next generation of superstars

5.) Greg Oden- Nobody has mentioned him yet, but after he serves his one year in Ohio State (although as a Buckeye fan I wish he'd stay longer ) he'll make an immidiate impact. This guy can flat out play. Period. He's going to be the best Center the league has ever seen. In 5 years he will most likely be in his 4th season, unless he stays for a longer period of time in college, but he will already have amazing numbers. This guy could be the future of the NBA, and trust me, there isn't a better guy for that position, he's quiet, humble, and incredibly unselfish. The year in college will make him a total stud, in fact I wouldn't be surprised to see him at the number 1 spot in 5 years as hands down the best in the league.
Numbers-

I hope this doesn't end up as a "He would've done this if he wasn't injured" player. But yeah I've heard of him and he's pretty good.

I fear LeBron is in a similar situation to KG, immensely gifted but not on the right kind of franchise to make deep playoff runs. Cleveland has just never impressed me with their decisions about coaching staff, draft picks, or trades. LeBron just fell into their laps, that was the biggest #1 pick no-brainer since Duncan or Shaq.

Prime example: way to use a #6 pick on Dejuan Wagner. Is he even playing in the NBA anymore? Here is a list of people they could have taken at #6:
Amare Stoudemire
Caron Butler
Chris Wilcox
Tayshaun Prince

That was the Yao Ming draft, the draft so deep in big men that Amare went #9. Yet Cleveland walks away with Wagner...if they were so obsessed with only a guard, they could have at least grabbed Fred Jones, who went to Indiana 8 picks later.

People knew Duncan would be MVP, championship player material when he was drafted. Garnett came out of high school and was a very high pick (9 I believe?) when that was rare, so he had loads of potential, people knew the type of player he'd be. Shaq too, he was one of the most dominant players college has ever seen.

People knew Duncan would be MVP, championship player material when he was drafted. Garnett came out of high school and was a very high pick (9 I believe?) when that was rare, so he had loads of potential, people knew the type of player he'd be. Shaq too, he was one of the most dominant players college has ever seen.

and others have mentioned this too... but is this a hindsight thing?

from what i remember, the big thing about duncan was that he was an accomplished college player and was a legit center- though i remembe hearing some experts call him a "franchise player"

i sure didn't think he'd turn out being a better player then Robinson. the admiral was one hell of a player

did you guys really think duncan would surpass D-rob as the team's best player in only his 2nd year????

from the top of my head, most recently shaq is the only player coming out of college that almost everyone pegged as lighting up the league right away