Draft Updates: McAdoo, Poythress, Noel

When we unveiled our 2012/13 reverse standings feature last week, a way to track the tentative 2013 NBA draft order, we noted that it was still way too early for most fans to be thinking about the draft. Of course, when you're ESPN.com's Chad Ford or another draft scribe, there's no such thing as "too early." Here's the latest from Ford and others on this year's draft class:

  • Reviews for UNC's James Michael McAdoo at the Maui Invitational were poor, with one GM telling Ford: "He looks good in a basketball uniform. But after that, I’m not sure what I’m supposed to like. He’s a pretty good athlete, but he isn’t very skilled and he doesn’t go hard all the time. There’s not one thing he does that really stands out about his game. He certainly hasn’t played like a top-five pick."
  • In addition to sharing his observations from the Maui Invitational, Ford fielded questions in a chat with readers this afternoon. Among the highlights: He views Alex Poythress of Kentucky as a darkhorse for the No. 1 overall pick in 2013, and isn't sure any of the top three prospects in this year's class would've cracked the top seven in the 2012 draft.
  • Chris Mannix of SI.com spoke to a Western Conference GM, an Eastern Conference scout, and another pair of NBA execs to get their impressions on this year's group of Kentucky freshmen, which includes Poythress and Nerlens Noel.
  • We also passed along a set of draft links yesterday.
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