No, Budinger is definitely staying in the draft, plus the deadline is (or rather was) today. He himself said that if he is projected in the top 20 (which he says that everyone he's talked to so far has told him that he will be drafted within that range) , he will likely stay, and the only way he would come back would be if he is told that he is a 2nd rounder. As for working out for the Rox, the rest of workout schedule after the deadline has not been made public yet, since he is still not set on staying or coming back one way or the other
If your drafting in terms of need I hear you, but if your drafting in terms of best player then Chalmers name should easily be thrown in there. Yea, they would have a log jam at the PG spot, but I wonder if Brooks could help the rockets get that elusive 3rd scorer as part of a trade, even though Brooks himself is not a true point guard. It's looking like Rush will easily go in the teens, he can help a team immediately. Your opinion may vary from mine and thats why we post them on this board, but I would be happy drafting CDR even though I think he might not be there when the rockets are on the clock.
CDR is projected to be there in the early-late 20s so we definitely have a chance. But even then I think if Rush or Budinger or Batum is not there, atleast we can still get a big PF/C, and Roy Hibbert of Robin Lopez (if he's available) seems like good choices for us. I really wanted Tywon Lawson, but it seems that he wants to be drafted in the top 20, which means the Nuggets will the last team to have him; otherwise he said he will come back to college. So in that case, I think trading up for a higher pick seems reasonable and highly plausible.
I also think like you and alot of people here that the rockets have a good shot at moving up in this draft, how high is anybodies guess. I would love an athletic big man, but who knows. Once you study the draft you find out it's much deeper than most people think. If the rockets were to stand pat at #25 I would be content, but moving up and getting the player they actually want could really be a major coup. Also moving back and trying to pick up multiple early 2nd round picks from either the Timberwolves or Trailblazers wouldn't be a bad idea either as there will be some solid talent there as well.
Budinger and Hudson - not entering draft. From DraftExpress -Lester Hudson will be returning to school, according to his friend Ruben Webber. Webber said that teams told Hudson he would be drafted anywhere from 35-50, but that he preferred not to roll the dice and instead opted to return and get his degree. In Hudson's mind, the worst-case scenario is he goes in the same range next year, and there is always the upside of being able to crack the first round of a weaker draft with his degree in hand. Tennessee-Martin will be playing stronger competition next season than they did this year, including games against Southern Cal and Tennessee. -Chase Budinger has withdrawn his name from the draft, according to an NBA executive with knowledge of the situation. Budinger conducted the process strangely from what we could gather, opting to work out for numerous teams who were well ahead of his draft range, such as the Knicks (#6), Clippers (#7) and Kings (#15)—and thus likely did not have the type of information he needed to make an informed decision. He will be returning to a situation in Arizona where he will have no chance but step up and have a great year, which puts a lot of pressure on him, but also will tell us a great deal about the kind of player he is. He will likely start off the year as a projected lottery pick and preseason All-American.
From what was being reported on Budinger it looked like he was being projected between 15-25 which is pretty wide. He had very little if any chance to picked in the lottery especially with Ajinca, Rush and Hibbert starting to vault up the draft boards. Next years draft is reportedly not as strong so he should have a better chance against lesser talent.
Good choice by Budinger. OMG! Look at UofA's lineup now: PG: Brandon Jennings(projected top 10 next year)/ Nick Wise SG: Chase Budinger (projected top 10 next year)/Brandon Lavender/ Zane Johnson SF: Chase Budinger/Jamelle Horne/Zane Johnson PF: Jordan Hill (projected top 20 next year)/ Jeff Whithey C: Jeff Whithey (scout.com #8 Center) / Alex Jacobsen
With Hudson now out and Rush moving up into the teens, we need to either trade up or trade out of the first round, and then maybe go after George Hill and Malik Hairston in the 2nd round.
