheal Beasley, but I think Jerryd and Rose are the two best athletes in this draft, and probably has the most potential of all of them.
Well, when if Amare is more athletic, its hard to tell because I think Jordan Hill is a tremendous athlete for his size. And unlike Amare, he has a decent post game developed already and already has a reliable jumper. He also has a similar lean frame too, so the comparisons are valid in my opinion. But the reason he's not considered a lottery pick, yet, is because he's only played basketball for a couple year, since the 10th grade or so, so he never garnered as much attention as some of the other big men. And the fact that Arizona hasn't been playing well consistently enough to attract enough attention.
Hey, Jason, you seem to have a good feel for the pulse of the Pac-10. Have you seen much of DeVon Hardin at Cal? What're your thoughts on his game? I've been reading up on him (stats, blogs), and he seems like a strong candidate for our consideration this year. I also found that we worked him out before last year's draft.
I've only seen a couple of Cal's game, but from what I've seen, he's a very good athlete for his size, similar to Jordan Hill. But unlike Jordan, he doesn't have a offensive back-to-the basket game yet and hasn't looked comfortable consistently enough down low. But he's supposedly a very bright kid (with a 4.0 GPA), so maturity and development won't likely be an issue for him. He's projected as late 1st-rounder, and since Cal likely won't make the tourney, he will have to decided whether to stay another year or go to the NBA. But overall, I think he has good potential.
Cal alum here. Pretty good analysis, but a couple things to add: First, Hardin is actually a senior this year. Which kind of makes his play this year a bit troubling -- he didn't really progress much from his junior to senior years. In fact, if he had come out last year, he'd probably have gone higher in the draft due to "potential." (9.8 ppg, 7.8 rpg aren't exactly eye-popping numbers for a four-year guy.) Basically, he's very athletic and strong but very raw. On senior night he went off for for 18 pts, 13 board prompting a lot of folks to wonder why he didn't do that more often. Hardin even admitted he was extra-amped up for the game and needs to work on his consistency. The question is whether he'll develop beyond being a big, athletic body into someone who can score. The real underrated prospect for Cal is 6'10" sophomore Ryan Anderson. Anderson's averaging just short of a double-double (21.5 ppg, 9.9 boards) in a conference with several pro-caliber big men. He's also shooting 43% from 3-pt land. He's a very, very good player, and it will be interesting to see if he comes out early. Think Troy Murphy.
Some videos: Jordan Hill <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/859Fzofvv6I"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/859Fzofvv6I" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> Chase Budinger <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZWkaZfCt4Jk"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZWkaZfCt4Jk" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> Jerryd Bayless <object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2SIpzCYREHY"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2SIpzCYREHY" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>
i like hill, but hes no amare. amare was 6'10 240lbs and a ripped manbeast coming out of highschool. hill is 6'10 225lbs. hills a good athlete and a PF in the NBA. not a real banger, but he plays physical enough. good shotblocking potential. hill has potential, but needs to add 10-20 pounds to be a factor in the nba. as far as hardin goes, he reminds me of stromile. athlete who cant turn it on consistently.
But like I said before, unlike Amare, Hill already has a post game in development already. I've seen almost of all UA's games, and I can tell you that he has very good potential in his post game because he already has solid footwork and he can even go to his left, which is something young post players never learn to do in their entire career. But you're right about his strength. He definitely needs to add 10-20 more pounds to his thin frame, but he has good length and of course the athleticism is there. Its also important to consider that he has only played basketball forn 4-5 years.
I'm sorry but I just have to brag about Joe Alexander. I've known about him and what he was and is capable of before he got so hot lately. Just wanted to say I told y'all.....
Arizona is packed with talent, I like Nic Wise their PG also even though he could use a year or two in college to really develop into a Tj Ford like player
nic wise played at my highschool before he up and left after his freshman year cinco ranch represent!
Its kinda old news now...but Jerryd and Chase have officially declared for the draft ( Chase hasn't hired an agent yet though). Sigh.....so much for the dream team of: Jerryd Bayless (guaranteed top 5 pick) Chase Budinger (late lottery to mid) Brandon Jennings (projected lottery next year) Nic Wise Jordan Hill (projected first round next year)
People love to talk about what an amazing physical specimen Amare was "right out of highschool". What they don't tell you is that Amare was 20 years old when he came to the NBA straight out of highschool.
Joe Alexander. Very solid mid-range game and plays good D. Of course CDR is my first choice, but his he kinda played his way above us during the tournament. At least I have heard no mention of Joe Alexander in draft talk.
LOL!!! I remember thinking to myself, "how he older than me coming out of high school and I'm a sophmore in college."
