I know it's super early but with college ball getting ready to kick off a little after the NBA in November, I was just looking at some tape of some point guards that either could be available to us late 1st round provided we eventually orchestrate a trade to get a pick in the 25-30 range like we did this year or should be there when we pick in the 2nd round. With the possibility of Duhon & Nate moving on at season's end, I think the point is still the most important position for us to upgrade. And I'm proceeding as though Gabe Pruitt and Sun Yue don't wind up showing us too much - hopefully I'm wrong & they do. Here's a few guys they should be watching right from the beginning:

(1) Sherron Collins - Kansas, 5'11" 200 lb. Probably the most highly thought of guy on this list, it's just a question of whether he just goes too high to even remain in consideration for us. And a question of whether he can keep his weight down, which I've read could be a problem with him from time to time. Otherwise I like everything else about him - quick, tough, strong, can shoot, a leader...Good player.

(2) Greivis Vasquez - Maryland, 6'6" 200 lb. Tremendous size for the position. Put up nice numbers across the board - 17.5 ppg, 5 apg, 5.4 rpg, only 2.8 TOs/game, 1.4 steals, 86.7% FTs. He can pass & handle it real well, has above average court vision, can get to the rim and even though the shooting percentages don't back it up, I think he has above average perimeter skills. The low percentages from the field and from 3 really are a mystery although they were better last year - he needs to continue to show more consistency in this area and I think he'll continue to make strides (it'd be one thing if he didn't but this guy actually has real nice shooting mechanics - I don't see any obvious flaws). Very good rebounder too. Plays hard - gets amped up to play and really gets into the game. A big, skilled lead guard. Who can forget the monster game he had against UNC back in February (an OT win for the Terps). 35 pts/11 rebs/10 assists. I don't recall seeing too many triple-doubles at the college level. And the fact that it came against the eventual NCAA champs and Ty Lawson really says something. Outside of a few other standout performances by a select few (the 54 pt. game Jodie Meeks had at Tennessee & Craig Brackins going for 42 against Kansas immediately come to mind), this had to be one of the most impressive individual performances anyone had last season. I think D'Antoni would love this kid's versatility. Mardy Collins made it in the NBA as a big PG recently and showed he could play when we gave him some minutes - I think this kid is better. Not as good defensively but possesses a higher overall skill level than Collins, I think..

(3) Nic Wise - Arizona, 5'10" 180 lb. Being slightly undersized for the position is really the only concern (he doesn't play all that small when you watch him). Even though he's a scoring point he shows an equal amount of playmaking ability to go along with that scorer's mentality. Dude's a very good passer. Good penetrator. And he's very quick and disruptive on the defensive end. Excellent 3 pt. shooter with a flawless stroke (over 41% last year). Now that Jordan Hill & Chase Budinger have moved on to the NBA, I bet Wise puts up even better scoring numbers this year. On neither the nbadraft.net nor the draftexpress.com mocks as of yet - I gotta believe that'll change a week or two into the season. He worked real well with Hill at Arizona and they are supposedly close friends. Teaming up again would be beneficial for both players. I wonder if D'Antoni ever asks Jordan Hill about Wise at some point - I'd be interested to find out a little more if I were Mike.

(4) Jerome Randle - California, 5'10" 160 lb. He's on the small side (and he actually does look a little smallish out there compared to Wise & Collins) but what he lacks in height and weight he more than makes up for it with his advanced game. Very high skill level. Unbelievable handle, gets to the rim with ease and can finish (even with an uncontested dunk on occasion). A tremendous jumpshooter with range (over 46% from 3 last year). And like Wise and Collins he's a scoring point that is actually quite adept at setting up his teammates (dished out 5 assts/game last year which I believe lead the Pac-10 and he did that with much less talent than what Wise had to work with at Arizona). Speaking of Wise, Randle torched him for a season high 31 pts. in a 83-77 win at Arizona back in early March. Looks like shot selection can be a bit of a problem at times - I've seen this guy just come down 1 on 3, 2 on 4 and launch 3s with no conscience kinda like White Chocolate used to do in his early days with Sacramento. The fact that he makes a lot of 'em and that he doesn't have a whole lot of offensive help on that team helps mask this weakness a little but it's still an element to his game that he needs to improve upon. Those aren't good shots in the NBA - he'll be riding a lot of pine taking shots like that. Another guy that doesn't appear on either draft.net or Givony's mock as of yet. I find that hard to believe. I see a more coachable, more efficient Nate Robinson with much better playmaking ability. If he were 4 or 5 inches taller & a little heavier he'd be a top 5 pick. No question about it.

There are other guys too -- UConn has two guys, Kemba Walker and Jerome Dyson, who will get more time handling the ball this year now that AJ Price has moved on, Kalin Lucas from Michigan State and Alexey Sheved from Russia (two players I don't know too much about - anyone have a take on these guys??)... Anyone think any of these guys might be able to help us? Any other point guards flying under the radar out there that anyone can think of?

[Edited by - finestrg on 09-23-2009 2:32 PM]

(3) Nic Wise - Arizona, 5'10" 180 lb. Being slightly undersized for the position is really the only concern (he doesn't play all that small when you watch him). Even though he's a scoring point he shows an equal amount of playmaking ability to go along with that scorer's mentality. Dude's a very good passer. Good penetrator. And he's very quick and disruptive on the defensive end. Excellent 3 pt. shooter with a flawless stroke (over 41% last year). Now that Jordan Hill & Chase Budinger have moved on to the NBA, I bet Wise puts up even better scoring numbers this year. On neither the nbadraft.net nor the draftexpress.com mocks as of yet - I gotta believe that'll change a week or two into the season. He worked real well with Hill at Arizona and they are supposedly close friends. Teaming up again would be beneficial for both players. I wonder if D'Antoni ever asks Jordan Hill about Wise at some point - I'd be interested to find out a little more if I were Mike.

Love this guy. Seriously quick and strong for his size.

I was talking up Randle leading up to the draft. Watching Cal play some of the Pac10 powers like Arizona, Arizona State, and USC, who all had lottery picks on their teams, Randle often looked to me like the best player on the floor. If Nate had an alter ego that wanted to distribute rather than score, it might be this guy.