Potential. It is as easy a word to say as it is dangerous. Though everyone has potential at everything, in the NBA, it can be taken many ways. Saying LeBron James has potential to be the next Michael Jordan is different than saying Tyler Hansbrough will be the next Bill Russell. Potential is an especially difficult word to determine when talking about the NBA Draft. While many of these players have shined during their college years, a good college career isn’t worth a penny if you can’t play with the big boys. While it is nearly impossible to tell if a player will be good or bad just 4 days into his pro career, I will try to do the impossible and rank the players with the most potential to be the next elite player.

1. Los Angeles Clippers-Blake Griffin (1st round, 1st pick), forward, Oklahoma
Griffin is not only #1 on my list because he is the #1 pick, but also because he will have a number of good big men behind him. Having other prominent veterans playing at the same position (Al Thornton, Zach Randolph) can do numerous beneficial things for a young player, especially a player of Griffin’s talent. Having the opportunity to learn from players like Thornton and Randolph, and even Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby for that matter, will give Griffin many opportunities to get acquainted with the NBA game.

The other great thing it does is give him motivation. Though Griffin is probably considered the favorite for the power forward job right now, knowing that Thornton (a former 1st round pick) and Randolph (a veteran who has averaged a double double four years of his career) are behind him will give him much motivation to give a maximum effort not only in training camp and summer league, but also during the regular season, because the Clippers at this point don’t care who is on the court, just as long as they aren’t losing 60+ games. Prediction: Griffin will soar through the high expectations given and will become one of the elites of the game quickly. Watch out for numerous 20-10 seasons, some MVP awards, and possibly (with the help of many people, on and off the court, emphasis on the many) win an NBA Championship. If Griffin can get this team to win anything over 30 games this year, I would call that an automatic Rookie of the Year award. Reminds me of a more agile Dwight Howard.

2. Memphis Grizzlies-Hasheem Thabeet, center, Connecticut
The #1 key word for this big man is potential. Anytime you have a big man standing at 7″3′, you have to be concerned about his durability over the short term and long term. We have seen the benefits of the Houston Rockets having a guy like Yao Ming, and there doesn’t appear to be anything standing in the way of Thabeet becoming what Yao was when he entered the league. If anything, Thabeet has an advantage over Yao, considering that Yao is about 3 inches taller (according to NBA.com, different sources give different heights) and about 50 pounds heavier than Thabeet. Though it is often good to have an extremely tall player on your team, (Yao is very vital when it comes to rebounding, it is almost effortless for him) too much height is not necessarily a good thing. When a player is too tall, it affects his coordination, and an uncoordinated big man is not very useful. Thabeet is as athletic or even more so than Yao, and there doesn’t appear to be anything in the way of Hasheem Thabeet.

Let’s wait and see. Prediction: Now that the Grizz have a dominant figure at the low post, they can take some of the rebounding pressures off of Rudy Gay and let him develop into more of a point scoring power forward. This takes even more pressure off players like Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo, and allows the Grizzlies to develop. Thabeet is a guy who, just by his height, can average a double-double night in and night out. Will perform better than Yao Ming. At the peak of his career, will be averaging at least 18-24 points a game with at least 11-15 rebounds a game. Will he be better than Hakeem Olajuwon? Maybe “Hasheem the Dream” will be one of the greatest to have ever played the game.

3. Golden State Warriors-Stephen Curry (1st round, 7th pick), guard, Davidson
Some say that the hype over Curry is laughable, as he is just a guy who shines against bad teams and can’t perform against legitimate teams. Some say that the hype is for good reason, and that even though he is from Davidson, he will still be a superstar in this league. Recent history actually backs Curry up. In the 2008 Draft, the Orlando Magic took Courtney Lee 22th overall out of Western Kentucky (a school somewhat in the league of Davidson in the sense that it is not known for it’s basketball program), and so far (it’s only been one year) it is looking pretty good, as Lee has averaged 8.4 points, including a 3 point percentage of over 40%, in about 25 minutes of work per game. In the 2007 Draft, we saw Rodney Stuckey go 15th to the Detroit Pistons out of Eastern Washington, possibly less noticed than either Davidson or Western Kentucky, and Stuckey has been one of the most productive young players in the league. Over a 2 year career, Stuckey has averaged 11 points a game and 4 assists a game, with his most productive year being 08-09, in which he averaged 13.4 points and 4.9 assists in about 32 minutes a game.

If Curry can do what Stuckey has been doing, I’m sure that the Warriors brass will be content. But the Warriors are looking for more out of Curry. With the insecurity that is Monta Ellis, the Warriors are looking for a short term boost as well as a guy who can continue to play well in the long term. Eventually, they are looking for Curry to be a guy who can score up to or over 20 points a game. Will he achieve that? Well, the better question, for most optimistic Curry supporters, is when? Prediction: Curry will provide an immediate boost to the Warriors, and over time he will develop into one of the elite scorers in the league. Curry will have his fair share of 20 point seasons along with some All-Star appearances, but Hall of Fame? Maybe that is a little over the top.

4. Minnesota Timberwolves-Ricky Rubio (1st round, 5th pick) Guard Spain
Rubio is the perfect definition of the wild card in this draft. He has been playing professional basketball since he was 14, is currently only 19, and is one of the most illustrious passers in not just this draft class, but in international basketball. It seems as if he has many things going for him. The problems with Rubio are more off the court than on the court. There are many saying he won’t be able to transition to the NBA, but then again, with every player, there are issues about transitioning from one league to another.

Rubio has an insanely high buyout price (around $6 million) and from the very start has expressed his opinion about playing in Minnesota, or should I say, not playing in Minnesota. While this seems like a big issue, just 2 years ago, Yi Jianlian, when drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks, said he would not play in Milwaukee due to the lack of the Asian population in the area. He was wearing a Bucks jersey on the first game of the year, and chances are that Rubio, like Yi, will be wearing a Timberwolves jersey on opening night. Prediction: Rubio will have a productive career spanning 10-18 years. Will average 12-18 points, 8-14 assists during his best days. Reminds me of Jason Kidd.

5. Sacramento Kings-Tyreke Evans (1st round, 4th pick), guard, Memphis
This draft was so hectic that many people (or at least I did) almost forgot about Evans, who was once one of the top 5 high school players in the country. Evans did a nice job at Memphis for a year, and was picked 4th by a team that some might associate the the NBA’s Developmental League. Evans will have a great chance to play in Sacramento, right along side Kevin Martin, one of the league’s more underrated guards who is quickly becoming better and better every year. While the back court situation for the Kings is still a mess, (Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes, Calvin Booth, to name a few) taking Evans at guard is a nice pick to compliment Martin.

Prediction: Evans will have all the playing time in the world, yet will still have to fend off Rashad McCants if he wants to be a starter, and will have McCants breathing down his neck for playing time. Evans will develop into one of the league’s better scorers, and Evans and Martin will become one of the better known guard tandems in this league by 2013-2014.

6. Milwaukee Bucks-Brandon Jennings (1st round, 10th pick), guard, Italy
At 10, this is essentially a steal for the Bucks. Considering that Jennings last year was the consensus #1 highs school player in the country, this is a steal. He had originally had an agreement to play at Arizona, but when high school grades became a question, Jennings decided to go overseas and play in Italy. Though he didn’t do anything special, he was playing against professional basketball players, and that counts for something. Jennings is incredibly talented, and though he hasn’t even played a game for the Bucks yet, he has already done something good for the team: put a smile on Michael Redd’s face. Having Richard Jefferson last year made Redd smile, knowing that he had a great shooter and all around player to back him up.

The trade of Jefferson put a lot more pressure on Redd. The acquisition of Jennings puts the Bucks in a much better position to win. They will be playing in a division with Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit and Indiana, all teams that are legitimate threats to make a playoff run, and in fact, the the 2005-2006 playoffs featured every team in the division. Prediction: Jennings will make an immediate impact and put some big points up for the Bucks. Redd and Jennings will soar as a 1-2 guard duo, and will take some pressure of Charlie Villanueva and Andrew Bogut, which will free up the front court and benefit the whole team. Jennings, if coached the right way and put in the right situation, could be as effective as some of the best players in the league. A poor man’s Kobe Bryant, but could exceed that. With some more hard work, and some avoidance of controversial YouTube videos, he has the talent to be as good as Kobe Bryant.

7. Oklahoma City Thunder-James Harden (1st round, 3rd pick), guard, Arizona
Harden is an incredibly talented guard, but the 3rd pick was a little too high for him. It was not a bad pick. In fact, everything considered, it was probably the best possible move they could have made, unless you want to make the argument between Harden and Tyreke Evans. Many said Ricky Rubio was the right pick, and initially, I agreed. But after some thought, the Thunder’s pick made some sense. Since Russell Westbrook appears to be good long term solution at point guard, Harden is the right pick. He is a great shooter, and at 6-5, he has some size for a guard. Along with Westbrook, Jeff Green and Kevin Durant, Harden should put up some good numbers as a guard. Prediction: Look for at least 15-20 PPG in his hayday, and the way he played in college, there are endless possibilities for Harden’s level of play in the NBA.

8. Toronto Raptors-DeMar DeRozan (1st Round, 9th Pick), guard/forward, USC
Since Chris Bosh has all but officially left Toronto, DeRozan will likely see nice playing time in 09-10 but much more in 10-11 and the years after that. Bosh realizes that there is no chance of him staying in Toronto, and will join Dwyane Wade and LeBron James in the free agent frenzy that is the 2009-2010 offseason. DeRozan was one of the top high schoolers in the country, and also proved himself during a successful season at USC. He will be needed in Toronto, a team that is lacking a true scoring guard, unless you count Anthony Parker and Marcus Banks as true scoring guards, and the last time I checked, they aren’t.

DeRozan isn’t as much a guard as he is a forward, but still, at 6-6, he can be a flex guy for the Raptors. Regardless of what position he plays, he will be getting a lot of chances to shoot the basketball for the Raptors. It would help if he develops a good rapport with Jose Calderon, who is becoming one of the league’s better point guards. Prediction: DeRozan will have some success during his rookie season, but will be overshadowed by Chris Bosh. Once Bosh leaves, (which he will after next season) DeRozan will show the world the kind of player Toronto thought he was. Definitely capable of averaging 20 points per game and 5 assists per game.

9. Indiana Pacers-Tyler Hansbrough (1st round, 13th pick), forward, North Carolina
This is a list about potential. Just keep this in mind when I say what I am about to say. Tyler Hansbrough could end up being one of the best players to step on the court. While it is indeed true that playing well in college does not translate into an equally as good NBA career, Hansbrough’s head strong attitude and incredibly tough style of play is definitely a positive in a league filled with 7-foot men looking to give you nightmares. It may be true that Tyler does not have the “natural gifts” that many players in the league do, but the amount of work that Hansbrough puts into the game nearly makes up for it. He will get time to play in Indiana, a team that is very thin when it comes to forwards.

Hansbrough will likely win the job this season to be the power forward, and we will see what he can do from there. Prediction: If his hard work does pay off, Hansbrough could definitely establish himself among the league’s most dangerous players, and obviously, one of the most ferocious. At his best, he can average a double-double in his sleep, and at his best can put up a 20 point-10 rebound season.

10. Denver Nuggets-Ty Lawson (1st round, 18th pick, drafted by Minnesota, traded to Denver) guard,
North Carolina
Lawson probably won’t receive extensive playing time right away because of Chauncey Billups, but he will probably take over the starting job in 2-3 years. During his time at North Carolina, he teamed up with Tyler Hansbrough, Danny Green and Wayne Ellington to form one of the best teams in college basketball over the last 10 years. Last year, their skill paid off when they won the NCAA Tournament. Lawson is a quick, smaller guard who can pass the ball really well. Lawson’s problem, unlike most of the players on this list, is going to be playing time. Unless he can learn to play the 2 guard, his playing time will likely be limited until he can overtake Billups as the starter. Prediction: Lawson is a naturally talented player who will likely flourish in the league. If he can stay in Denver, and they can continue to re-sign their best players, (Carmelo Anthony, Kenyon Martin, Nene, maybe they’ll sign Chris Bosh) Lawson can easily develop into one the league’s best. A Jason Kidd in the making.

Please remember that this list is about potential. You might think I am crazy for thinking that Tyler Hansbrough will average at least a double-double on a bad day, or that Brandon Jennings can be as good as Kobe Bryant. Just remember that I am not saying that these players WILL be this good, but rather that they CAN be this good.