Guys.. I'm not sure if KOC is smiling at this rise in Burke. Why? I have a feeling he had his eyes set on MCW all along. Why? Think about this - his reasons for drafting Hayward, Kanter, and Burks were roughly:
Hayward - "He's a winner", "He's long for his position", "A wing rebounder that Coach always loves", "Give him 2 years - and come back and re-evaluate this pick - 2 years".
Kanter - BPA
Burks - BPA, "He's long for his position", "With the NBA rules the way it is today, guys that can take it off the dribble and finish/draw a foul is invaluable"
So if given the choice between Burke & MCW - yeah we'd all think KOC will pick Burke. Burke is much more of a "finished product". He's able to step into the NBA straight away and contribute.
But I'm not so sure. He has surprised all of us before when he picked Hayward & Burks - the fans certainly didn't expect those picks from him. At times he seems to be very patient and say things like "give him 2 years" when picking Hayward.
- MCW is long for his position - much better rebounder than Burke.
- He can take it off the dribble and finish in the lane - has shown that in the Indiana game
- A team player - with all his scoring abilities, he has always looked to pass to his teammates first
- Has GREAT potential with his physical attributes and athleticism - imagine him in 2 years
- Defensive minded PG (No. of steals) - we currently lack perimeter defensive presence
- A winner - the way he's carrying this Syracuse team in this tournament is a testament to that.
Don't MCW out yet - I think he fits what KOC looks for when drafting a player.