Today is the big day people! NBA Draft time is here and there is a whole lot to look forward to, particularly when it comes to Canadian ballers.
There are a few storylines that have been brewing in the last few weeks and though they may not be the most exciting of things considering this Draft will have a whole lot of exciting in it, they are quite important for us who follow the game from the Canadian perspective.
Of course there are the trio of Andrew Nicholson, Kris Joseph and Robert Sacre and they will be looked at separately throughout the day and have the potential to be the largest Canadian contingent in a Draft class yet. Outside of these ballers, Can Ball Ray takes a look at a few of other storylines here and gives you some food for thought before the actual name calling by Commissioner Stern tonight ...
The Curious Case of Devoe Joseph ...
In my post yesterday about the other Canadian kids who can be pros in the fall, Devoe Joseph was the first kid on my list. He is not Bradley Beal or Tony Wroten or even J'Covan Brown but he is parts of them in one player. He has Beal height and scoring potential. He has Brown's knack for hitting outside shoots and a good clip. He has Wroten's tweener type game where he is not exactly a PG or an SG but he can definitely swing between the two as need. He's had a few workouts, he's played at very high levels and shown he can perform in college and now it's a possibility that he could have his name called out. Granted that the chances of that happening tonight are on the slim side you never know. How many of you expected Cory Joseph to go Drafted last year let alone in the first round? Exactly.
A CIS Player Getting Drafted Again ...
Last week it was announced that CIS All Canadian Jamelle Barrett was going to be in a workout for the Sacramento Kings. That is huge! Even if he was just a live body who happened to be local for an even workout session, that's pretty impressive since 1) he played in Saskatchewan, 2) there could have easily been a whole host of other D1 and D2 options that were relatively close to Sacramento and 3) HE PLAYED IN SASKATCHEWAN FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS! Barrett is a Nate Robinson in every way on the court: he can score in a variety of ways, he's lightning quick, has come playmaking ability and is a sub six footer and who doesn't root for a short, fearless scorer? I had messaged his agent after his workout and he had informed me that the feedback was positive. Does this mean he'll get Drafted, of course not. But that does lend to the possibility that Barrett could be the first CIS name called in a Draft since Will Njoku of St. Mary's was called in 1994 by the Pacers.