There's not much time for a decent mourning for the Suns' #7, because the draft is less than 24 hours away now. Here are some players I think might be considerations at #31 (feel free to add your own):
Viktor Khryapa (6'9" SF, Russia): Suns worked him out last year, then told him to go back to Russia. He's Kirilenko's polar opposite: a tremendous shooter, but not much of an athlete.
Ricky Minard (6'4" SG, Morehead State): Suns brought him in to fill out a foursome of SGs, and he wound up making JR Smith look pretty bad IIRC. He is a physical defender and a good all-around player, but a streaky outside shooter--kind of a short man's Kirk Snyder.
Ha Seung-Jin (7'3" C, South Korea): He's attempting to answer the question, 'is it possible to become an NBA player without ever playing competitive basketball?' He's spent the last year in Los Angeles with SFX, learning how to do the splits and growing his hair out so he isn't so fugly. A physically imposing player who probably needs about six or eight years of minor-league b-ball to reach his 'potential'.
Tony Allen (6'4" SG, Oklahoma State): A tremendous athlete, but short and a poor outside shooter. A very productive college player. If Allen can fix his shot up, he should stick in the league for a while, but it's hard to see him finding his way into anybody's starting lineup.
Ales Chan (7'1" C, Seton Hill): The Suns brought Chan in for a workout before anybody had even heard of him. He impressed a lot of teams with his size and smoothness in Chicago, though, so he'll probably be drafted at some point. Chan played reasonably well for his minor-college team, and his legs do go all the way up...
Donta Smith (6'7" SG/SF, SE Illinois CC): Supposedly is a great defender when he wants to be, and he has the NBA body. Draft City has a clip of his airballed jumpers from a workout in Chicago.
Christian Drejer (6'9" SG/SF, Denmark): Point forward who was considered an eventual lottery lock before he enrolled at Florida. Drejer had some injuries there and plenty of trouble adjusting, and eventually left halfway through the season to sign a $1m contract with FC Barcelona; by NBA rules, his name was automatically entered in this year's draft. If the Suns are looking for a player to draft and hold overseas, Drejer is probably the most talented.
Trevor Ariza (6'8" SG/SF, UCLA): Another great but raw athlete who inexplicably declared for the draft after his freshman year. He's recovering from a collapsed lung, has maturity problems, and can't shoot too well. Oh yeah, he also weighs a buck ninety-five. He's supposed to be a tremendous defender, though.
Jackson Vroman (6'10" C, Iowa State): Voskuhl-type prospect--a decent athlete and defender who plays with intensity and can score if he's under the basket. Shoots FTs at about 50%.
Beno Udrih (6'4" PG, Slovenia): 22-year-old who played his way onto the first-round bubble in Chicago. Is supposed to have a nice shot, but his playmaking skills and defense are still a little suspect. Another player who might be left to develop overseas after he's drafted.
Delonte West (6'2" PG/SG, St. Joseph's): Came out a year too early--he really needed to spend his senior year running the point to impress NBA scouts. Really nice college player but not an explosive athlete, and he's a SG in a PG's body.
Drejer and Ariza seem to have the highest ceilings--I'd prefer Drejer, since he's staying in Europe anyway. Viktor Khryapa, Ricky Minard and Tony Allen might be able to contribute immediately, in a small way. At center, Ales Chan sounds a little more promising to me than the others do.
Viktor Khryapa (6'9" SF, Russia): Suns worked him out last year, then told him to go back to Russia. He's Kirilenko's polar opposite: a tremendous shooter, but not much of an athlete.
Ricky Minard (6'4" SG, Morehead State): Suns brought him in to fill out a foursome of SGs, and he wound up making JR Smith look pretty bad IIRC. He is a physical defender and a good all-around player, but a streaky outside shooter--kind of a short man's Kirk Snyder.
Ha Seung-Jin (7'3" C, South Korea): He's attempting to answer the question, 'is it possible to become an NBA player without ever playing competitive basketball?' He's spent the last year in Los Angeles with SFX, learning how to do the splits and growing his hair out so he isn't so fugly. A physically imposing player who probably needs about six or eight years of minor-league b-ball to reach his 'potential'.
Tony Allen (6'4" SG, Oklahoma State): A tremendous athlete, but short and a poor outside shooter. A very productive college player. If Allen can fix his shot up, he should stick in the league for a while, but it's hard to see him finding his way into anybody's starting lineup.
Ales Chan (7'1" C, Seton Hill): The Suns brought Chan in for a workout before anybody had even heard of him. He impressed a lot of teams with his size and smoothness in Chicago, though, so he'll probably be drafted at some point. Chan played reasonably well for his minor-college team, and his legs do go all the way up...
Donta Smith (6'7" SG/SF, SE Illinois CC): Supposedly is a great defender when he wants to be, and he has the NBA body. Draft City has a clip of his airballed jumpers from a workout in Chicago.
Christian Drejer (6'9" SG/SF, Denmark): Point forward who was considered an eventual lottery lock before he enrolled at Florida. Drejer had some injuries there and plenty of trouble adjusting, and eventually left halfway through the season to sign a $1m contract with FC Barcelona; by NBA rules, his name was automatically entered in this year's draft. If the Suns are looking for a player to draft and hold overseas, Drejer is probably the most talented.
Trevor Ariza (6'8" SG/SF, UCLA): Another great but raw athlete who inexplicably declared for the draft after his freshman year. He's recovering from a collapsed lung, has maturity problems, and can't shoot too well. Oh yeah, he also weighs a buck ninety-five. He's supposed to be a tremendous defender, though.
Jackson Vroman (6'10" C, Iowa State): Voskuhl-type prospect--a decent athlete and defender who plays with intensity and can score if he's under the basket. Shoots FTs at about 50%.
Beno Udrih (6'4" PG, Slovenia): 22-year-old who played his way onto the first-round bubble in Chicago. Is supposed to have a nice shot, but his playmaking skills and defense are still a little suspect. Another player who might be left to develop overseas after he's drafted.
Delonte West (6'2" PG/SG, St. Joseph's): Came out a year too early--he really needed to spend his senior year running the point to impress NBA scouts. Really nice college player but not an explosive athlete, and he's a SG in a PG's body.
Drejer and Ariza seem to have the highest ceilings--I'd prefer Drejer, since he's staying in Europe anyway. Viktor Khryapa, Ricky Minard and Tony Allen might be able to contribute immediately, in a small way. At center, Ales Chan sounds a little more promising to me than the others do.
