No one was more fun to watch in college basketball last season than Kentucky freshman point guard John Wall.

Let’s take a look at the first five picks of Thursday’s 2010 NBA Draft and see what they bring to the table.

1. Washington Wizards – John Wall (6-4, PG, Kentucky).
Strengths: Gifted athete, playmaker and brings size to PG position. Weaknesses: Needs to improve FT (Shot 75.4 percent at Kentucky), inexperience.
Impact on Wizards: Not only will he bring fans to the arena, Wall gives Washington a player they can immediately build around and put past troubles with the franchise.

2. Philadelphia 76ers – Evan Turner (6-7, SG/SF, Ohio State).
Strengths: Clutch, seasoned (played three years in college) and shoots a  high percentage  (shot 51.9 percent from the field last season). Weaknesses: Turnover prone and not as explosive around the rim in terms of finishing in traffic.
Impact on 76ers: Will have to play small forward, but teaming up with Andre Iguodala will give the 76ers two very good perimeter defenders. Has a very competitive edge, which Philadelphia has lacked in recent years.

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OK. OK.

LeBron James showed for his appreciation day in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, on Saturday – late. Spoke for no more than 30 seconds and bounced.

Don’t know what to make of it.

We’ve all tried to interpret the guy’s every move since the Boston Celtics eliminated the Cleveland Cavaliers in stunning fashion in the Eastern Conference semifinals this season.

So I’m not going to determine anything based on a short speech.

Wait a minute. Who am I kidding? Here’s what I got out that.

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Like the first digit of his jersey number, Kentucky freshman point guard John Wall is the top player entering the NBA Draft.

Can five players from one school all wind up being lottery picks in the same year?

John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson, Daniel Orton and Eric Bledsoe sure think so.

They each left the University of Kentucky this year for the NBA Draft, which is next month.

All five are NBA talents and many experts say all five will go in the first round.

The question I have is will Wall, Cousins, Patterson, Orton and Bledsoe be lottery picks. A lottery pick is someone taken in the first 14 picks of the draft.

We all know the 6-foot-4 Wall, who is blessed with tremendous talent, will be the first overall pick. Unless he gets hurt or the Washington Wizards know something the rest of us don’t, they will take Wall with the first overall pick.

Unless you got Kobe Bryant, point guard play is paramount in the NBA. Just see how Rajon Rondo has made Boston a legit title contender.

Didn’t Rondo go to UK too?

So let’s assume the Wizards draft Wall, where would the other four guys fit in the remaining 13 picks in the draft. Let’s take a look.

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The Orlando Magic are the only team that hasn't lost a game in this year's NBA playoffs.

Well, let me rephrase that.

The Orlando Magic are looking very strong.

They’re 7-0 in the playoffs and just taking Atlanta to the cleaners. Hard to gauge their wins against Atlanta because the Hawks are so disoriented, but Orlando has something to do with that.

After winning Game 3 by 30 points on Saturday, Orlando will close out its Eastern Conference series against the Hawks on Monday in Game 4.

Dwight Howard seems to have adjusted to the fouls, but what’s great about the Magic is they’ve got five guys who can get 20 points at any time.

Hard to guard a team like that. The Cleveland Cavaliers are going to have their hands full with the Magic in the Eastern Conference finals.

I know. I know.

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Dwight Howard and the Magic the only team to sweep a first round series this season.

With only one more first round series remaining (Atlanta Hawks vs. Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference ) a conference semifinal series beginning tonight (Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference) , let’s look at see how I fared in my opening round NBA playoff predictions.

Eastern Conference

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (8) Chicago Bulls
Series result: Cavaliers win series, 4-1
Rankin prediction: Cavaliers, 4-1
Final word: Bulls just didn’t have enough to overtake LeBron James and the top-seeded Cavs.

(2) Orlando Magic vs. (7) Charlotte Bobcats
Series result: Magic win series, 4-0
Rankin prediction: Magic, 4-2
Final word: Even with Dwight Howard a non factor offensively, Orlando was good enough to sweep the Bobcats.

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Erie BayHawks rookie point guard Cedric Jackson left his mark with the Washington Wizards.

In Washington’s final game of the season, Jackson hit the eventual game-winning shot to beat the Indiana Pacers, 98-97, Wednesday night.

Called up by three different NBA teams – Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs and Wizards – Jackson should earn a spot on an NBA roster next season.

While looking for highlights of Wednesday’s game, I came across this video of Jackson doing an interview while with the Wizards about the NCAA Tournament.

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Erie BayHawks rookie point guard Cedric Jackson is headed to the nation's capital to join the Washington Wizards.

About a hour ago, I got confirmation from Washington Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld that Erie BayHawks rookine point guard Cedric Jackson was going to sign with the Wizards.

A hour later, the D-League released the news.

I know I’ve been doing this for a long time, but it’s still cool to have some of high importance like a team president tell you what’s going on before it’s officially announced. Even if it’s just 60 minutes earlier, it’s cool for us sports writers.

After the Erie Times-News and Ridiculous Upside, a basketball blog, reported the news last night, the Washington Post posted it early this morning. On situations like this, all three publications probably got the news within two to three hours of each other, but the manner in which they reach released the news was different.

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Aminu has averaged 19.3 points and 9.2 boards in his nine games with Bakersfield since Erie traded him for Blake Ahearn.

The Sun Sentinel out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is reporting former Erie BayHawk Alade Aminu will make his NBA debut with the Miami Heat on Sunday against the Toronto Raptors.

Aminu, an All-Star D-League power forward who was traded to Bakersfield for guard Blake Ahearn, will be on a 10-day contract with the Heat. Out of Georgia Tech, Aminu was in Miami’s training camp last fall.

I got in touch with Aminu on Friday morning and he confirmed the news to me then. Then later that night after the BayHawks beat Fort Wayne, I talked with Erie rookie point guard Cedric Jackson about it.

“He sent me a text message the other day at like 2 o’clock in the morning,” said Jackson, who has received two NBA call-ups this season with the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs.

“I’m like, OK. He said, ‘I’m going to call you tomorrow.’ I know he was excited. I told him I was extremely proud of him. Just told him to work hard and make sure he focuses and do what he do because that’s where he belongs.”

Here's Mike Sweetney in this season's training camp with the Boston Celtics.

I saw this guy when he was at Georgetown years ago when I was a beat writer for The Dominion Post in Morgantown, W.Va.

Big wide body. Space eater. Score a ton (seventh on Georgetown’s all-time career scoring list at 1,750 points).

Michael Sweetney was an effective college player, but after being the ninth overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, his pro career fizzled. Sweetney only averaged 6.5 points and 4.5 boards in 233 games and with two teams in the Knicks and the Chicago Bulls.

Now he’s going to attempt to rekindle his career in the D-League.

Hmmmm.

The BayHawks are filling the roster void left by rookie point guard Cedric Jackson, who signed a 10-day contract with the San Antonio Spurs earlier this week.

Since All-Star point guard Tony Parker will be out six weeks with a broken right  hand for the Spurs, San Antonio will likely keep Jackson for at least two 10-day contracts and might keep him for the remainder of the season.

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The BayHawks must contend with Albuquerque's Keith McLeod, who has averaged 31.1 points in his last six games.

Erie BayHawks (15-25) at Albuquerque Thunderbirds (18-22)

Saturday, 9 p.m., Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, N.M.

On the air: WJET-AM 1400, www.nba.com/dleague (live stream).

Players to watch, Erie:

SF Jackie Manuel (Expected to play tonight after missing Tuesday’s win against Sioux Falls with a stomach virus.). … SG Blake Ahearn (Averaging 21.6 points in his three games with Erie since being traded from Bakersfield for D-League All-Star rookie power forward Alade Aminu). … SF Ivan Harris (Scored 21 points Tuesday after not scoring in Erie’s previous game against Iowa).

Players to watch, Albuquerque:

G Keith McLeod (After not scoring in an Feb. 25 loss at Idaho, McLeod has averaged 31.1 points in his last six games. He went for 44 in a March 3 loss at Dakota). … G Antonio Agudio (Averaging 15.4 points and shooting 42.8 percent from 3-point range). … SF Trey Gilder (Traded to Albuquerque from Maine for center Kurt Looby on March 5, Gilder is averaging 13.9 points this season.

Fast facts: Erie — The BayHawks are without rookie point guard Cedric Jackson, who signed a 10-day contract with the San Antonio Spurs this week. … Shooting guard Mike Gansey has averaged 26 points and shot 13-of-23 from 3-point range in his last three games. … Erie has won its last two games.

Fast facts: Albuquerque — The Thunderbirds’ leading scorer, Carlos Powell, is now overseas playing in China. The top pick in the 2009 D-League Draft, Powell averaged 22.1 points in 33 games for them. … Albuquerque snapped a seven-game losing skid in Wednesday’s win against Fort Wayne.

 BayHawks up next: at Idaho (Saturday, 9 p.m.), at Utah (Monday, 9 p.m.).

— Duane Rankin