The Confidential

NBA Draft & The ACC

The April 16, 2013, deadline has come and gone, meaning that anyone who decides to go pro between now and April 28, 2013, will make that decision as a point-of-no-return.  That will not stop folks from doing so, but the consequences will be a bit sharper.  At this point, those eligible for the NBA draft are what they are.  There are a number of ACC players that will be among the players drafted.  Who are they?

First of all, who are the early entries from ACC schools so far?  CBS Sportsline has a nice list going.  Here are the players from the ACC schools on the list:

• Steven Adams, Pitt
• Lorenzo Brown, NC State
• Reggie Bullock, North Carolina
• Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
• Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
• Alex Len, Maryland
• CJ Leslie, NC State

Second, where will these kids go?  Well, here is where Chad Ford slots these guys, and other ACC draft-eligibles, in terms of overall NBA talent:

• Len, #8
• Carter-Williams, #10
• Dieng, #17
• Mason Plumlee, Duke, #18
• Adams, #26
• Brown, #42
• Bullock, #45
• Russ Smith, Louisville, #53
• Leslie, #61
• James Southerland, Syracuse, #81
• Richard Howell, NC State, #82
• Ryan Kelly, Duke, #88
• Michael Snaer, Florida State, #92

A few other players to note.  These guys are all still undecided: Shane Larkin of Miami is at #30; Rasheed Sulaimon of Duke is at #48; and CJ Fair of Syracuse is at 71.  The decision should be tough for Larkin, but fairly easy for Fair.  You want to be pretty certain you get a first round contract if you are going to leave.