NBA draft full of Wisconsin flavor

The 2015 NBA draft arrives Thursday with plenty of intrigue for Wisconsin basketball fans.

If spending four hours glued to ESPN's coverage of the draft hasn't been your choice of summer entertainment in years past, you might want to rethink that this year. Never in the history of the NBA draft has Wisconsin been so well represented.

Two Badgers — Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker — will be in the green room at draft headquarters in Brooklyn. That has never happened and may never happen again. That's just the start of the fun.

Here is a starting five-pack of reasons to tune in when the draft coverage gets rolling at 6 p.m.

1. Bucky power I

Frank Kaminsky: The reigning NCAA player of the year led Bo Ryan's Badgers to back-to-back Final Fours, including a trip to the national championship game in April that elevated Badgers basketball to new heights. The 7-footer from Lisle, Illinois, is being projected as a late lottery pick. Some speculation has Frank the Tank sneaking his way into the top 10.

Overheard: Sean Deveney of The Sporting News on the New York Knicks showing possible interest in Kaminsky as high as the No. 4 pick (or by trading down): "Kaminsky would not have gone to New York unless the interest from the Knicks was real. And he was assured that it was, that the team would not waste his time or theirs unless there was a chance he would wind up with the Knicks."

2. Bucky power II

Sam Dekker:

The Sheboygan native who starred at Sheboygan Lutheran High School and was a key piece of the Badgers' two Final Four runs will almost certainly join Kaminsky as a first-round selection. Mock drafts have had him all over the board, perhaps as high as No. 10 and possibly as low as No. 20. It's not out of the question he could be on the board when the Milwaukee Bucks' selection comes up at No. 17. Neither Kaminsky nor Dekker worked out for the Bucks during the run-up to the draft, mostly because both are expecting to be off the board by then.

Overheard: Dekker to the Detroit Free Press after working out for the Detroit Pistons: "I'm a versatile guy that can step in and help a team and I think my inside-out game on offense and defense will be able to help."

3. Green Bay's little man

Keifer Sykes: The diminutive University of Wisconsin-Green Bay point guard has a chance to be drafted late in the second round. If not, he'll almost certainly get invites to join a summer league and training camp roster. His 5-11 height is a negative, but Sykes' ability to run an offense, score the ball and play defense has put him on the radar for a league in which small ball is in vogue. Eighteen NBA teams brought Sykes in for pre-draft workouts. If his name is called in Brooklyn, he would be the sixth player in UWGB history to be drafted in the NBA.

Overheard: Keifer Sykes on his pro prospects: "I just want to get my foot in the door," he told Gannett Wisconsin Media. "Give myself a chance to prove myself. That's all I could really ask for."

4: No more lottery

Milwaukee at No. 17: Speaking of the Bucks, they come into the draft with something they haven't had in a long time — legitimate buzz. A surprise run to the playoffs last year — a year removed from the worst record in the league — combined with new ownership, an energy jolt from Jason Kidd in the head coaching chair, the development of star-in-the-making Giannis Antetokounmpo, the expected return from injury of Jabari Parker and a brand new look has the Bucks' arrow pointing upward. Throw in debate over the proposed new arena and suddenly the Bucks are a talking point again. They'll pick 17th in the first round, although there has been plenty of pre-draft trade talk revolving around that pick. The Bucks are expected to target one of two areas of weakness — perimeter shooting and inside physicality.

Overheard: Gary Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times on the likelihood of a draft-day trade: "(The Bucks) are definitely exploring ways to move up."

5. More Wisconsin talent

Homegrown hype: Besides Dekker, two other players who hail from Wisconsin should have their names called during the two-round draft — Kevon Looney of UCLA and J.P. Tokoto of North Carolina. Looney, turning pro after his freshman year with the Bruins, was a blue-chip recruit from Milwaukee. The 6-9 power forward is expected to go in the mid- to late-first round and could be in play for the Bucks' pick at No. 17. Tokoto, a 6-6 shooting guard from North Carolina, was a standout at Menomonee Falls High School. The three-year contributor for the Tar Heels is expected to go in the middle of the second round.

Overheard: Kevon Looney to the Los Angeles Daily News on entering the draft after one season at UCLA: "I'm mature enough and it's a whole new experience. I don't know what to expect or how high everything is going to go. But as a 19 year old, I'm as ready as I can be."