Darko Milicic, Jason Maxiell, Arron Afflalo, Rodney Stuckey, DJ White, and Austin Daye. If you have followed the Detroit Pistons at all in the past ten years, you would know that those are their first round draft picks from 2003-2008. A good group of role players are listed there, but none of them have reached the potential that fans believed they could when drafted. They have also become the reasons that many Pistons fans are skeptical when it comes to Joe Dumars ability to draft talent. Some of those skepticisms subsided last season when Greg Monroe became one of the best young big men in the league. After last night's draft pick of Brandon Knight at 8th overall, there has never been more excitement in recent memory of a Pistons draft.
Knight is going to be a very good, if not great player during his NBA career. The reasons go beyond the fact he averaged 17.3 PPG, 4.2 APG, and 4 RPG in his only season as a Kentucky Wildcat. Knight is an intelligent, classy, well-rounded individual that will bring excitement to Pistons fans for not only his on-the-court contributions, but off-the-court as well.
Not only does Knight bring superb skill to the court, he also brings an extreme amount of intelligence. In 2010, he graduated from the prestigious Pine Crest School in Florida with a 4.3 GPA. If basketball skills weren't able to get him into college, his grades certainly were, as he had Ivy league schools clamoring for him to attend.
The one trait that Knight has, in my opinion, that separates him from the rest of this draft class is his ability in the clutch. During this season's NCAA Tournament, twice were the Wildcats given an opportunity to win a game in the closing seconds, and each time Knight came through with baskets to advance his team. Even more amazing, Knight was 0-for-7 and 2-for-9 shooting respectively before taking the final shot of each game. It's very rare to come across a player that is able to put aside previous struggles in clutch moments. Luckily for Pistons fans, Joe Dumars and the organization found one of those rare talents.
I look forward to seeing Brandon Knight slashing to the lane and winning basketball games for my favorite basketball team for many years to come. At the same time, I'm very happy that Joe Dumars has finally figured it out when it comes to the NBA Draft. Hopefully in the future, he'll be stuck trying to find gems late in the first round then in the lottery.
Photo Courtesy of Jerry Mendoza
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