An awesome analysis of 2008’s One-And-Doners can be seen by clicking here to one of the best college basketball blogs in the country.
I can’t copy and paste their comments, but they have some interesting things to say about NC State and how JJ Hickson was definitely ‘not worth it’. It really is an interesting piece.
You can surf to “Rush the Court” and a host of other blogs and resources by spending some time looking at our blogroll on the right hand side of our front page.
Sid was right - JJ went in the 11-20 window. Here’s Chad Ford’s analysis:
I’m surprised they passed on local hero Kosta Koufos of Ohio State. But I do like Hickson, who’s a sleeper. He’s strong and athletic and he can score in multiple ways. He was 12-for-12 from the field in his first college game.
It’s more than a little bit surreal that the only ACC player selected in the first round was a freshman from the last place team. The next ACC player selected was Sean Singletary (from the 10th place team) way down at #42. Maybe it shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that the ACC didn’t fare very well in the NCAAT last year.
Inside Carolina is reporting that Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green will all return to Chapel Hill for the 2008-2009 college basketball season, virtually guaranteeing that the Tarheels will hold the #1 preseason ranking as the heavy favorite to win the 2009 National Championship.
Lawson, Ellington and Green had become the targets of significant criticism brought about by UNC-CH fans, students and internet community members. The situation between Tarheel faithful and the players got so nasty that CBS Sportsline actually elevated the fans’ criticisms in a national article discussing the situation and criticizing the Tarheel faithful.
Since we are in the middle of the NBA Championship series…and the Tim Donaghy mess…and JJ Hickson’s inevitable departure to the NBA draft…
…I thought that it was an appropriate time to share the following stat of the day.
ACC Schools by number of NBA Draft selections since 1988
(1) Duke - 28
(2) North Carolina - 22
(3) Georgia Tech - 20
(4) Maryland - 16
(5) NC State - 10
(6) Florida State - 9
(7) Wake Forest - 7
(8) Boston College - 7
(9) Miami - 7
(10) Clemson - 6
(11) Virginia - 4
(12) Virginia Tech - 2
Here’s your linkage. Just in case you were harboring any miniscule hopes for Hickson’s return (which SFN certainly never encouraged) - you can let them go now.
May 1, 2008
The writing may be the wall for JJ Hickson. As NC State fans people who genuinely want to see JJ Hickson maximize his earnings and succeed for years to come; we can only hope that the young man is mature enough to ‘read the wall’ objectively ans execute the kind of decision-making-skills needed to insure a bright future for the young man.
Before the recent onslaught of announcements by dozens of highly rated underclassment, Hickson was projected by many to be a second round draft choice in this summer’s NBA Draft. The impact of all of these underclassment has certainly not helped Hickson’s cause.
Here’s the full article. Key excerpt:
“Coach is a great man,” Hickson said. “When I came to this program, it was more like he cared about J.J. as the person rather than J.J. the basketball player. I think he does have my best interests at heart. If me and my family feel like it’s comfortable and I should go to a team that needs me, then make the decision.”
Lowe, who coached 15 NBA seasons before coming to N.C. State, said he will wish Hickson well if he decides to leave.
Would N.C. State freshman J.J. Hickson turn professional after one season?Perhaps. On Tuesday, in one-on-one interview with WRAL, he addressed whether he’d consider the NBA after this season.
“Being a competitor, the next level is the NBA. That’s what I’m trying to get to,” Hickson said. “If the opportunity is there, I’ll look at it then and sit down with my parents and my coaching staff.
“If it’s not there, I wouldn’t mind coming back to school and doing another year or however many it takes.”
J. J. Hickson, F, North Carolina State
Hickson is an athletic big man with an NBA frame and the ability to score from 15 feet and in. He’s shown good ability as a shot-blocker and a rebounder and has been shooting with extreme efficiency from the field.
Although scouts say he’s raw and could use another year in school, the combination of length, athleticism and efficency is usually a potent one come draft time. His stock is harder to judge because of his rawness, but most scouts have him going somewhere in the mid-first round.
Link to NBA draft profile.
It always works out this way, doesn’t it? After following and pulling hard for the Charlotte Hornets for years…the franchise finally drafts a Wolfpacker that is going to make a significant contribution to the franchise…when they are playing Oklahoma City instead of Charlotte!
Poor Cedric…although he gets picked #15 (after being projected higher), he gets picked by one of the worst franchises in all of of sports - the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. Anyone who followed the Hornets or lived in Charlotte in the late 1990s and has experienced George Shinn completely understands this point.
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