Will Garcia’s unique yet unvarnished game land him in the NBA’s first round?All year long, one question has hung over the Seattle University men’s basketball team like an enormous black thundercloud positioned directly over a hot, otherwise unobstructed sun: Will star forward Charles Garcia forgo his senior year and declare for the June NBA draft at season’s end? The answer is yes, we’ve just learned. Apparently he’s all in too; an SU spokesperson says Garcia intends to hire an agent as soon as the Redhawks’ campaign concludes (they’re under consideration for postseason tournaments), thus slamming the door on a return to Seattle U should he get cold feet in the coming months.So now, the question is: Is he making a sound decision? And how much of a setback will his premature departure mean for an SU program that has enjoyed a storybook return to Division 1?We wrote at length about Garcia and SU exactly a month ago. In our piece, we lauded the 6’10” Garcia for having unique dexterity and athleticism for a man of his size. But we also said, “Garcia’s game is indeed in need of polish. He’s prone to defensive lapses and asinine fouls; he’s sometimes slow to pass out of double teams and lacks a signature post move; and while the form on his outside shot is sound, he’ll need to connect with more consistency in order to garner regular minutes in the pros.” In the month since we wrote that, he’s made but minor strides in addressing those deficiencies.In spite of the fact that Garcia’s first-round status is hardly iron-clad (nbadraft.net has him as a low second-rounder), his upside may well outweigh the more undercooked elements of his game. “If he’s not in the first round, I’ll be really surprised,” says SU athletic director Bill Hogan. “It’s about athletic skill, and that’s where he’ll probably shine. We’re supportive of him; we want him to do well. We really enjoyed having him here, but if you have a chance to do this, it’s one in a lifetime, and you have to pounce on it.”Fair enough, but what does it mean to Seattle U? Best-case scenario, as the team’s radio announcer, Dave Grosby, put it back in February: “If he goes pro, hey, we’ve already produced a first-round draft pick.”For Garcia’s sake, let’s hope so. As for the Redhawks, Head Coach Cameron Dollar’s rep as the best recruiter in the city will get put to an early trial as he seeks to fill a whopper of a void.