When Alec Burks becomes a lottery pick in June’s NBA draft, he should send “thank you” notes to Harrison Barnes, Jared Sullinger and Perry Jones.
. He was always a first-round talent, but it wasn’t until those three freshmen elected to return to school that Burks could feel like the lottery was a sure thing.
Sometimes, patience really does pay off.
“I felt like I was going to be a top-10 pick in the lottery and I felt like it was something I couldn’t pass up,” .
View complete list of early entrants here
Burks is projected as the , and 14th by ESPN.com. Both would make him a lottery selection.
The 6-6 Burks led Colorado in scoring (20.5 ppg) and assists (2.9) and was second in rebounding (6.5). But even though he shot a ton (30.8 percent of CU’s attempts) and his 3-point shooting wasn’t impressive (he made 29 percent of 96 shots), he still managed to be an efficient scorer (115.7 ORtg). In fact, among [layers who used at least 28 percent of their team’s possessions, , among others.
Not bad for a sophomore on a team that missed the NCAA tournament.