College hoops mailbag: Making sense of the draft

As usual, the NBA sparked plenty of debate about which players will actually make it in the league – and which ones won't. And my recent list of tough road venues evoked a ton of feedback. Here are some responses to your much-appreciated letters. I'll tackle more of them next week.

Under appreciated?

Every year you media guys give so much love to the Big East and turn a blind eye to the Big 12. As if the poor performances in the NCAA tournament haven't been bad enough, look at the NBA draft over the past few years and tell me which conference has been better.

Robert B.
Las Calinas

I'm not sure it's fair to judge a league solely on its performance in the NCAA tournament. The best conferences are the ones with the greatest depth, the ones with the largest number of quality teams. That's why the Big East wins out. Also, you might not remember, but a Big East team (Connecticut) won the NCAA title in April. Your comments about the NBA draft intrigued me, so I did some research, and you're right. The Big 12 has had 31 players drafted in the last four years. That ranks first among the six power conferences. The Big East – which had four more teams until a few months ago - ranks fourth on that list with 27. (Interestingly, the Big Ten only had 11). Another interesting stat: 19 of those 31 Big 12 draft picks have gone in the first round, which also ranks first.

Shopping for deals

Who got the biggest steal in the draft?

Victor G.
Beaumont, Texas

That's a tough one, because there were a lot of good picks. I must admit that, being a Dallas native, I was excited when the Mavericks chose Jordan Hamilton with the 26th pick. And I was equally disappointed when they traded him to Denver. Hamilton should've gone much higher. He's an excellent scorer with a tremendous frame whose game is perfectly-suited for the NBA. I'm also impressed with how hard Hamilton, a wing, works on the glass. His ball-handling needs work and his attitude needs to get better. If Rick Barnes really did tell NBA scouts that Hamilton was "hard to coach at times," as Hamilton alleged, he was probably just being honest. I've seen Hamilton scream at Barnes during timeouts when he didn't like what he was hearing in the huddle. And his body language can be terrible. There's no place for that in any league. Other picks I liked: Nolan Smith at No. 21, Jimmy Butler and No. 30 and DeAndre Liggins at No. 53.

Lack of experience

Interesting article on tough arenas – and I appreciate the college basketball love when next season is so far away. But as a Utah State student, I have a hard time when you mention BYU's Marriott Center and do not say anything about the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum and Utah State, especially when we have won 142 or our last 150 home games. I know BYU has a more nationally-recognizable program and I know about Jimmer Fredette's popularity. That's fine. But the Aggies deserve to be mentioned on ANY list of the most difficult college basketball arena.

Jordan
Logan, Utah

My list of college basketball's toughest arenas generated loads of e-mail – and most of it came from Utah State fans. Almost every list has one glaring omission, and apparently Utah State drew the short straw on this one. This certainly wouldn't have happened if I had ever actually set foot in Logan. Sounds someone needs to take a road trip.

About BYU ...

Just a comment really. I was a little disappointed with your ranking of toughest road arenas in college basketball. Especially when you said the list would change based on current state of affairs at each school. I didn't expect it to be in the mix for No. 1, like Kansas or Duke, but how could the Marriott Center for BYU not be in the top 10 and yet The Pit at New Mexico was? Just ask San Diego State how difficult it was to play there. I think you got this one wrong.

Braden
Minneapolis

I may have been the only media member who wasn't in Provo for the Cougars-Aztecs showdown this season. But, man, even on television, it was a site to behold. I'll be interested to see if the Marriott Center is equally as rowdy in 2011-12.

Size isn't everything

Jason, I'll give you Allen Fieldhouse and Cameron Indoor Stadium. Sure. But putting anything else in front of Rupp is wrong and having The Pit in front of Rupp Arena is a complete joke. Sure, the Carrier Dome is a lot bigger, but you might want to check and see who led the country in attendance. The answer: Kentucky. All those seats in Lexington are full every game. People camp out for days just to get in line for tickets to see the opening PRACTICE of the year. When there is a serious opponent in town there is no better arena in basketball than Rupp – college or pros. I can only assume that you've never been to Lexington for a game against an opponent that matters. Either that or you wrote this column to get hits from fools like me.

Rupp
Lexington, Ky.

I've had numerous players tell me that playing at Rupp isn't all that intimidating because it's "stretched out," so the fans don't feel as if they're right on top of you. I've seen numerous teams play at Rupp over the years (Kansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, etc). I'm not knocking it. But it's about more than attendance and capacity crowds for me. Duke and Kansas sell out all of their games, too. It just feels different.

Come for the show

Duke No. 2 behind Kansas on the list of toughest arenas? That's a joke and kills ANY credibility you have on this topic. What's worse is that you have the Dean Smith Center listed as "also in the conversation." The only time they are loud is when Duke comes to town because they are frequently referred to as the wine and cheese crowd. Get a clue, man.

Jason
Raleigh, N.C.

Sorry, but you're wrong. And I'm pretty sure most unbiased fans would agree. Allen Fieldhouse is bigger and louder and the game-day traditions (videos, promotions, cheers and chants) leave much more of a lasting impression. I watched North Carolina beat Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium four straight years. That wouldn't happen in Lawrence.

Missed dunk

How could you leave John Henson off of your "Best Dunkers" list? I'm a North Carolina homer but, man, he is every bit as good as Mason Plumlee and my boy Harrison Barnes. He's the best alley-oop dunker in college.

John
Boone, N.C.

Ah, yes, another list that caused quite a debate. Henson deserved high mention. I also caught some criticism for leaving off Alabama's Tony Mitchell.