Ford: Blazers Select Georgia G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope In 2013 NBA Mock Draft

Chad Ford of ESPN.com has the Portland Trail Blazers selecting Georgia Bulldogs sophomore guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope with the No. 10 pick in his second 2013 NBA Mock Draft.

Analysis: Right now, Caldwell-Pope is one of the fastest risers on NBA draft boards. He is a terrific shooter and a very good athlete. While the Blazers already have Wesley Matthews, adding Caldwell-Pope to the mix gives Portland great depth in the backcourt.

Here's his ESPN.com player profile.

Positives
Deadly shooter
Deep range
Quick release on his jump shot
Good athlete
Good passer
Excellent defender

Negatives
Needs to improve his ball handling
Needs to develop a midrange game

Gary Harris did Caldwell-Pope a huge favor when he decided to return to school for his sophomore season. For teams looking for an athletic 2 guard who can shoot the ball, Caldwell-Pope is now the guy after [Kansas guard Ben] McLemore. A team like the Timberwolves, Blazers or Thunder could nab him in the lottery.

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Caldwell-Pope has been moving up the draft boards since the season ended, which is when scouts go back and relook at tape. They've seen a lot to like in the Georgia sophomore. Caldwell-Pope played on a team bereft of talent, but he still managed to score 18.5 points per game and shoot 37 percent from 3. He's a very good athlete, an excellent rebounder for a guard and isn't afraid to take over the game in the final moments. He could go anywhere from late lottery to mid-first round.

Caldwell-Pope averaged 18.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.0 steals while shooting 43.3 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from deep last season.

Here's a nice background feature from Chris Dortch of NBA.com.

Caldwell-Pope was a rare recruit for Georgia, the first McDonald's All-American signed by the program since 1992. But he didn't show up in Athens as a finished product. His charge after a freshman season in which he earned a spot on the SEC's All-Freshman team was to improve his jumper, especially from 3-point range, tack several points onto his free-throw percentage and shore up his defense.

He did all three, and as a young veteran on a largely inexperienced team, he became Georgia's primary scoring threat. Calling KCP a go-to guy doesn't even begin to cover his worth to his team. He averaged 18.5 points, 10.6 more than the Bulldogs' second-leading scorer. He was one of only nine players in Division I to score in double figures in every game. Caldwell-Pope was on the first page of every opposing team's scouting report, but none figured out how to shut him down.

Georgia lists Caldwell-Pope is listed at 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds. Here's his profile page.

2013 SEC Player of the Year, as selected by SEC coaches, as well as Associated Press. Also a member of the each's All-SEC 1st team. The first Bulldog since Dominique Wilkins (1981, also as a soph.) to sweep the major POY awards.

Favorite TV Show: The Game, First 48, Family Guy

Websites I visit often:YouTube, Worldstarhiphop

Favorite Foods:Hot wings, McDonald's

A Talent I Have That Not Many People Know About: Drawing

My role models away from sports: My parents

How my teammates would describe me: Tall and Lanky

DraftExpress.com currently ranks him the No. 24 pick in their 2013 Mock Draft.

Ford had the Blazers selecting Michigan Wolverines forward Mitch McGary in his first Mock Draft back in April.

-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter