Kentucky and North Carolina appear headed for an NBA-first during Thursday night’s draft.
The two marquee college basketball programs each will likely have four players selected in the first round, starting with UK’s Anthony Davis — the all-but-certain No. 1 overall pick.
If that happens, it would be the first time two schools accounted for eight first-round picks in the same draft since the NBA went to its current two-round format in 1989.
Senior director of NBA scouting operations Ryan Blake says he expects Kentucky’s Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones and Marquis Teague, along with UNC’s Harrison Barnes, John Henson, Tyler Zeller and Kendall Marshall to all be first-round picks.
Two other players from the national champion Wildcats could slip into the late first round, pushing the total to 10.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.