Even before the Chicago combine in early June, scouts and other NBA personnel executives were beginning to wonder whether Ohio State power forward

was worthy of one of the top picks in an NBA Draft packed with talented players. Interest in Sullinger, who averaged 17.3 points and 9.7 rebounds in two years with the Buckeyes, leading them to the Final Four this year, went as high as Sacramento at No. 5, with Golden State (No. 7) and Detroit (No. 9) also in the mix.

But,

, Sullinger has received the dreaded medical “red flag” from the league because of a back issue. He is, in a way, lucky — the news emerged early, giving him a chance to address concerns about his back well in advance of next week’s draft. The night before the 2003 draft, a red flag was put on Polish prospect Maciej Lampe. The projected lottery pick was in the green room in New York, and had to watch as he fell to the second round.

Still, for Sullinger, the possibility of being a top 10 pick has likely passed. He has worked out for teams with lottery picks, including the

, Golden State Warriors, Toronto Raptors and New Orleans Hornets, with the Detroit Pistons on tap next week. Sullinger will also work out for the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, an interesting circumstance given that Cleveland holds the Nos. 4 and 24 picks. The Cavaliers would either trade down and choose Sullinger or hope he tumbles all the way to 24th.

Either way, it’s a safe bet that Sullinger won’t drop out of the first round entirely. “It’s not like the fact that he has the physical issue is a shock,” one personnel executive told Sporting News. “Anybody who was going to draft Jared wasn’t doing so because he is an insanely good athlete. That’s not his game. He is going to post up and bully you in the paint. The question is more, is the back thing something that is going to prevent him from developing at the NBA level? And no one knows the answer to that.”

Sullinger could drop out of the late teens and into the 20s, but the Cavs, with that 24th pick, represent the farthest spot to which he’ll likely drop.

Bypassing the Bucks

Interesting decision on Sullinger’s part to decline a workout with the Bucks, given that Milwaukee was one of his potential destinations. The Bucks, who traded away center Andrew Bogut last March, are zeroing in on big men and have worked out John Henson, Perry Jones, Meyers Leonard, Evan Fournier, Fab Melo, Arnett Moultrie, Tyler Zeller and Terrence Jones. Henson probably heads the list, but he is expected to be gone before the Bucks choose at No. 12.

Jenkins' stroke is legit

There are plenty of questions around Vanderbilt guard John Jenkins, most notably his defense and his ability to create his own shots. But what is not in question is his skill as a shooter — most scouts rate him as the best pure shooter in this draft. He has impressed in workouts, and could wind up as a first-rounder.

As Hawks coach Larry Drew said,

, “He came here and he shot the hell out of it. He has an NBA skill. He’s a guy that, watching him play and the way teams play him, it’s kind of that J.J. Redick feel. If he’s on the court, you better be with him at all times. It would be great to have a guy like that.”

A different kind of tax penalty

Need a first-round pick? The best bet is to check with contending teams that are already looking ahead to luxury-tax concerns. A league executive points to three of the last picks in the first round—Miami at No. 27, Oklahoma City at No. 28 and Chicago at No. 29—as being “very available.”

The Heat, of course, already have a loaded payroll, and the Thunder have given big-money extensions to Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Kendrick Perkins, with paydays for James Harden and Serge Ibaka looming. The Bulls have tax concerns, too, though they could jettison guards Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver by not picking up their options and address shooting-guard depth with their pick.

-- Sean Deveney, Sporting News