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The Daily OrangeIn point guard-heavy class, Flynn's stock rises before Thursday's draft
By Jared Diamond
Posted: 6/24/09, 8:15 PM EST Section: Sports
Considering how much money he stands to make and how highly regarded he is with NBA teams, Flynn has no doubts he made the right choice by leaving Syracuse early.
"I definitely look back at Syracuse and be like, 'I tried to leave my mark,'" Flynn said. "I think I definitely left a mark on Syracuse University. It was two of the best years of my life. I learned a lot from the coaching staff and coach [Jim] Boeheim."
Ricky Rubio, an 18-year-old Spanish phenom, is widely considered the best point guard of the bunch and may wind up in Sacramento. After that, the situation becomes muddled.
Memphis' Tyreke Evans, Davidson's Stephen Curry and Brandon Jennings, who skipped college to play in Italy this past year, are all considered premier point guard prospects. UCLA's Jrue Holiday, Virginia Commonwealth's Eric Maynor and North Carolina's Ty Lawson are also in the mix.
It seems that Flynn's stock has risen dramatically since the college season ended with the Orange falling to Oklahoma in the Sweet 16. Before the postseason, Flynn was not even seen as a lottery pick, let alone someone who may be picked as high as No. 4.
That all changed in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament. Flynn led Syracuse to a six-overtime victory over arch-rival Connecticut en route to winning tournament MVP - a performance that made "Jonny Flynn" a household name around the country and began his ascension up the draft order.
Flynn said he was interviewed by every team he worked out for, and the first question in each interview was about the "Six in the City" game. If not for that night, Flynn's entire situation could possibly be different.
"I try to sit back sometimes and look, if I hadn't played UConn, or we would have lost that game, or it wouldn't have went six overtimes, then where would Jonny Flynn be right now?" Flynn said. "If I had to answer that, I'd probably still be at school. That is a game that really helped me out, really got my stock up and made the decision easier when I thought about leaving."
"I definitely look back at Syracuse and be like, 'I tried to leave my mark,'" Flynn said. "I think I definitely left a mark on Syracuse University. It was two of the best years of my life. I learned a lot from the coaching staff and coach [Jim] Boeheim."
Ricky Rubio, an 18-year-old Spanish phenom, is widely considered the best point guard of the bunch and may wind up in Sacramento. After that, the situation becomes muddled.
Memphis' Tyreke Evans, Davidson's Stephen Curry and Brandon Jennings, who skipped college to play in Italy this past year, are all considered premier point guard prospects. UCLA's Jrue Holiday, Virginia Commonwealth's Eric Maynor and North Carolina's Ty Lawson are also in the mix.
It seems that Flynn's stock has risen dramatically since the college season ended with the Orange falling to Oklahoma in the Sweet 16. Before the postseason, Flynn was not even seen as a lottery pick, let alone someone who may be picked as high as No. 4.
That all changed in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament. Flynn led Syracuse to a six-overtime victory over arch-rival Connecticut en route to winning tournament MVP - a performance that made "Jonny Flynn" a household name around the country and began his ascension up the draft order.
Flynn said he was interviewed by every team he worked out for, and the first question in each interview was about the "Six in the City" game. If not for that night, Flynn's entire situation could possibly be different.
"I try to sit back sometimes and look, if I hadn't played UConn, or we would have lost that game, or it wouldn't have went six overtimes, then where would Jonny Flynn be right now?" Flynn said. "If I had to answer that, I'd probably still be at school. That is a game that really helped me out, really got my stock up and made the decision easier when I thought about leaving."
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