Dime Magazine: The Next Ten...

[Haakzilla]

THE NEXT 10 WHO WILL SHAPE THE FUTURE GENERATION OF BASKETBALL

In the new issue of Dime Magazine, we took a look at the best – and worst – the game has offered since the turn of the century. From the players to jerseys to sneakers to teams to even trends, you can relive the past 12 years by scooping up the new issue currently on newsstands nationwide. In those pages, you’ll find the following feature…
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10. DAMIAN LILLARD
One and done is the name of the game. Damian Lillard didn’t play that game. He spent four full years at Weber State, a small college that fit his needs. He tore it up there, averaging 24.5 points per game last season, good for second in all of Division I. In summer league, Lillard didn’t stop. All the talk about the weak competition he faced in college dissipated as he absolutely destroyed his NBA opponents, dropping 23 points and seven assists in his debut, followed by 31 and seven, 27 and three, and 25 and four.

But Lillard’s place on this list isn’t so much about his basketball potential as it is his path to the NBA. It’s been a while since a truly small school produced such a high-caliber player, and nowadays it’s rare to see top players stay in school for more than two seasons. If Lillard does succeed in the league, he may give confidence and assurance to prospects considering smaller schools outside of the Big Six conferences, and let them know that staying for a few years of college doesn’t hurt either.

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[BoBoBREWSKI]

Gonna be a stud!!

 

[HailBlazers]

 

[Wizard Mentor]

The next 10 actually refers to the number of clicks and page loads you have to wait for

 

[mook]

Kind of odd that 3 of those guys aren't even NBA players, and it included guys I tend to think of as seasoned vets in Bynum and Rose. And several past/future #1 picks (who are generally considered busts if they AREN'T dominant).

If you throw out those guys, it's basically Lillard and, well, nobody. Essentially, it's saying Lillard is the top unheralded young player in the NBA coming into the 2012-13 season.

No pressure, though.