The NBA just wasn't ready

Well we finally have a resolution of sorts on the Tyler Hansbrough/Wayne Ellington/Ty Lawson decision. Not surprisingly, Hansbrough is staying. What does surprise me is that Ellington and Lawson decided to "test the waters." So let me give my take on each decision.

Tyler Hansbrough: Okay, so everyone knows this guy is an awesome college basketball player. I mean, he has to be pretty decent for UNC to decide to retire his jersey during his junior season. When i say i'm not surprised that he's staying, it's not because i think he needs to stay. The guy is good. He plays hard every possession and his drive is unquestioned. But he really had nothing to gain by leaving this year (other than lots of money). This year's draft is extremely deep and he has some unfinished business at UNC. The one thing he's missing is an NCAA championship.

Ty Lawson: The talent is obviously there. He's a quick point guard who can handle the ball and has improved his shooting and can hit down the open shot, though you could probably question his range. But i have to be honest, 12.7 points, 5.2 assists, and 1.6 steals aren't extremely impressive. He has great potential but he could probably benefit from another year. He also didn't seem to play well in big games as his numbers gradually got worse in the NCAA tournament from game to game as the competition improved. He's also only 5'11" which is not in his favor. That makes it much harder in the NBA where he'll have to play against tall guards. In my opinion, because of his height and because of the time he missed because of injury, i think another year would do Lawson some good. I don't blame him though for seeing what the scouts say about where he'll go in the draft. I don't know if his stock is going to get much higher, and chances are he's worried about another injury just like this year.

Wayne Ellington: The guy can shoot, no doubt about it. He's got a nice stroke from pretty much anywhere on the court. But he's too streaky, and at 6'4" is undersized for the 2-guard position. He had a way of disappearing at times during a game, and it seemed that once he missed a few shots in a row it was hard for him to get his rhythm back. Right now, he's looked at as a late first round/early second round pick. He could use another year to improve his consistency. Really, if he has an awesome season next year or the next two years, he'll go in the first round for sure. His draft stock may not go up too much, but don't give up the college experience just to make a few bucks and sit on the bench. Enjoy it while you can! I don't know, if i was in his position i might get a little greedy too.

My prediction: Lawson stays in the draft. I'd be very surprised to see him return. Ellington will probably return, unless he has no pride or real confidence in himself. And Hansbrough is going to come back, and his stats won't be as impressive as they were this year, but he'll start knocking down more perimeter jumpers and driving to the basket and ultimately the whole talk about him not being a good NBA player will be quieted just a bit.