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Freshmen playing the lottery

by Chad Ford

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Also Below: How close is Carmelo to LeBron? | Bosh gets big props | Best of the Rest | In and Out of the NBA Draft | Peep Show

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The high school class of 2002 didn't get off to great start when it comes to the NBA.

After a flood of 2001 high school seniors (Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry, DeSagana Diop) passed on college and advanced directly to the NBA Draft, Amare Stoudemire was the only high school player selected in the 2002 draft.

Two other high-profile players, Lenny Cooke and DeAngelo Collins, were ignored completely on draft night and fell off the basketball map.

The high school class of 2002 looked so weak that after last year's draft one NBA GM commented that "we'll be lucky to get 10 servicable players out of the entire class."

Not so fast.

Two months into the new year and it's safe to say 2003 has been a great year for the class of 2002.

Amare Stoudemire

Power Forward

Phoenix Suns

Profile

2002-2003 SEASON STATISTICS

GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%

64 13.4 9.3 0.9 .463 .671

We start with Stoudemire, who's challenging Yao Ming for Rookie of the Year honors. After slipping all the way to No. 9 in the draft after teams grew concerned about his questionable background, Stoudemire has put together the most impressive rookie season by a high school player since Kevin Garnett came into the league.

Stoudemire's 13.4 ppg and 9.3 rpg blow away the numbers that Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, Brown, Chandler or Curry put up in their rookie seasons. In just 64 games, Stoudemire has vaulted himself from prospect to stud.

"I think when the smoke clears from the 2002 NBA draft, the most dominant player coming out of this draft will be Stoudemire, not Yao," another GM said. "When you combine that athleticism and body with that attitude, you're looking at a kid that could become unstoppable."

Of course, Stoudemire isn't the only player from the class of 2002 making waves at the moment. In the college game, Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony is now widely regarded as the consensus No. 3 pick in this year's draft. Georgia Tech big man Chris Bosh will likely be the fourth player taken if he decides to declare.

And a host of other freshmen, including North Carolina's Raymond Felton and Rashad McCants, Notre Dame's Torin Francis and Florida's Christjan Drejer, are on the NBA radar screen.

Are teenagers really ready for the NBA? Freshman early entrants have done surprisingly well over the last decade in the league. They include such standouts as Stephon Marbury, Lamar Odom, Corey Maggette, Ricky Davis, Jamal Crawford and Dajuan Wagner.

However, there are no guarantees. Larry Hughes, DerMarr Johnson, Donnell Harvey, Kenny Satterfield and Dion Glover have all struggled to various degrees to excel in the league.

Today, Insider gives you an inside look at several college freshmen who may follow in Stoudemire's footsteps when the smoke clears on draft night.

How close is Carmelo to LeBron?

Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony could be the No. 3 pick in the draft if he declares.

The fans up at Syracuse are begging and pleading with freshman superstar Carmelo Anthony to stay in school.

"One more year! One more year!" they've chanted at every game Anthony's played in since he can remember.

"That give me chills when everybody started cheering that," he told the New York Daily News. "To know that all of them are supporting me right now, it makes me feel great about myself and what I've accomplished here."

What he's accomplished is unbelievable. Anthony has averaged 22.4 ppg and 9.8 rpg on 46 percent shooting from the field this season. His freshman season has surpassed that of any other player in Syracuse history. His exploits have brought hundreds of NBA scouts and GMs from around the country to watch the kid affectionately known simply as "Melo."

"He's the complete package," one Eastern Conference GM told Insider. "I've seen him play probably a dozen times this year. He's so smooth and confident on the court. He's one of the few young players out there that I believe can make an immediate impact in our league next season. Having a successful rookie season in the NBA is mostly about confidence. This kid is brimming with it."

His coach, Jim Boeheim, agrees.

"He has adjusted to the college game better than most anybody I've ever seen," Boeheim told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. "He's never uptight, and he's a well-rounded player. He shoots well, he rebounds well, he can handle. He doesn't have any major flaws."

Given that Anthony has now proved himself on the high school and college level, is there any chance that he could leap ahead of LeBron James and Darko Milicic into the top spot?

"I don't think there's a chance he goes ahead of LeBron," one prominent scout told Insider. "Anthony's a great prospect, but when you compare his game to LeBron's, LeBron wins out simply because he's just got a better feel for the game. I think Anthony will be an All-Star in the league some day, but LeBron has the chance to be a legend. He has a certain feel, a knack, for the game that just doesn't come along very often. Guys like Kidd, Kobe, Jordan have it. And that's what separates them from the pack."

Still, scouts drool over the 6-foot-8, 220-pound freshman's potential. Every time they begin talking about him the names of Tracy McGrady, Paul Pierce, Shawn Marion and even Grant Hill are evoked. That's not bad company.

The scouting report on Anthony reads as follows: He's a fluid scorer. Can score off the dribble or stick the mid-range jumper. Is very creative when he slashes to the basket. Does a good job of getting to the line. Good ball handler, above average passer. Excellent finisher on the break. Likes to post up smaller guards. Can score with his back to the basket. A superb rebounder for someone his size thanks to long arms and a willingness to get in the paint. A good but not great athlete. Doesn't have the hops of Vince Carter or the quickness of Kobe Bryant. His defense needs work. He needs to hit the weight room. Is a decent long-range shooter, but doesn't really have the range right now to hit the NBA three. At times he dominates the ball too much and doesn't get his teammates involved in the flow of the game.

Most important to scouts, however, has been Anthony's work ethic this season. He's worked hard on filling the holes in his game. He's improved his jumper and ball handling. His decision making on the court is growing by leaps and bounds. He's popular with his teammates and is generally considered a be a kid who won't make waves at the next level.

Anthony's improvement this season has his coach wondering whether he'd be better off waiting another year before bolting to the NBA.

"Some saw him as the eighth pick last year and now some are projecting him to be a three, so he clearly has benefited from playing at least one season of college basketball," Boeheim told the Democrat and Chronicle. "And who's to say after another season of college basketball, he wouldn't project as the top pick overall?"

Still, Boeheim is realistic. Anthony is projected as a top-three pick, has struggled with his grades (he didn't make the 2.0 minimum GPA to be eligible for the Wooden Award) and his mother and the rest of his family need the money.

"I wouldn't expect him to stay, but you never know," Boeheim told the Daily News. "He's a funny kid. He likes college, is extremely popular with his teammates, and his mother, who could probably use the money, says she wants him to stay."

His mother is a custodial worker at the University of Baltimore. Anthony often says that he wants to "retire her" and get her out of the drug-infested neighborhood Anthony refers to as "The Pharmacy."

"That's one of my goals," he told the Democrat and Chronicle. "I want her to have a better life."

"I told him that the NBA wasn't going anyplace," his mother, Mary Anthony, said. "It would still be there for him down the road. I wanted him to go to college and experience the things I missed out on. College can be the best years of your life. You get a chance to meet a lot of different people, get an education and grow in so many ways. I think it's been a great experience for him."

Headed for the show?

Scott Pitoniak / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Freshman duo has Orangemen faithful pumped

[censored] Weiss / New York Daily News

Bosh gets big props

Bosh could be a top-four pick this year or a lock for No. 1 next year.

If anyone is going to challenge Carmelo Anthony for the third spot in the draft, it will be Georgia Tech freshman Chris Bosh.

Although Anthony has clearly been the best freshman in college basketball, Bosh has something more coveted than a 20 ppg, 10 rpg average in the Big East.

Bosh, a 6-foot-10, 215-pound forward from Texas, has size, athleticism and an inside-outside game that has teams flocking to see him. (Eighteen NBA teams were represented at a recent game against Maryland.)

Bosh was named second-team All-ACC and made the league's All-Defensive Team. He leads Tech with 15.4 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 2.1 bpg and 56 percent shooting from the field.

While Bosh hasn't done the spectacular this season, he's been steady. He's scored in double figures in 24 of Tech's 27 games. He's topped the 20-point plateau six times and has pulled down double-digit rebounds in 11 games.

That's pretty impressive for a skinny kid who many thought would take much longer to develop.

"He's taken us all a little bit by surprise," one Western Conference GM said. "You look at him and he just looks too frail to play down low. But he's shown some real toughness and some surprising versatility. I think we look at him now as a different player. He's more in the mold of a Kevin Garnett or a Pau Gasol. He may never carry a lot of bulk, but that doesn't mean he can't be effective."

Indeed. Scouts use Garnett and even Tim Duncan as comparisons when discussing Bosh. That is, with one major exception. Bosh's 49 percent shooting from beyond the 3-point line has everyone giddy.

Here's the book on Bosh: He's a very smooth player. Seems equally comfortable facing the basket or playing on the block. Has above average athleticism. He's a quick leaper and runs the floor extremely well. Has some nice moves in the paint, including a sweet turn-around jumper right around the block. Has a soft touch on shots. Has great shot selection. He's not afraid to fight for position down low and seems to have a knack for rebounding. He plays with aggressiveness on the defensive end. He's very intelligent, gets along well with his teammates and is a model citizen off the court. He needs to get stronger. He'd be a much better rebounder and defender if he added 20 pounds of muscle. He isn't a great passer or ball handler. Has the tendency to wander a bit. He can lose focus in certain situations and will disappear for stretches. He has the ability to be a great shot blocker, but doesn't challenge shots regularly.

While most scouts feel he's not quite ready for the NBA, almost all of them expect him to declare for this year's draft.

Bosh isn't so sure. "Every player thinks about it," Bosh told Atlanta Journal Constitution, "because it's every player's dream. I'm not going to lie about that, but, right now, I'm just enjoying college. When people ask me [about the NBA], I don't pay much attention. I'm just trying to play basketball, that's all. I'm just trying to play."

His coach, Paul Hewitt, says Bosh has handled all of the attention professionally. "He's a heck of a pro prospect. There's no question about that," Hewitt said. "But I don't think he's given it a whole lot of thought."

Unlike Anthony, Bosh doesn't have any pressing financial concerns that would push him into the draft this season.

"I don't want for anything," Chris Bosh said. "Money is not an issue to me. My mother always tells me, money, it comes and it goes."

Would Bosh be better off waiting a year and possibly being the No. 1 pick in the draft in 2004? Scouts say that given the current landscape, he'd probably be a lock. But some feel when the smoke clears, Bosh could be a top-four pick, ahead of Anthony, this year. Most teams believe if you're a projected top-three pick, you're better off coming out now.

"I think Bosh's draft position will be based on the draft order," one scout said. "I think Anthony's a slightly better prospect. However if a team like Cleveland, Miami, New York or Seattle ended up with the third pick in the draft, I think they'd have to seriously look at Bosh. They're already set in backcourt. All four of those teams need more help up front."

Best of the Rest

While Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh are the only college freshman expected to declare for the draft, NBA scouts are keeping their eyes on several other top prospects who appear to be sitting on the fence.

Will Raymond Felton leave the Tar Heels early?

Several scouts claims North Carolina's freshman duo of Raymond Felton and Rashad McCants may leave Carolina if things continue to go poorly the rest of the season. Felton in particular has scouts interested. Despite his height -- scouts claim he's just a shade under 6-feet in bare feet -- he's considered a legitimate first-round point guard prospect.

"He's in the same category as T.J. Ford," one scout told Insider. "He's very quick and has the instincts of a true point guard. He's got that great court vision, is physically strong, and can hit from just about anywhere on the floor. He's also a great athlete. If he stays in school, I think he could become Jay Williams. Point guards usually don't fare so well when they come out as freshmen. But he may be an exception."

Teams are also high on McCants, though some wonder whether he'll be another Joe Forte because of his lack of height and position. "I think he's a better prospect than Forte," one scout said. "But I think you have to draft him without any illusions of him being a point guard. He's a scorer. His wingspan and athletic ability will help him make up some of the difference, but he's a bit risky."

Notre Dame's 6-foot-10, 240 pound power forward, Torin Francis, has the size and athleticism, but he's still very raw. Scouts said he'd be a late first rounder if he declared now. But, if he waits another year or two, the sky could be the limit. "You can see the skills, but I don't think he's nearly as fluid as Bosh," one scout said. "He plays very stiff. He's got the body and size but he just needs to get more comfortable with the game. In another year or two, he has potential to be a top prospect."

Scouts loved Denmark's Christjan Drejer before he ever set foot on Florida's campus. Most NBA types didn't think he'd stay at Florida more than one year. However, early season injuries have kept Drejer from realizing his full potential. Drejer, who stands 6-foot-8 and weighs 210 pounds, is a good athlete with all the fundamentals you'd expect from a top European prospect. However, there's one facet of Drejer's game that's starting to get scouts all hot and sweaty.

"He had a great game versus Kentucky," one scout said. "He handed out nine assists and looked like a great point guard, or at least a point forward." Drejer didn't score any points in that game, but scouts think that's coming.

"He was a dominant scorer in Europe," another scout said. "I think he's just trying to fit in right now. He should stay in school one more year. I think next year, he'll be in the spotlight at Florida."

Other players scouts are watching include Arizona's Andre Iguodala (a Richard Jefferson clone, according to one scout) and Hassan Adams, Sani Ibrahim (who's averaging 14.6 ppg and 11 rpg at Southern Idaho junior college), Villanova's Jason Fraser, Texas A&M's Antoine Wright and Alabama's Kennedy Winston.

In and Out of the NBA Draft

Insider takes a look at who's in or out of the upcoming draft.

Mario Austin says he'll stay in school

Mississippi State's Mario Austin stunned most scouts with his announcement that he was returning to school for his senior season.

"I'm solid," Austin, who wavered last spring between leaving for the NBA or returning to MSU, told the Clarion Ledger. "I've learned a lot this year as a person. Once I've made a decision to do something, it's set. Whenever I do interviews, the question always comes up. I just decided to let everyone know what I was going to do."

Austin's been projected by teams to be a borderline lottery pick this year. Most of them are taking the announcement with a grain of salt.

"He went back and forth last season and I think he may change his mind before the deadline," one scout said. "The only thing holding him back is his height. If he can grow another two inches during his senior season, then he'd be better off staying in school."

Central Michigan center Chris Kaman is quickly becoming the "sleeper" in this year's draft. He's a legit 7-footer, has a nice frame and ranks among national leaders in rebounding (No. 3, 12.2 a game) and scoring (No. 16, 22. 5 ppg).

Scouts have been lining up to see Kaman play after rumors began swirling that he'd forego his senior season and declare for the draft. They've all walked away impressed. Kaman had 30 points, 21 rebounds and five blocked shots against Big Ten Michigan. And he had a run of 37, 30 and 43 points in a three-game stretch late in the season. In his last game against Ball State, Kaman delivered 34 points and 22 rebounds in 24 minutes in front of 11 NBA scouts.

"If this guy was from Slovenia, and didn't speak English, the NBA would call him a top-five pick right now," Kent State coach Jim Christian told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

One NBA scout wasn't willing to go that far. "I like him a lot, but who's he playing against? Any 7-footer should average 22 points a game when he's being guarded consistently by 6-foot-6 guys."

On the international side of things, remember the name Leandrinho Barbosa, a 6-foot-4 point guard from Brazil who one international scout compared to Gary Payton. Barbosa recently hired Michael Coyne (the same guy who brought us Nene Hilario) to represent him and plans on putting his name in this year's draft.

Barbosa plays for Bauru Tilibra in the Brazilian national league. This year, he's averaging 29.6 ppg, 7.8 apg, 4.2 rpg and 2.6 spg while shooting 57 percent from the field.

"He's a real good prospect, a sleeper," one NBA scout who's seen him play told Insider. "He's wiry and a tough defender. I think teams will fall in love with him when they begin to work him out."

The good news for NBA teams is that Barbosa doesn't have any buyout issues to worry about. His contract is up at the end of the season.

Austin will return for senior year with Dogs

Todd Kelly / Jackson Clarion-Ledger

Chippewas' Kaman hits jackpot, likely a lottery pick in NBA draf

Elton Alexander / Cleveland Plain Dealer

Peep Show

Heat: Coach Pat Riley said his "youth experiment" will end when the season is over. Riley has soured on his group of young players. "The thing that has opened my eyes this year is just the amount of teaching that we have done and how little they have absorbed from the standpoint of being able to apply it on the court," Riley told the Sun Sentinel. "So repetition, repetition, repetition in practice is one thing, but out on the court, recognizing those things, is difficult for young guys." So he will add a couple of veterans? "More than a couple," Riley corrects. "Because I've had a lot of them until this year. I'm going back to veteran ways, with rookies, with young players, instead of all rookies and a couple of veterans. I think I'm going to go the other way."

Mavs: Tariq Abdul Wahad is finally back from a knee injury and the Mavs hope the defensive stopper can give them a big boost as the team heads for the playoffs. "I'm healthy; the knee has not swelled," he told the Dallas Morning News. "Four months ago, retirement could have been an option. But now I'm testing the knee, and it's responding fine." Owner Mark Cuban is optimistic. "When we got him, I saw all the newspaper clips about him shutting down Gary Payton and Kobe," Cuban said. "What he could be is a bigger, stronger Raja Bell, which could help us. Tariq has been dying to get out there and contribute."

T-Wolves: It looks like Terrell Brandon is one step closer to retirement. "It doesn't look good,'' Wolves owner Glen Taylor told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "We haven't had a doctor come in yet who has said he will play again. They just keep saying to give it a little more time. We want to know by the summer what his status is, so that we can decide about other changes to the team.'' If Brandon is medically unable to play, his contract would come off the books in January making him prime trade bait. "A trade is fun to talk about, but it's hard to do,'' Taylor said. "But this thing has just dragged on so long, we'll want to make a decision soon so we can think about the future. I haven't talked to Terrell the last few weeks, but I would think he wants to make a decision soon, too.''

Raptors: Antonio Davis thinks the Raptors are giving up. And, he can't blame them. "I'm a player who likes to play for a reason, and play as a team player. That's what's important and I don't think we have that," Davis told the Toronto Sun. "We have to do some things very differently, right from the first day of training camp, even in the summer league. Things have to change."

Celtics: Vin Baker's ordeal continues to take strange turns. Baker fired his agent, Aaron Goodwin on Thursday according to the Boston Herald. Goodwin, who represents top players like Gary Payton and Shareef Abdur Rahim (he's also the frontrunner to land LeBron James) recently worked out an agreement with the Celtics for a leave of absence for Baker that's come under fire from the NBPA.

In NBA, only the bad die young

Ethan J. Skolnick / South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Abdul-Wahad gets his shot

Eddie Sefko / Dallas Morning News

Brandon's days numbered

Robbi Pickeral / St. Paul Pioneer Press

Raptors all but finished

Bill Harris / Toronto Sun

Benched Rogers pines for old days

Steve Bulpett / Boston Herald

[dankster]

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[mdc5010]

I want to say the same. Thanks.