NBA Players Who Deserve More Playing Time

Some of these guys are in the opening stage of their careers, so more playing time will come. Others are just flat out not used enough by their coaches. Below are the players who should be on the hardwood more and the pine less.

1) Andre Drummond, C, Detroit Pistons

Since being selected ninth overall in this past year's draft, Drummond has flown under the radar, mainly because Lawrence Frank has only allowed him twenty minutes of floor time a night. With that time, he's averaging 7.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg, and 1.6 bpg. He's shooting 61% from the field, leading to an astronomical 22.78 PER, which is higher than that of Dwight Howard and about the same as Dwyane Wade's. So what, or who, is holding Drummond off of the court? Greg Monroe, the Pistons' starting center, is establishing himself as one of the best big men in the league. Playing him along with Drummond doesn't work very well, as both are true centers. Until they are no longer on the same team, Drummond will be limited.


2) MarShon Brooks, SG, Brooklyn Nets

I haven't watched a ton of Nets games this year so maybe some of their fans would disagree with me that he's worthy of some more time. While there's a lot to be desired from Brooks as a defender, at times he could flat out score as a rookie. He showed potential to be able to develop into a key player, though of course Joe Johnson's acquisition would take some of his playing time. But I still thought he'd see more than the 11.6 minutes he's getting. The real surprise is he's losing them to not just Johnson, but Jerry Stackhouse's corpse (14.4 mpg) and Keith Bogans (17.8 mpg).


3) Marcus Thornton, SG, Sacramento Kings

It's a difficult situation in Sacramento, where Thornton is backing up Tyreke Evans at shooting guard. To get starter's minutes, Thornton would need to switch to forward; he is 6'4". But being undersized may well be worth it for a struggling Kings team; John Salmons is no longer worthy of being an NBA starter, and as it stands the team is 17-32. Thornton is a guy who two years ago averaged 21.3 ppg with starter's minutes. The Kings, soon to be Sonics, could use that boost.


4) Eric Bledsoe, PG, Los Angeles Clippers

Obviously he's not going to play much because he's behind Chris Paul, but this 23-year-old out of Kentucky is ready to start in the NBA. His stats aren't quite there yet due to just twenty minutes a night, but he has an impressive 18.29 PER. He's averaging 1.6 spg in the limited time. With Paul injured, as week speak he has twenty and ten assists against the Celtics on eight of twelve shooting. Perhaps staying at Kentucky another year could have helped him arrive with more of a bang, but now he's ready.

Kentucky Preparatory

Seniors are hard to come by on a Kentucky Wildcats basketball team. There is only one this year, a forward named Josh Harrellson, who is far from a household name.

Why is this? Like many of the other big-time schools, players at Kentucky leave early for the NBA. A prime example is last season, when UK lost four freshman to the NBA: DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton, and John Wall. This was likely because of the fairly recent NBA rule that states in order to be eligible for the NBA, a player must have at least a year of college experience (or professionally in other countries).

With these four players, it seems all coach John Calipari and Kentucky did in the 2009-10 season was prepare these players for the NBA. A national championship would be nice for them, but not their prime focus.

This is the argument against the one-year college rule: that the players play in college simply because they have to, rather than going to the NBA straight from high school, devaluing the college game.

And let's face it: with the exception of John Wall, these players all left too early in the first place. All prized draft picks, only one is playing especially successful basketball, and one has not played at all. They certainly could have benefited from more time at Kentucky under Calipari's tutelage. 

Take a look at Daniel Orton. He hardly played last year at Kentucky as a freshman, and was a first round draft pick simply because of potential. He was stuck in the rotation all year behind Cousins and Patrick Patterson. This year, he'd have started. Instead, he's riding the pine on the Orlando Magic, not having seen a minute of court time in the NBA.

Eric Bledsoe was hidden in John Wall's shadows last season at UK, but started alongside him and showed NBA-caliber skills. The starring role would've been his this year, and he, like Orton, would have greatly benefited at Kentucky had he stayed. Instead, he's backing up Baron Davis on the Clippers, but his situation is far better than Orton's: he's getting some PT, putting up decent rookie numbers, and looks like the apparent heir to Davis at PG.

DeMarcus Cousins is starting to look solid in the NBA, and it seems as if he will be for years to come. The one thing separating him from immediate stardom is the fact he left so early.

John Wall was said to be NBA-ready the second he joined UK's roster. He would have been a guy who, like Kobe and LeBron, took the leap from high school to the pros. With a little more maturity in his game, he could be an all-time great.

But the question is, did all four of these guys come to Kentucky simply because it's the required gateway to the pros? Or because of the desire to play college basketball that many of the other guys at that level have? Most likely the former. Which is why the one-year college rule needs to be reconsidered.