If the above sentence made you laugh, then you may feel pretty confident that DeVon Hardin will return to Cal for his senior season.  In this recent article discussing Hardin’s draft prospects, DeVon makes this bold statement:

"Unless I’m that No. 1 (overall) pick, Cal is going to be a top option for me," Hardin claims.  "If they pick me No. 1, I’m gone. Other than that, I’m not sure. I know nothing’s guaranteed (in the draft), except returning to Cal."

Anyone who’s followed the Oden v. Durant debate knows that Hardin has roughly the same chance of going #1 overall as I do.  And I’m 5′ 7".  And white.  And my jump shot is pretty terrible.

Still, when you look past the surface, you find that Hardin, unlike a lot of NBA draft prospects, has a pretty good idea of where he stands and what his options are.  And you can probably attribute part of that to his father and "agent", Michael.  "It’s a pretty good situation to be in to have multiple options, and all of them are good," Michael Hardin said. "We have no qualms, if he’s not comfortable and confident about the draft, of him coming back to school. I think Cal will have a great team."

I’ve already blogged about how Hardin is using the NBA draft process to his advantage, but I was then unsure as to how savvy he was regarding his own draft stock.  Some kids go in thinking they’ve got a shot at first round money, and then tumble to the second round or out of the draft altogether.  From hearing him and his father talk, Hardin is going to be damn sure of his draft stock if he decides to forgo his senior season at Cal, and that’s good news for Cal fans.

On his most recent Prospect Rankings, ESPN’s Chad Ford has DeVon Hardin at No. 28 overall, and in his latest Mock Draft, he has Hardin going No. 27 to  Detroit.  Somehow, without yet working out for NBA teams, Hardin’s draft stock has seemed to rise to the back of the first round.  I will never understand this; I can only guess that as the college season recedes further into NBA scout’s memories, they start falling in love with ‘potential’ all over again.

The end of the first round is a precarious position, as it doesn’t take much (a bad workout, a good workout by a couple other prospects, someone unexpectedly falling) to tumble into the second round and out of the guaranteed money.  However, these are also the sort of teams who’s current rosters are good enough that they can afford to stash a project like Hardin for a couple years.  And make no mistake, he is a project.  If Hardin stays in the draft, he’s going to have to accept that status.

However, from reading this article, it sure sounds to me like he’s going to return to school for his senior season.  My bold prediction:  Hardin gets taken in the first round of the 2008 draft, just missing the lottery.

knows our pain.  Or at least the ever dwindling part of the world that reads the Chron.

On their electronic front page right now, they have an article about the situation with Big Game Tickets.  Read it here. 

They even have a illustration that, in every way, captures how I feel right now:

Wow, that looks JUST like me!  In my UCLA-blue Cal sweatshirt!  So sad!  So very sad!  They even have a "What Do You Think" section where it is 98% Cal fans going "Go Bears!" 

But let’s not forget this voice of reason:

Michael Katz, Berkeley

I would offer Stanford the oversized stadium/gym/parking complex that Cal is crazily proposing to develop on an active earthquake fault, killing a grove of 80-year-old live oak trees. This would be a free gift — no Berkeley resident wants it. Cal’s master builder, the late campus architect John Galen Howard, is rolling in his grave.

All I can say is that Michael Katz, you are clearly no Dr. Katz.  Yes, thank you, thank you.  That’s what you get with the Golden Blogs.  Comedy references over a decade old.  Up next?  Hey now!

Am I the only one who hopes that the Mayan calendar really "gets" Michael Katz? 

Either way, I think we can all guess how Stanford’s season is going to go.  After they lose most, if not all, of their games with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind, many many MANY tickets will probably be available on Craigslist for a fraction of their price.  Since I’m not buying season tix, that seems to be the way to go.  The only other way to Go is Bears!