Kyrie Irving knows which number he will be picked.

In our second post of the NextGen season, we focus in on the NBA Draft, which will be upon us in less than two weeks’ time. First, we look at the guards of this rather weak draft class. While anchored with an almost surefire starter at the top with Kyrie Irving, the rest of the backcourt prospects appear to be surrounded by many question marks. Without further ado, lets take a look at the NextGen “Super Six” guards.

1. Kyrie Irving, 6′3″, 191 lbs, Duke
The point guard hailing from Australia possesses great size, quickness, and basketball IQ. Although Irving does not have the freakish athleticism as recent point man wunderkinds like Derrick Rose, John Wall, and Russell Westbrook;  he still gets by opposing defenders and into the lane. Irving’s consistent three point shot and pull up jumper round out his scoring arsenal. As a defender, Irving is superb, using his quickness to his advantage; and as a passer he is polished. Overall, Irving is the complete package at point guard. He could very likely become a perennial All-Star or develop into a franchise-type player, but don’t expect a talent on par with Chris Paul (the player he is most often compared to). He should be the number one overall pick.

2. Brandon Knight, 6′3″, 177 lbs, Kentucky
Knight may benefit the most from the unusually weak 2011 draft class. Most do not consider him a top 3 pick and can’t-miss talent, but he may very well go in the high lottery. A factor that may work greatly to Knight’s favor in the eyes of NBA general manager’s would be his elite college pedigree, having learned under John Calipari, one of the best talent producing coaches in the game. Standing just 6′3″ and lacking the passing ability of a starting NBA point guard, Knight is more of a combo guard. He proved again and again in his Final Four run with Kentucky his leadership and clutch scoring. Like Irving, he is not a super-athlete, but does possess fantastic court speed with the ball in his hands. Knight has a fantastic three point shot but can become streaky sometimes and live and die from beyond the arc too much. Read More→