During one of the most celebrated seasons in Arizona history, Salim Stoudamire showed to everyone in the country that he has the talent to play basketball on any level.

Stoudamire put an Arizona team on his back and hit one buzzer beater after another, taking the Wildcats within one shot of the Final Four.

There's no questioning Stoudamire's talent. However, going into the NBA Draft, the two biggest questions surrounding the ex-Wildcat were whether or not he could play point guard in the NBA and if he had an attitude that would be detrimental to himself and his team.

In the first pick of the second round, the Atlanta Hawks made it clear that they feel Stoudamire can play point and display a good attitude while doing it.

The 31st pick of the NBA Draft, Stoudamire is going to a team that lacks a true point guard and has a great chance at starting from the first game.

"We're really excited for Salim," said Arizona assistant Josh Pastner. "We think he's in a great situation in Atlanta. They need a shooter.

"I think Salim is going to go right in there and help them. I really feel that he'll be one of the best rookies in the league next year."

When scouts called Arizona inquiring about Stoudamire, no one ever questioned whether or not he had the talent to play in the NBA.

"No one asked us about how good Stoudamire is," Pastner said. "The only questions asked were about his attitude. If he was drafted on pure talent, he would have gone much higher."

Point guards on Atlanta's roster last year included Tyronn Lue, Tony Delk and Royal Ivey. However, it appears that Stoudamire was drafted with the idea of becoming the full time starter from day one.

"He'll be the starting point guard for the Hawks next season," ESPN analyst Greg Anthony predicted.

Stoudamire is joining a talented young nucleus at Atlanta. He'll share the court with future stars in Marvin Williams, Josh Smith and Josh Childress. The team may not win a lot of games, but Stoudamire will get every opportunity to prove himself as a legitimate player.

After Stoudamire was drafted, the praise poured in.

"We think Salim was the best shooter in college basketball last season and is a threat anytime he's on the floor," said Hawks' General Manager Billy Knight. "His ability to shoot the basketball addresses one of our needs immediately. He's a competitor who raises his level of play during crunch time."

"Salim Stoudamire is the steal of the draft," ESPN commentator Dick Vitale said.

"I think the guy we got at 31 is a hired gun," said Hawks' V.P. of Basketball Operations Dominique Wilkins on Atlanta's official website. "He can make shots. He is very quick, and he is one of these lefties who is very tough to defend. He's a guy who is going to be good for us, no doubt."

Salim Stoudamire told everyone who would listen that he was capable of playing point guard at the next level. In Atlanta, he's going to have the chance to prove himself right from the beginning.

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-Josh Gershon, Senior Writer