Posted by Allanfan20:

I happen to like Michael Kay.

When a number of NBA executives called the 2009 NBA draft the worst in the past eight years, there may have been just a bit of hyperbole in their comments. But with only a few days remaining until the April 26 deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft, the outlook has gotten grimmer.

An unprecedented number of top underclassmen have indicated that they will skip the draft and head back to school. North Carolina's Ed Davis, Georgetown's Greg Monroe, Oklahoma's Willie Warren, Wake Forest's Al-Farouq Aminu and Kansas' Cole Aldrich all have said no to the draft despite being projected as lottery picks. If you count elite prep school prospect John Wall, the number grows to six.

In the 13 years I've been covering the draft, I've never seen so many elite players decide to stay in school. Sure, there are exceptions. Last year, Oklahoma's Blake Griffin went back to school even though he was projected as a top-3 pick. And in 2006, the Florida trio of Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer all decided to stay in school despite being projected as lottery picks. But nothing quite like this.

And the truth is, the talent drain could get more severe. Davidson's Stephen Curry, Duke's Gerald Henderson, North Carolina's Ty Lawson and Lithuanian big man Donatas Motiejunas have yet to declare for the draft. And at least one player who's in, Ricky Rubio, could pull out of the draft if he can't get a buyout worked out with his team in Spain.

Meanwhile, a flood of less-enticing prospects like Jeff Teague, B.J. Mullens , Patrick Mills, DaJuan Summers, Damion James, Paul Harris, Dar Tucker, Luke Harangody and Jodie Meeks are taking advantage of the weakness of the draft and hoping to score a first-round slot and a guaranteed contract.

For this year's draft, players drafted in the mid-to-late lottery will be players who would normally be drafted in the late first round of better drafts. That's a bummer for teams like the Knicks and Pacers who are rebuilding and really need star power.

And suddenly, next year's draft looks much better. Add Davis, Monroe, Warren, Aminu and Aldrich to at least five elite high school players who look like they could make the jump after their college freshman season -- Wall, Xavier Henry, Derrick Favors, DeMarcus Cousins and John Henson -- and you're looking at a pretty rich lottery.