Ford: A dozen to watch at the Orlando predraft camp
ORLANDO -- The second-ever Orlando predraft camp opens on Tuesday with more disappointed NBA executives on hand.
Last year's camp, you might remember, was widely regarded as a bust. A couple of first-rounders -- Jordan Farmar and Renaldo Balkman -- played in the camp. But overall the feeling among NBA GMs and scouts was that the talent level was pretty weak.
To improve the quality, the NBA changed the rules to require NBA teams to wait until after the camp to hold player workouts. The thinking was that the new rules would force the players to attend the camp and play.
It looks like that thinking was wrong.
The NBA released the list of participants to the camp Tuesday morning, and it isn't pretty.
Only one player ranked as a first-rounder in our Top 100, Ohio State's Daequan Cook, is attending the event. That's exactly on par with last year, when only Farmar was ranked in our top 30.
And 13 players ranked No. 31 or lower in our Top 100 chose not to play. They include Arizona's Marcus Williams, Wisconsin's Alando Tucker, DePaul's Wilson Chandler, UCLA's Arron Afflalo, Oklahoma State's JamesOn Curry and Nevada's Nick Fazekas.
That means 42 of the top 60 players in our ranking are not attending the event.
If those 42 were all to be drafted, that would leave only 18 draft spots for the 62 players here.
Still, despite the general lack of quality, a number of players here could make an NBA roster.
It speaks to the depth of this year's draft that even with 42 players not here, I could easily come up with 10 players who could work their way up the draft charts with a great Orlando camp and another 20 who could be second-rounders.
Who will NBA GMs be watching?
Daequan Cook, SG, Ohio State
Daequan Cook easily has the most talent of any of the participants. He was a Top 10 high school senior and got off to a good start at Ohio State before getting benched in the second half of the season.
Daequan Cook has good size, is an excellent athlete and can really shoot the lights out. He is working on his handle and defense and hopes to show improvement in those areas.
Daequan Cook is still undecided about whether he's returning to Ohio State. His performance here should make up his mind one way or the other.
Dominic James, PG, Marquette
James was left off the roster until the last minute despite the fact that many NBA scouts had him ranked as a late first-rounder for much of the year.
He hit a horrific shooting slump in the second half of the season and watched his stock drop. But he's got the speed, strength and explosiveness to be a NBA player. He'll need to show more floor leadership and the ability to knock down jumpers here if he wants to get back into the first round.
Like Daequan Cook he's still undecided about whether he's returning to Marquette, so his performance here is crucial.
Dominic McGuire, F, Fresno State
There is some buzz about McGuire, a long, athletic forward who can play multiple positions, rebound, block shots and even handle the ball. Some scouts compare him to Andrei Kirilenko.
There are doubts about his position and jump shot, and many of the league's general managers haven't seen him live.
He'll be scrutinized closely, and he has a shot at working his way into the first round with a great camp.
Kyle Visser, C, Wake Forest, and Aaron Gray, C, Pittsburgh
Both are big, productive college centers -- in other words, the type of player who tends to rise on draft day. Most NBA scouts tend to prefer Visser because he's a better athlete and more mobile than Gray. However, the word we've gotten out of Las Vegas is that Gray has lost some weight and gained some agility so it will be interesting to see what impact that has on NBA executives. Both guys have enough talent to warrant a late first round pick.
Taureen Green, PG, Florida, and Chris Richard, C, Florida
Despite being the floor leader on two straight NCAA championship teams, some NBA executives still wonder whether Green has the chops to be a NBA point guard. Now that he's stripped of three lottery talents (Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer and Al Horford) as teammates, will he still look good?
If the answer is yes, Green could also rise.
Richard was also lost in the shuffle playing behind Noah and Horford. He has the size, athleticism and NBA body to be a player but he's going to have to show some serious production here to move up.
Jared Jordan, PG, Marist
Jordan was the best pure point guard in college basketball this year. NBA teams worry about his quickness and jump shot, but no one has a better feel for the game than Jordan.
Some NBA execs think he has enough talent to be a late first-rounder. A couple don't have him getting drafted at all.
If he looks quick and athletic and can drains some shots, he could really rocket up the board.
Jermareo Davidson, F, Alabama
Davidson has the size, body and athleticism that makes him very intriguing to NBA scouts. But his field goal percentage, his inconsistency and his tendency to want to do things on the floor that he doesn't do well (like play on the perimeter) have hurt his stock.
If he plays like a power forward here, his stock will rise.
Reyshawn Terry, F, UNC
Terry never really had a chance to stand out on a stacked Tar Heel team. But when I saw him working out in preparation for the camp, he really got my attention.
He has great size, good athleticism and a lot of skill. If he plays well here, he has a chance to move way up.
Trey Johnson, SG, Jackson State
Johnson was a big-time scorer in college. The knock is that he played in a very weak conference.
But that's only part of the story. He also put up big numbers against some top NCAA teams and had a decent showing against Florida in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
If he proves that he can score in Orlando against some of the top college players in the country, he has a chance to sneak into the first round.
Renaldas Seibutis, G, Lithuania
International players tend to struggle at this camp because of the style of play, in which players are expected to shine as individuals. (Beno Udrih is the only guy who has really performed well here.)
In this environment, I'm not sure if Seibutis can stand out because he's so unselfish. He is not a great athlete and has only recently become a reliable 3-point shooter.
But his energy, basketball IQ and ability to get to the basket and play pesky defense will impress.
He'll rival Australia's Brad Newley for the best international player here.
Others to watch: Bobby Brown, G, Cal State Fullerton; Zabian Dowdell, PG, Virginia Tech; Jared Dudley, F, Boston College; Brandon Heath, G, San Diego State; Herbert Hill, F, Providence; Marcelus Kemp, G, Nevada; Carl Landry, PF, Purdue; Marko Lekic, F, Serbia; Ron Lewis, SG, Ohio State; Brad Newley, SG, Australia; Demetris Nichols, F, Syracuse; Ivan Radenovic, F, Arizona; J.R. Reynolds, SG, Virginia, Mustafa Shakur, PG, Arizona; Sean Singletary, PG, Virginia; D.J. Strawberry, G, Maryland; Ali Traore, F, France; DaShaun Wood, PG, Wright State
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