The 2012 NBA Draft was held on Thursday in New Jersey and the New Orleans Hornets, with the first overall selection in the draft , as expected took Kentucky star Anthony Davis. While there is no “Wow” pick like LaBron James or Kobe Bryant this year, Davis seems to be the safest pick with a strong upside. Davis’ teammate Michael Kidd-Gilchrist made the history books as he went to the Charlotte Bobcats at No. 2, making Davis and Gillchrist the first set of college teammates to ever be drafted first and second in the NBA Draft. So that’s a “Wow” moment for UK.
Strangely enough, the ACC is lightly represented in terms of prospects for this year’s draft, in fact, aside from Duke’s Austin Rivers (son of Boston coach Doc), who also went to New Orleans, and the North Carolina Tar Heels’ 4 players who were all selected in the first round, Harrison Barnes, John Henson, Kendall Martin, and Tyler Zeller. There were no first rounders from any Virginia colleges, an occurence that is becoming frequent over the last few drafts.
UVA’s Mike Scott was picked by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round, and the BIG surprise of the draft could actually be Kyle O’Quinn of Norfolk State, who won the MVP award at the annual Portsmouth Ivitational Tournament, which definitely helped his stock rise amongst the scouts and GMs who make the evaluations before the draft. O’Quinn was selected by the Orlando Magic, who may need to groom a big man with so much uncertainty surrounding the future of center Dwight Howard.
