Posts tagged ChaseBudinger at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

Arizona sophomore forward Chase Budinger will enter the NBA Draft. He will "test the waters" and not hire an agent ... opening the door for him to return to the Wildcats.

"I don't disagree with him doing that," Arizona coach Lute Olson told FOXSports.com. "Some guys can really benefit from the experience and gather a better understanding of what they need to do and I think that'll be the case."

"I think he could be a high lottery pick in next year's draft," Olson added. "The way we're going to play, it could happen."

This really sounds like Budinger will be back at Zona next year if he isn't projected to go very high. One of the nice things about "testing the waters" is that you can get some instruction on how your game may translate to the next level and what a player may need to work on to increase his stock.

Many draft sites see Budinger as a mid-first round pick.

Arizona freshman Jerryd Bayless has already declared for the draft.

Arizona guard Jerryd Bayless, who led the Wildcats in scoring and made several All-American teams, will declare for the NBA Draft. The likely high-lottery pick has hired an agent and will therefore lose his remaining three years of eligibility. Bayless leaves Tucson without having played for Lute Olson, the coach who recruited him to Point Guard U.

This isn't too much of a surprise for anyone who watched Bayless this season. He's able to get into the paint at will, has one of the best pull-up jumpers in the nation, and has the skills to excel at point guard at the next level. Both DraftExpress.com and NBADraft.net have him as a Top 5 pick, and it's hard to believe that his workouts would drop him much lower than that.

The Wildcats will obviously miss Bayless's presence in Tucson, but the arrival of freshman point guard (and flat-top enthusiast) Brandon Jennings should offset some of the damage. The real issue here will come if Bayless's decision opens the floodgates in Arizona. Both Chase Budinger and Jordan Hill would go in the first round of the draft, so it's possible that they would declare before the deadline. Those three players carried Arizona this season and would be sorely missed. If Budinger and Hill return, then the Wildcats should be one of the best teams in the Pac-10 next year.

Arizona Wildcats head coach Lute Olson says that forward Marcus Williams is headed to the NBA after this season, and that Chase Budinger is staying at Arizona. He didn't leave a lot of room for interpretation, either:

"At this point, [Williams] needs to go and do his thing," Olson added. "I think he's looked at doing that for a full year. He's been great this season as far as with the team is concerned. Very team-oriented."

"Chase is definitely staying," Olson said. "He's told everybody that can be told that there's no way he's going to the NBA."

That might be for the best. This year's draft class is stacked, and even though nbadraft.net projects Budinger as a Top-10 selection (really?), it might pay off even bigger to wait a year. I'd never advise someone who's a certain lottery pick to forgo the draft, but next year's draft shouldn't be nearly as deep as this one.

And again, I'm with The Big Lead on this ... I just don't know if I can buy that Budinger's a surefire lottery pick. At the next level, I don't know if he's got the strength to play the three, and I don't know if he's got the quicks to play the two. Those things can be developed, though.

He should be one of the names on next year's pre-season Naismith watch list.