Parker, Hood, Dawkins await NBA Draft fates

There is just less than a month until Duke alumnus Adam Silver takes the stage at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York to conduct his first draft as commissioner of the NBA. When Silver takes the stage June 26, there are two other Blue Devils who will be anxiously waiting to hear their names called, with another one hoping to sneak his way into the draft.

Jabari Parker has long been talked about as a potential No. 1 overall pick, and now that the draft order is set, he is still very much in play to be the first name called by Commissioner Silver. The forward has battled questions about his position at the next level, but may have quelled some fears after his promising measurements were released this week.

According to ESPN's Chad Ford, Parker is a full 6-foot-9 in shoes after being listed at 6-foot-8 by the Blue Devils. The draft's top power forwards—Julius Randle, Aaron Gordon, Noah Vonleh and Adriean Payne—all measured between 6-foot-8.75 and 6-foot-9.75 with Randle and Gordon measuring with similar wingspans to Parker. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, who make the first three selections in the draft, are likely the only teams in play for Parker, who will only drop out of the top three if concerns about his conditioning and the allure of Dante Exum become too overwhelming in the coming weeks.

Rodney Hood's draft day is much less certain than Parker's. The wing from Mississippi could go anywhere from No. 10 to the Sixers to a late-first round pick thanks to the multitude of wings available in this draft. Nik Stauskas, Gary Harris, Doug McDermott, Dario Saric, James Young, T.J. Warren, Kyle Anderson, Zach LaVine and K.J. McDaniels are all players a team could be taken ahead of Hood next month.

What the Duke product has working in his favor is exceptional size for his position, measuring nearly 6-foot-9 in shoes, and strong shooting. Hood doesn't have youth on his side like Saric, Young and LaVine, but a polished shooter with Mike Krzyzewski's training and impeccable character is plenty appealing to many teams. For teams that are closer to competing right away, like the Phoenix Suns, an experienced scorer like Hood could be the perfect piece moving forward.

The third Blue Devil that could be drafted this summer is Andre Dawkins, the graduate student who made a triumphant return to basketball after redshirting his senior season. Dawkins has been working out for many teams, including the Suns, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers and Dallas Mavericks. A noted sharpshooter, Dawkins could potentially carve out a role in the NBA similar to that of Steve Novak, Jason Kapono or any of the countless 3-point specialists that have been paid rather handsomely in recent years. Teams could do worse late in the second round than to take a gamble on a player who can step in right away and make an impact in a specialist role.