clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

NBA Draft 2012: J'Covan Brown Not Among Top 10 PG's

Over at SB Nation, I have a listing of the top 10 PG's available in the 2012 NBA Draft, and, as much as it pains me as a Texas alum, J'Covan Brown did not make the list.

Brown matured in front of our eyes in Austin, going from a academic washout whose attitude almost got him kicked off the team as a freshman to the respected veteran leader of an overachieving young squad as a junior.

He's a creative ball-handler with a good feel for the game and an excellent outside shot, but he fell outside the top 10 for two reasons: he's not a pure point guard and he's not a good athlete at 6'2 200.

His lack of foot-speed means he'll be a defensive liability at the next level, and he hasn't proven he's a good enough play-maker to play solely as a point guard (and not as a combo scoring guard) in the NBA.

That's what makes his decision to declare for the draft as a junior so disappointing: his assist to turnover ratio improved every year in Austin, culminating in 3.8 assists to 2.7 turnovers last year. If he had come back as a senior and moved that number closer to 2 than 1.5 while improving his shooting efficiency numbers, he would have a much better chance of being drafted.

As it is, he's probably going to be an undrafted free agent who won't be given much of a shot to make a roster as a rookie, which means a long stint in the D-League is probably in his future. However, he could carve out a nice living playing overseas, so he'll have an interesting decision to make this summer.

An interview w/Brown during the NBA Draft Combine:

For more coverage of Brown and the rest of the local players in the 2012 NBA Draft, stay tuned to the SB Nation Dallas StoryStream.

Photographs by jamesbrandon, jdtornow, phlezk, flygraphix, mcdlttx, tomasland, and literalbarrage used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.