Big 12 Basketball: 2008 NBA Draft Deadline Assessment

Let the speculation end. The June 16 deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NBA Draft has passed, meaning we now know exactly which Big 12 players are returning to school, and which players are bolting for the pros. Obviously, the choices these players made regarding the draft have a tremendous effect on their college teams’ prospects for next season. It’s time to take a look at how the Big 12 teams are doing after finding out which players are staying and which players are leaving:

Oklahoma Sooners

Passed up the NBA: Blake Griffin

Early entries: Nobody

In a move that caught everybody off guard, star forward Blake Griffin has decided to return to Norman for his sophomore season, passing up the millions of dollars that awaited him as a probable top 10 pick. The scary thing is even though Griffin averaged 14.7 points and 9.1 rebounds per game last year, he will most likely improve those numbers in his second season at Oklahoma. Griffin is the front-runner for the Big 12 Player of the Year award, and without him, the Sooners would probably be a borderline NCAA Tournament team next season. With Griffin, Oklahoma will be right in the mix for a conference championship.

Kansas Jayhawks

Passed up the NBA: Nobody

Early entries: Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur, Mario Chalmers

Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur and Mario Chalmers made the right moves by declaring for the NBA Draft, but Kansas was still crushed the most of any Big 12 team by early entries. In addition to losing these three players to the NBA, the Jayhawks will also need to replace departed seniors Russell Robinson, Sasha Kaun and Darnell Jackson. The 2009 version of the champions will be vastly different from last year, as sophomore big man Cole Aldrich and junior guard Sherron Collins are the only notable returning players for the upcoming season. Kansas’ situation is very similar to that of Ohio State and Florida last season. Both the Gators and Buckeyes, who faced each other in the 2007 National Championship game, suffered huge personnel losses and missed the NCAA tournament in 2008. Although the Jayhawks are bringing in a highly touted 2008 recruiting class, they may still struggle to overcome the complete roster overhaul that has occurred.

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Texas Longhorns

Passed up the NBA: A.J. Abrams, Damion James

Early entries: D.J. Augustin

A.J. Abrams and Damion James made wise decisions to come back to Texas, as both were probably late second rounders at best. D.J. Augustin went in the opposite direction, entering the NBA Draft after his sophomore season. Without Augustin, Texas’ one area of concern will be the point guard position. Abrams may make the switch from off-guard to point guard and freshman Dougus Balbay will also have a shot at replacing Augustin. Justin Mason, who has been a reliable starter the past two seasons, might also get a chance to play the point. Besides the small problem of having no proven point guard, Texas is loaded at every other position, especially up front. James will once again be a force down low and forward Gary Johnson should progress in his sophomore season. Even though it’s hard to see Texas improving on last season’s success, the Longhorns will still have a shot to win the Big 12 and make a deep run in the NCAA tournament.

Texas A&M Aggies

Passed up the NBA: Josh Carter

Early entries: DeAndre Jordan

Mark Turgeon is happy to have leading scorer Josh Carter back, as the versatile 6 foot 7 wing passed up the NBA to return for his senior season. With their experienced veteran leader still in the mix, the Aggies will have a chance to reach a fourth straight NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, Texas A&M didn’t get so lucky with DeAndre Jordan, who decided to leave after one season and enter the NBA Draft. In his only season at Texas A&M, Jordan had just modest success, averaging 7.9 point and 6.0 rebounds per game. The seven foot, 255 pound freshman came into College Station with a lot of hype, but by the time Big 12 play rolled around, Jordan wasn’t even in the starting lineup. However, there is a reason Jordan was considered a stud recruit out of high school- he has the size to dominate at the college level and with some polishing, he could have become one of the top big men in college basketball. Texas A&M will now be without a player that could have blossomed into a star in his sophomore season. Luckily for the Aggies, junior big man Bryan Davis showed a lot of promise in his sophomore season, and Mark Turgeon also signed a very talented power forward recruit, David Loubeau. That helps make up for the loss of Jordan and the graduation of Joseph Jones.

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Kansas State Wildcats

Passed up the NBA: Nobody

Early entries: Michael Beasley, Bill Walker

Michael Beasley’s decision to leave Manhattan came as a surprise to nobody, but Bill Walker left Wildcats fans hanging until the day of the deadline (June 16). Projected to be drafted anywhere from the late first round to the early second round, Walker did strongly consider returning for another season. In the end, Walker made the last-minute decision to leave Kansas State behind and join Beasley by leaving his name in the NBA Draft. Now, the Wildcats will somehow have to find a way to replace their two star players from a year ago, and it doesn’t help that Clent Stewart and Blake Young, who made up last year’s starting backcourt, have both graduated. With so many personnel losses and not much help on the way in terms of recruiting, Kansas State is probably looking at a lower-half Big 12 finish in 2009.

Missouri Tigers

Passed up the NBA: Leo Lyons, DeMarre Carroll

Early entries: Nobody

Although Leo Lyons and DeMarre Carroll did test the NBA Draft waters this summer, nobody really expected them to keep their names in the draft. Still, even though this result was predictable, it would have been a catastrophe for the Tigers if either Lyons or Carroll (or both) decided to take their chances with the NBA. The two forwards will be the cornerstones of Missouri’s team next year, which features seven newcomers. Without one or both of them, any chance at the NCAA tournament would be severely diminished.

By Daniel Spewak
Big 12 Fans Missouri Correspondent

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