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Wednesday, February 13, 2013
 Is Ray McCallum a first-rounder in 2013?
By Joe Kaiser

 Detroit point guard Ray McCallum has moved up to No. 35 on Chad Ford's latest Big Board. What are the chances that the junior leaves school early for the NBA?

McCallum's minutes are up only slightly from where they were last year, but his numbers have made a big jump. His scoring is up from 15.4 to 18.8 ppg, his field goal percentage is up from 45.8 to 49.9, his assist-to-turnover ratio has went from 1.79 to 2.31.

On Tuesday, he padded those stats with a performance the college basketball world hasn't seen in nearly a decade. Ryan Feldman of ESPN Stats & Info explains McCallum's accomplishment:
"McCallum had 16 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists and four steals in Detroit’s win over Cleveland State. McCallum set career highs in offensive rebounds (seven) and total rebounds. He’s the first player with at least 16 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists and four steals in a regulation game since Connecticut ’s Ben Gordon (17 points, 16 rebounds, 11 assists, five steals vs Iona) in December 2003."

That's the kind of stat-sheet stuffing that gets the attention of NBA scouts, and if McCallum can continue to play his best ball at the end of the season he could solidify a spot as a late first-rounder in 2013. Right now, Ford lists him as the No. 7 point guard but if he continues to put up big games he could conceivably move ahead of guys like Arkansas' B.J. Young, NC State's Lorenzo Brown and Texas' Myck Kabongo. On top of that, there's no certainty that Young, Brown and Kabongo will even enter the draft, and if any return to school that would also help McCallum's chances of being drafted in the first round.

As a junior, McCallum will probably have to feel strongly that he'll be a first-rounder (where contracts are guaranteed) in order for him to leave school early. The fact that he plays for a small school like Detroit makes that especially true.