Is Lon Kruger Changing Oklahoma's Basketball Culture By Stockpiling NBA Talent In Norman?

Let's be honest. The list of players from the University of Oklahoma that are currently in the NBA isn't long...it isn't long at all. However that's a trend that could be changing under Lon Kruger. Since coming to Norman in 2011 Kruger has turned over Oklahoma's roster and NBA scouts are starting to take notice. Of course Kruger, knows a thing or two about the League after having served as the head coach for the Atlanta Hawks and an assistant for the Knicks.

Do the Sooners currently have any NBA caliber talent on their roster though? According to NBADraft.net they absolutely do! Their most recent mocks have three OU players getting their names called. Their 2015 mock draft has Buddy Hield going in the late first round to Dallas and TaShawn Thomas going in the second to Phoenix. Their way too early 2016 mock draft has Isaiah Cousins as a mid-second round pick by Oklahoma City.

It's no coincidence that these three are Oklahoma's top performers so far this season and have been the catalyst to the Sooners' success. Buddy leads the way with 15.8 points per game, followed by Cousins' 13.4 and Thomas' 11.8.

There's still a lot of basketball to be played this season but the start of Kruger's fourth season has yielded some really good early results. On Monday night the Sooners picked up their first road win over a top 10 team since 1993 when they routed the Texas Longhorns 70-49.

Kruger is changing the culture of basketball in Norman by overhauling and changing the roster. "It's always good to win, especially on the road," Kruger said after Monday's win over Texas. You get the feeling that Kruger and his guys are going to experience that a lot this season as the college basketball world, along with the NBA, begins to "take notice" to the program he's building at Oklahoma.

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