Projecting the Cats in the NBA

I spent some time talking to two NBA scouts this weekend about the players on this team's NBA prospects. This is what they said: JOHN WALL: Consensus #1 pick and it isnt even close. One scout told me that the question with Wall "isnt whether he will be the #1 pick, he is...but will he be one of the all-time great #1 picks." That is high praise indeed. I asked both if either could imagine a scenario where he would not go #1. They said the only possibility would be if Wall himself stayed in school...even with a major injury, they still think he would be the first pick. PATRICK PATTERSON: Both scouts also had Patrick in the same range, somewhere between 12-15 in the draft. "He is a guy who will go at the end of the lottery and will be a solid guy in the league for 10-12 years." Both believe that Patrick improved his NBA stock by coming back to school and that he would have been a late first round pick last year. DEMARCUS COUSINS: Not surprisingly, the opinions for Boogie varied a bit. One scout was enamored with Cousins. "If you look just at talent, he might be the #2 or #3 pick overall. The question with him however is how he carries himself for the rest of the year as the pressure increases." The other scout wasnt quite as positive, agreeing with the talent assessment, but suggesting that other factors could move Cousins to the end of the lottery or later. They both agreed however that, as one said, "Cousins has more to gain from the second half of this season than almost anyone in the Draft." As for the rest of the players, both scouts believe Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton have NBA futures, but not in this draft. Interesting stuff from the people who should know.