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And once again it is time to check out what the NBA draft mocks say about the four players from Chapel Hill. As you have seen from the post I did a couple of days ago it seems that Tywon Lawson isn’t getting much love from scouts and GMs. Is this going to mean that he is also going to lose spots in the mock drafts?

Consensus top 20 recruit Patrick Patterson announced on Wednesday that he will attend the University of Kentucky. The decision is another major coup for new head coach Billy Gillispie, as Patterson's other two final choices were Duke and Florida. The major deciding factors for Patterson are Kentucky's proximity to his home in West Virginia, and the availability of an immediate starting spot. Patterson is the final major blue chip prospect to sign, coming two days after Jai Lucas announced he will be a Florida Gator.

Basketball commentator Clark Kellogg recognizes the Atlantic 10 as a conference that people should pay attention to as the season progresses. As usual, the Atlantic 10 boasts a competitive groups of teams that could challenge for NCAA tournament spots.

Since most of the pieces (aka recruits) are now in place with John Wall finally deciding his destination I thought I do my second pre season Top 25 for next year...

Seth Davis reports that the Ivy League is looking into the idea of having a conference tournament to decide who represents the conference in the NCAA Tournament. That is bad news for traditional Ivy powers Penn and Princeton.

Going against what my one and only source I have ever made inside of the world leader in sports told me, it is sounding more and more likely that junior guard shooting guard Wayne Ellington will forego his last year of elegibitly at Chapel Hill and jump into this year’s National Basketball Association draft...

The NBA season has crossed the halfway point and it seems like an opportune time to evaluate the rookie class. There have been some suprises but there also has been some lackluster play. Overall, the class has performed well with a few exceptions. Being an optimist, I will begin with the positives...

The Wow Factor

Derrick Rose - Leads all rookies with 6.3 apg and has shown flashes of greatness. Rose's game is ultra smooth and will be an all-star for many years to come. Although, I would love him running D'Antoni's offense in NY, why couldnt DStern have added a few extra blue and orange balls in there?

Brook Lopez - Early season injuries and ineffective play of the other Net's bigs cleared a path for Brook. As a starter Lopez averages 12.7 ppg, 8.5 rpg and 2.1 blocks. Although, if you have ever heard Brook speak, it makes you wonder how he made it through two years at Stanford.

Russell Westbrook - Similar to the "Stanford" genius, Westbrook began the season on the bench. Once the organization realized it was going absolutely no where, RW entered my fav 5. His game is extremely similar to Dwayne Wade's game in his early NBA career. Neither of them shoot it real well fromp deep, but they both are a blur with the ball and can fill up the stat sheet.

Honorable Mention - Eric Gordon and Marc Gasol

The We Want More Squad

Michael Beasley - Beasley's numbers are not exactly where everyone had thought they would be. I had thought his game translated well and would produce from day 1. But, this has not been the case. He needs to give a more consistent effort and should start studying how D-Wade approaches the game.

OJ Mayo - I am well aware that NBA.com ranks him as the #1 rookie so far this season. But, I have watched Mayo on numerous occasions and find him to be lackadasical. The talent is there but his effort and general attitude toward the game are not. He disappears on team of all twenty somethings. He needs to be the leader of that squad and justify his high draft status.

Honorable mention - Joe Alexander and Brandon Rush

The "Hey, I like you, keep it up" Squad

This team is comprised of guys that have shown flashes this year and could develop into impact players down the line.

Kevin Love - Kevin has been a major factor in the resurgence generated by McHale and the TWovles over the last month

DJ Augustin - Moved into the starting lineup after JRich was dealt. Showed great potential while on the floor. But, staying on the floor could be a problem, similar to another small Texas PG.

Danilo Gallinari - Fighting a bad back injury for most of the first half. Recently has made an impact on games during a Knicks streak of exciting play. Can shoot the 3 and has a nice feel for the game.

According to Eyewitness News Everywhere, Georgia Tech freshman forward Thaddeus Young is expected to declare for the NBA Draft. Young’s father, Felton Young, said that his son would not sign with an agent, leaving open the option of returning to the Yellow Jackets. He wants to see Young move up in the first-round before he officially leaves school. Young averaged 14.4 points and 4.9 rebounds this past season.

According to the Los Angeles Times, USC junior guard Gabe Pruitt has announced that he will sign with an agent, closing the option he had of returning to the Trojans. "I just felt that it was in my best interest to move on with my basketball career and focus fully on basketball right now," said Pruitt. "I talked it over with my family and I made the final decision. I still love the Trojan family and I still will support them as if I was still there." Pruitt, who joins fellow Trojan junior Nick Young in the official early-entry pool, averaged 12.5 points and 4.3 assists per game last season. He is projected as a late first-round pick in most mock drafts.

Having watched the draft on ESPN, which I have to tell you with the exception of Jay Bilas everyone on that show did not save themselves (but that is another topic for another time), while chatting on two boards (a big thanks for hosting goes out to: A Stern Warning (Mookie) and College Hoops Net (Shawn)) and reading my Twitter I have to say that overall I am pretty happy about how things turned out for the four Tar Heels. Or should I say the five Tar Heels, as Vince Carter was traded to the vice champions Orlando Magic to bolster their roster for another shot at the title in 2009-10...