SEC Basketball: Top players ready for NBA opportunities

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Mar 28, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Willie Cauley-Stein (15) guards Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Jerian Grant (22) during the first half in the finals of the midwest regional of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Willie Cauley-Stein, 7-0, Center, Kentucky

Cauley-Stein, a 2015 Consensus All-American and the NABC National Defensive Player of the Year, is projected to be a top-10 pick in this year’s NBA Draft but has more upside than people are letting on.

Most people project Cauley-Stein to be drafted as high as No.6 overall by the Sacramento Kings to potentially replace former Kentucky Wildcat, DeMarcus Cousins in the Kings front court if they choose to part ways during the offseason.

But if Cauley-Stein is merely a replacement for the same type of player in Sacramento, what does the league really get? A revolving door of big men who play great defense but won’t help ticket sales due to their lacking offensive prowess.

The Kings main source of offense in 2014 was from forward Rudy Gay who spent time in and out of the lineup due to injuries. The Kings need a star, not another big guy to help them line the stat sheet.

That being said, the perfect place for Cauley-Stein to land is No.5 overall to the Orlando Magic. The Magic are a team with a very young and talented backcourt with guards Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton, but are lacking in the big department.

Sure, their starting center Nikola Vucevic can step back and hit the mid-range shot but they need an interior defender, and they need one now. Vucevic led the team last season in points per game and rebounds but didn’t even average one block per game.

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Unless the Magic choose to go with Justise Winslow to fill in for a potentially fleeing Tobias Harris at No.5 the logical second choice for the team who needs defensive help to guard guys like the Hawks Al Horford or the Cavaliers Tristan Thompson, the Magic need to draft Cauley-Stein.

The worst thing the Magic could do in the 2015 Draft would be drafting another international player like they did in 2005 with Fran Vazquez and have the player never venture over to test the NBA waters.

Instead of having Willie Cauley-Stein go be just another name in California send him to the Sunshine State where he can be the next Dwight Howard or even Shaquille O’Neal for the Orlando Magic who thrive with big men they acquire through the NBA Draft.

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