Has anyone ever told Kirk Hinrich that he doesn’t look like one of the nation’s best point guards? Just wondering. With his schoolboy looks, Hinrich was often not thought as a threat on the hardwood let alone a future NBA player. But after his already impressive career under Roy Williams and the Kansas Jayhawk program, his looks are proving to be very deceiving. Hinrich really came on strong as Kansas pressed forward helping the team to a top 5 ranking throughout the season in 2001-2002. Hinrich averaged 14.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 5 assists per game as a junior. He shot the ball extremely well by hitting 54% of his shots and 48% of his threes. His scoring numbers will likely increase with Drew Gooden gone. Roy Williams has a good problem on his hands. Sophomore sensation Aaron Miles will be playing point guard this year on a full time position. Miles is more of a pure point which allows Hinrich to move over to the off guard position. The move may actually benefit Hinrich’s pro potential. Look at Jason Williams last year. Duke was faced with the similar task last year with Williams and Chris Duhon. Duhon was ran the team on a full time duty. While Williams was able to move without the ball that A. kept opposing defenses honest and B. it allows Hinrich to show off his scoring ability. Coaches can get away with a move like this in the college game. Teams are usually deeper in terms of talent in the backcourt and the pace of the game allows guards to flourish. The biggest concern regarding Hinrich is perhaps his ability to translate his style to the NBA. Again, with the move to off guard, he will be able to work on his shot. He can run a team. That isn’t the question. He’s also quicker than most people think. Hinrich was recently at Michael Jordan’s Flight Camp at University of California-Santa Barbara along with several other elite college prospects working as camp counselors. T.J. Ford, Chris Thomas, Rickey Paulding, Jarvis Hayes, Hollis Price and Luke Jackson were some of the bigger names. That type of competition over the summer is only going to help him improve his overall game. Summer camps are supposed to serve as good exposure for up and coming prospects but they are also one of the best places for current NCAA players to continue to develop their games. With NBA players on hand as well as top competitors, guys can only play better. And Hinrich has done just that. There is an early debate on where he will be drafted. Some say lottery. Some say top 15. Some say he’ll slip into the second round. Like Ridnour, he’ll likely end up in the middle of the first round because of the depth of the point guards in this draft. Teams usually reach a little earlier on post players as well. Wherever he goes, he’ll make a team. He’s been doubted before. With another solid year at Kansas and perhaps another deep run in the NCAA tournament, Hinrich could be sitting in the green room on draft night. ___________________________________ just posted that because I like Hinrich...
Actually I have a better idea of where he will be drafted, in the Intercontinental Basketball Association. Dude plain sucks. For him to even dream of playing the 2 in the NBA, just that a dream. He is at nest a downgraded version of Trajan Langdon, lucky to make the Cavs roster he would be.
Hey jev I wouldn't go that far about Hinrich. I think the people that believe he even has the slightest chance of going in the lottery are smoking something, but I think there is definitely a place for him somewhere in the NBA as a backup combo guard. I don't think he's as consistent a shooter as Langdon is, but he has a lot better ball skills than ol Trajan. It's still way too early to know, but if I had to guess right now, I'd say Hinrich goes late first, early second round. Hey wags, you have a link to that article? Doesn't exactly sound like AP material...
You're probably right, after all Langdon went pretty high he's just now going Euro. So, Hinrich probably does qualify as bench fodder for the NBA. After all there are a lot of those guys out there.
Hinrich < Dickau I say this because Dickau is a much better athlete. Hinrich will be very hard pressed to be anything more than a 3rd string PG. From everything I've read, Dickau hasn't impressed anyone during the summer leagues.
