NBA - As the NBA season comes to a close, eurosport.yahoo.com looks at some of the new names you could see making an impact in the league next year.
The NBA draft takes place in Madison Square Garden on June 28 and it will see a number of teams make decisions that could drastically affect their future progress.
In 2003, the Cleveland Cavaliers picked high school student LeBron James with the first pick in the draft and just four years later they have reached their first ever NBA Finals on the back of the forward's sensational play.
Meanwhile, in the same draft the Detroit Pistons picked Serbian flop Darko Milicic with their second pick when they could have used it to select the likes of Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Chris Kaman or Kirk Hinrich - all now established NBA stars.
Since 2006 only players aged 19 and over during the calendar year of the draft are eligible for the draft meaning that the days of picking high school players are over.
It was the Portland Trail Blazers who won a lottery of non-playoff teams to get the first pick this year.
Here are some of the players who are expected to go high in the draft.
Greg Oden - Centre - Ohio State
Oden is expected to go first, with the seven footer having the range of skills that makes him a cross between Patrick Ewing and Tim Duncan. Regarded as the most exciting "big man" to enter the draft in years.
Kevin Durant - Forward - Texas
The only player who might tempt a team to pick him ahead of Oden - Kevin Durant is a scoring machine who averaged nearly 26 ppg for Texas last season. A real all-rounder who can drop to the backcourt if and when required.
Al Horford - Forward - Florida
Perfect for a team who wants a very solid player straight away - the 21 year-old Horford has lots of big game experience having helped Florida to two national championships.
Brandan Wright - Forward - North Carolina
Like Oden and Durant, Wright is a freshman but not yet as polished as the top two projected picks - Wright could go anywhere in the top 10 but has the tools to be a future All-Star.
Yi Jianlian - Forward - China
The top rated "international" player in the draft. The latest Chinese sensation will of course draw comparisons with Yao Ming but experts see him more as the next Toni Kukoc.
Jeff Green - Forward - Georgetown
Green has got better and better during three year's of play at Georgetown University. He doesn't really look like superstar material but could be given the nickname "Mr. Versatility" before too long.
Mike Conley Jr. - Point Guard - Ohio State
The most talented point guard in the draft - Conley is full of silky skills and is a tremendous playmaker - if he can improve his shooting in the pros he could become a sensational player.
Other players that could go high include a couple more Florida players in Joakim Noah (son of former French Open tennis winner Yannick) and Corey Brewer; the adaptable Julian Wright of Kansas; Geroria Tech Point Guard Javaris Crittenton; and Florida State's Al Thornton who completed all four years in college.
Meanwhile, Joventut Badalona guard and World Championship winner with Spain - Rudy Fernandez - is expected to be the first European player picked in the draft.
Here is the order, pending trades, that the sides will pick in the first round.
1. Portland Trail Blazers
2 Seattle Supersonics
3 Atlanta Hawks
4 Memphis Grizzlies
5 Boston Celtics
6 Milwaukee Bucks
7 Minnesota Timberwolves
8 Charlotte Bobcats
9 Chicago Bulls (from New York as part of the Eddy Curry trade)
10 Sacramento Kings
11 Atlanta Hawks (from Indiana as part of the Al Harrington trade)
12 Philadelphia 76ers
13 New Orleans Hornets
14 Los Angeles Clippers
15 Detroit Pistons (from Orlando as part of the Darko Milicic trade)
16 Washington Wizards
17 New Jersey Nets
18 Golden State Warriors
19 Los Angeles Lakers
20 Miami Heat
21 Philadelphia 76ers (from Denver as part of the Allen Iverson trade)
22 Charlotte Bobcats (from Toronto as part of the Lamond Murray trade via Cleveland as part of the Sasha Pavlovic trade)
23 New York Knicks (from Chicago as part of the Eddy Curry trade)
24 Phoenix Suns (from Cleveland as part of the Jiri Welsch trade, via Boston as part of the Brian Grant trade)
25 Utah Jazz
26 Houston Rockets
27 Detroit Pistons
28 San Antonio Spurs
29 Phoenix Suns
30 Philadelphia 76ers (from Dallas as part of the Eric Dampier trade via Denver as part of the Allen Iverson trade, via Golden State as part of the Nikoloz Tskitishvili trade)
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