Title: A Quick Tournament Review in Teams
Date: April 3, 2007
Original Source: The On Deck Circle
Synopsis: To wrap up the 2007 March Madness tournament, I named a bunch of players to arbitrarily defined teams.
Since Alex did a pretty damn good job with his tournament wrap-up, I’m out of a job writing one. What I will do, then, is try to summarize the tournament as best I can by naming players to a whole bunch of useless teams, teams which I’ll no doubt leave deserving players off of because I’m only putting 6 Players on each team. There were no set requirements for any of these teams, other than good standing in my personal opinion. For more information on all of these players, I recommend you check out DraftNet and Draft Express, the two best sites on the internet for NBA Draft coverage (Hoops Hype is good too, but gets their info from Draft Express).
The All-Tournament Team
This is your standard team, the best player at each position throughout the tournament, with extra emphasis obviously going to players who went deeper in the tournament. Pretty self-explanatory stuff here.Guard – Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State
Guard – Aaron Brooks, Oregon
Forward – Nick Young, USC
Forward – Corey Brewer, Florida
Center – Roy Hibbert, Georgetown
6th Man – Tyler Hansbrough, UNC
The All-Favorite Team
A team full of the most likable (in my eyes) guys from the tournament, based on attitude and play.
Guard – Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State (Just an amazing job running the point all tournament)
Guard – Tajuan Porter, Oregon (Gotta love his Earl Boykins potential)
Guard – Chris Lofton, Tennessee (I can’t believe I bet against one of my favorite players)
Forward – Corey Brewer, Florida (Hilarious guy and absolutely lights out for 4 weeks)
Forward – Kevin Durant, Texas (The #1 player in the country, plus he was NICE to Cabbie)
6th Man – Julian Wright, Kansas (Unpolished but a really high ceiling, hopefully he stays)
The All-Draft Stock Team
A team of the players who did the best job increasing their draft stock through the tournament. Special focus given to those guys who are likely coming out.
Guard – Acie Law IV, Texas A&M (Should see himself in the top-10 now)
Guard – Brandon Rush, Kansas (Showed consistency and late game stroke, securing a 1st round spot)
Forward – Corey Brewer, Florida (I don’t see any way he doesn’t go top-5 now)
Forward – Derrick Byars, Villanova (Great run should see him move into the 1st round)
Center – Roy Hibbert, Georgetown (A mortal lock for the top-8 now)
6th Man – Chris Richard, Florida (Could be a real steal as a 2nd rounder)
The 2007-2008 Pre-Season All-American team
My selections for the pre-season All-American squad, assuming these guys stay in school.
Guard – Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State (Even without Oden, will lead this team to the Sweet 16)
Guard – Derrick Rose, Memphis (Should have the Tigers back in the Sweet 16 for a 3rd straight time)
Forward – Michael Beasely, Kansas State (No-brainer Freshman of the Year)
Forward – Tyler Hansbrough, UNC (If he stays, you have to like UNC’s chances
Center – Greg Oden, Ohio State (He’s probably not going to stay but I think he needs to)
6th Man – Dominic James, Marquette (Expect big things as his leadership abilities grow)
The All-NBA Team
The players who will have the best NBA careers of any players in the college ranks, regardless of when they come out.
Guard – Acie Law IV, Texas A&M (Has great floor generalship and a good head for the game)
Guard – Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State (Get the feeling I’m high on this guy?)
Forward – Corey Brewer, Florida (His length and shooting stroke translate well to the NBA)
Forward – Kevin Durant, Texas (No questions asked here)
Center – Greg Oden, Ohio State (No questions asked here)
6th Man – Brendan Wright, UNC (Has the size and skills but probably shouldn’t one-and-done)
Honorable Mention: Julian Wright, Kansas; Taj Gibson, USC; Jeff Green, Georgetown
2007-2008 Predictions
Best Conference – Pac-10
Freshman of the Year – Michael Beasely, Kansas State
Player of the Year – Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State
Elite 8 – USC, UNC, UCLA, Kansas, Memphis, Marquette, Georgetown, Ohio State
Blake Murphy Sports Writing 