I think Shabazz is a really good college player, and if could probably hold his own in the league in limited minutes, unfortunately, there is just nothing about his game that is going to stand out in the eyes of NBA scouts. He does a lot of things well, but he doesn't do anything that separates him from the pack. I would say the best NBA comparison for Shabazz is D.J. Augustin, and Augustin may be on his way out of the league if he continues to tread down the path he's on. I'd say he's the closest to being ready for the NBA than anybody on this team from a skills standpoint, but I'm not sure he has the physical gifts to make it worth his while to leave after this season.
Boatright's definitely not ready, unfortunately you ge the feeling there are a lot of people in his ear telling him he is. I talked at length about Boatright in a different thread yesterday - his decision making still is not up to par if he's looking to be an NBA point guard in the near future. The one thing the kids got going for him is nobody can stay in front of him - that's a desireable skill at the NBA level, and one I'm not sure Shabazz has. Shabazz can get by his man 99% of the time - Boatright, I think, can do it whenever he wants. Shabazz does look to have a couple inches on Boatright though. I don't know what Boatright's listed as, but he can't be much taller than 5'10 without shoes. That's going to put a glass ceiling on his NBA aspirations no matter what he does to improve his game, unfortunately.
I don't see the NBA in Deandre's future. To me, he looks like a four year player. In many ways, he's the classic tweener - he's not quick enough to play the three, and he's not strong enough to play the four. Even if he works on his handle and his jumper, I just don't think he has the explosiveness to consistently shake elite perimeter defenders. I hope I'm wrong.
The best NBA prospect on this team is Omar Calhoun IMO. I think he has just enough athleticism to get by in the NBA if he can harness his skills like so many UConn wing players before him. He'll definitely have to improve his handle, because at 6'3/6'4, he's right on the fringe of the minimum height scouts want in an NBA two guard. I haven't really seen enough of him to make a fair assesment though, so I could be way off.
I'd put the odds at 50/50 that we have everybody back next year. I don't see any draft boards out there that have any of our guys being selected at all, nevermind as first rounders. It makes a little bit of sense for Shabazz to leave after this season because let's face it, there really isn't a lot he can gain by returning for a fourth year from a player development standpoint. I wouldn't blame him if he wanted to get a jump start on his pro career and finish his degree later. Other than that, there's always the chance a kid transfers or declares for the draft based on his own delusions of what he can become, and unfortunately that's just part of the way college basketball is in 2012. For every Kemba Walker and Richard Hamilton who returns to school and earns himself millions, there is a Stanley Robinson or Alex Oriakhi who sticks around for four years and continues to be exposed at the college level. If Oriakhi had left after his sophmore year, and Sticks after his junior year, I think scouts would have seen enough to take a chance on one of those kids. Even those who don't become good NBA players are leaving money on the table by returning to school for their junior and senior seasons, so I wouldn't necessarily blame anybody for testing the waters of their profession sooner rather than later.
