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The 2014 NBA Draft went into the books last night and while the Arizona Wildcats made a splash with Aaron Gordon going fourth overall to the Orlando Magic, the biggest takeaway is the depth of talent the PAC-12 was able to get drafted. A league that has been mostly looked past in recent years the PAC-12 made another loud statement on Thursday night with nine players being selected.
Things got started with Gordon but he was far from the last PAC-12 first round pick. A trio of UCLA Bruins joined him, with arguably their most talented player, Kyle Anderson, going with the final pick to the Spurs. In between Zach LaVine, Jordan Adams, C.J Wilcox and one of the first round's biggest surprises Josh Huestis filled out the six pack of PAC-12 players to go in the first thirty picks.
Slept on for most of the season, the PAC-12 answered the bell in the NCAA tournament sending four teams to the second round and three to the Sweet 16. The league made strides in a year when it didn't get much help on the injury front either losing Brandon Ashley from its one national title contender as well as Spencer Dinwiddie from a second weekend challenger in Colorado. To see it follow the season up with a solid draft shows the talent that was on display in the PAC-12 this year and the depth of a league that could hang with most other conferences in the country.
Dinwiddie, Arizona's own Nick Johnson and Dwight Powell of Stanford finished out the night for the PAC-12 who in all had nine players selected, more than any other conference in the country, coincided with the most first round picks.
We'll see what happens with the PAC-12 next season as some teams have some glaring holes to fill but look for Arizona to again be sending multiple faces (and probably more than two) into the 2015 NBA draft, hopefully this time after a national championship.