Same hype out of high school. Same reputation, same "this could be the #1 pick" talk. Same sort of disappointment in college, although Austin obviously had a better season than Cole did.

Same strengths and weaknesses too, really. Good at scoring (if not especially efficient). Crafty with the ball. Strong threat in transition. Not really a point guard, more of a score-first guy-- though I believe Cole should drop more dimes in the NBA than Austin, he's a little better there, even if the numbers don't reflect it. Both had reputations of being deadly shooters coming out of high school, buuuuuut both did not shoot very well in college, at least in part due to pretty dreadful shot selection. Again, I imagine Cole is a slightly better shooter than Austin, but Austin is a better finisher than Cole is, especially in the halfcourt.

Cole's relatively slight height, wingspan, and frame is also definitely going to be an issue on both ends-- the poor finishing in the halfcourt should likely continue, and he'll get picked on on defense. He wasn't an especially good defender at UNC anyway-- he's pretty good off-ball in the passing lanes and on weak side blocks, but outside of that, there's not much there. The NBA will just run switches to put Cole on the guy with the ball, and he could get abused.

So yeah, I don't see *that* level of upside with Cole. Maybe if you think he can become a point guard, or if you think he can shoot 40+% from 3, then sure, I guess he could start. But he screams "bench scorer/primary guard only if your primary guard is injured." Which, again, has kind of become Austin's role in the NBA. I'd take a flier in the 20s. The Knicks fans who think they should pick him at 8 are certifiable. He might not even be a Top 8 *guard* in this draft.