NBA: 2011 Draft Recap

Last night, the 2011 NBA Draft occurred. I think it was an interesting draft and I will recap the key points of the night.

The Cavs and the T'Wolves picked Kyrie Irving and then Derrick Williams. Then five international players in a row were drafted (3. Jazz - Enes Kanter from Turkey, 4. Cavs - Tristan Thompson from Canada, 5. Raptors - Jonas Valanciunas from Lithuania, 6. Wizards - Jan Vessely from the Czech Republic, then 7. Kings - Bismack Biyombo from the Congo). Six out of the first seven draft picks were not born in the United States because Irving was born in Australia.

With the ninth pick, the Bobcats selected Kemba Walker out of UConn. Walker won the NCAA Tournament with the Huskies last season and was named MVP of the tournament.

Jimmer Fredette was selected with the tenth pick in the draft. He was technically picked by the Bucks, but due to a trade he will be playing for the Kings.

The Morris brothers were picked in a row with the 13th and 14th picks by the Suns and the Rockets.

The Celtics selected Marshon Brooks with the 25th pick and traded him to the Nets. Brooks was the 2nd leading scorer in the NCAA last season behind Fredette with 24.6 points per game.

The Wizards selected Shelvin Mack with the 34th pick in the draft. Mack played in the last 2 NCAA Tournament final games with Butler.

Josh Harrellson was selected by the Hornets with the 45th pick and was traded to the Knicks. Harrellson, a center from Kentucky, should fit in well with the Knicks and end up being a solid player in the NBA.

With the 6oth and final pick in the draft, the Kings selected Isiah Thomas out of Washington. I think Thomas is a similar to Nate Robinson in his playing style and could be as good as him or better in the league.

There were 3 undrafted players that I think should have been drafted: Talor Battle, Scotty Hopson, and Jacob Pullen.

Battle played four seasons at Penn State and averaged 20.2 points a game his senior year. I think that he could be a solid 3rd-string point guard in the league.

Hopson played three seasons at Tennessee, but it looks like he should have stayed for one more because no team picked him. That doesn't mean Hopson didn't deserve to be selected though. He averaged 17 points last season, more than his Tennessee teammate Tobias Harris who was drafted in he first round.

Pullen averaged the same amount of points last season as Battle (20.2), but averaged more assists (3.2). He also averaged 1.2 steals per game last season. As a guard out of Kansas State where he played with NBA star Michael Beasley a few years back, he could be a star in the NBA.

I would look for these 3 players to end up making it in the league despite being undrafted. For Talor Battle, think Mike Wilks. For Scotty Hopson, think Wesley Matthews. For Jacob Pullen, think Mike James.

Have any thoughts on this year's draft? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.