Chad Ford's Mock Draft

[UConn3432]

so i was looking at ESPN and saw Chad Ford put up his first mock. not surprisingly, DD isn't in first round. then i took a look at ford's top 100, where DD is nestled in at #87. i know most of the updates are old and not sure when he updated this last, but maybe we are putting the cart before the horse. There is a TON of talent projected to be available in the first round of the 2014 draft. With the hype around the freshmen, Euros and other surprises, there aren't many spots for the soph - seniors.
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/results/top100/_/year/2014/set/4

DD needs to have a great year to be considered in the first round. he could have that great year, and still be a second round pick. he's an NBA 3, playing the college 4 right now. safer play is staying for his senior year and developing his perimeter game when uconn possibly returns to a more traditional lineup in 2014-15.

boat is not in the top 100. under no circumstance can i envision a situation where boat gets drafted with russ smith and bazz in the same draft. teams would rather take a tall 19 year old euro than a shoot first short guy that can't defend. its either europe or uconn for boat.

to wrap up, we are closing the door on DD and boat when the rest of the world is penciling them in for 2014. i think the difficulty getting recruits has to do with a simple roster analysis and nothing else. most of these guys admit they love ollie and would run through a wall for him, but you can't do that from the bench.

 

[Rico444]

Forget about the mock drafts; they don't have a clue who's going in the first round right now. DeAndre is gone after this year; it's just going to hurt more when he declares if you get your hopes up now.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Forget about the mock drafts; they don't have a clue who's going in the first round right now. DeAndre is gone after this year; it's just going to hurt more when he declares if you get your hopes up now.

I would imagine that Chad Ford doesn't know who DeAndre Daniels is, or if he does he hasn't seen him play more than once. So with that in mind I don't take much from him being ranked 87 or whatever. I also think that while UConn fans know that he came on strong down the stretch last year, the lack of a post-season means he didn't really generate any buzz. A 12 points, 5 rebound season is not going to do it.

I also think that people are going way overboard in penciling him in the lottery next year, or even the first round. There's a lot of talent out there, especially next year. It's not going to be a year where a kid slides into the lottery because there's no one else to take.

This is where superjohn posts that he's a lock to go top 5.

 

[James]

Shabazz criminally underrated. Has had as good of a summer as any other pg prospect. Jahii Carson is like 3 inches shorter and simply not as good. The argument should be boat vs Carson.

 

[aceboon]

Carson is really good and an athletic freak to boot, even more athletic than Boat imo. Boat and Carson were at the same Adidas Nations camp and you didn't hear a peep about Boat's performance, meanwhile coaches and scouts were raving about Carson.

 

[Rico444]

I would imagine that Chad Ford doesn't know who DeAndre Daniels is, or if he does he hasn't seen him play more than once. So with that in mind I don't take much from him being ranked 87 or whatever. I also think that while UConn fans know that he came on strong down the stretch last year, the lack of a post-season means he didn't really generate any buzz. A 12 points, 5 rebound season is not going to do it.

I also think that people are going way overboard in penciling him in the lottery next year, or even the first round. There's a lot of talent out there, especially next year. It's not going to be a year where a kid slides into the lottery because there's no one else to take.

This is where superjohn posts that he's a lock to go top 5.

Don't know anything for sure, but I've seen enough studs come through Storrs to know that DeAndre was a man among boys at the end of last year, and would be stunned if, on talent alone, he wasn't a borderline 1st rounder at the end of next season even if he doesn't break out like we all think.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

The last 4 games of the year (three of which they lost) he played really well, the Georgetown game being the best. Man among boys is a bit strong. Caron was a man among boys when the light flipped. Deandre was a kid who figured out that scoring didn't have to be really, really difficult.

Look, I hope he blows up and goes in the lottery, but as of now I think he's got to make major leaps to get ahead of some of these guys who are already entrenched in the lottery.

 

[James]

Carson is really good and an athletic freak to boot, even more athletic than Boat imo. Boat and Carson were at the same Adidas Nations camp and you didn't hear a peep about Boat's performance, meanwhile coaches and scouts were raving about Carson.

Yeah he's currently a better package than boat. But at barely 5'10 with short arms, he's gotta learn how to shoot in order to be better than bazz IMO. Not to mention bazz is a better defender and only a year older.

 

[TheChamps990411]

DD has to explode onto the national scene this year to end up a lottery pick. He averaged like 20-10 his last four games now he has to prove it wasnt a fluke and do that game in game out from game 1. i think he`ll be more a 16-7 guy but he could surprise me which would be great. The guy im really looking forward to seeing this year is Omar. I think he could be big time this year. Hopefully he worked on his ball handling all summer.

 

[Burnsbros23]

I dont see Shabazz as much of an NBA prospect. Carson isn't a slam dunk but he has NBA quickness and athleticism. Hes a nice little passer and his jump shot is coming along.

 

[Rico444]

The last 4 games of the year (three of which they lost) he played really well, the Georgetown game being the best. Man among boys is a bit strong. Caron was a man among boys when the light flipped. Deandre was a kid who figured out that scoring didn't have to be really, really difficult.

Look, I hope he blows up and goes in the lottery, but as of now I think he's got to make major leaps to get ahead of some of these guys who are already entrenched in the lottery.

Maybe that's a bit optimistic of me, but at times he was completely dominant. It reminded me of all the UConn studs right before they exploded: Emeka, Rip, Ben, Rudy, Hasheem...the flashes of greatness soon turned into long stretches of being completely unguardable, and soon they were the best player on the floor, and you never felt like the team was going to lose. You don't have to agree, but I've seen enough from DeAndre to feel pretty confident that he's going to make that leap this year.

 

[boog204]

DD has to show he has the handle and more consistent perimeter skills to be a first rounder... He shot 40% from 3 during his big 7 game run late in the season as opposed to 20% for the first 20+ games. I think he can easily be a 35% shooter which will greatly enhance his NBA prospects. With the handle, it seemed like he was very turnover prone handling in a triple threat scenario on the perimeter and most of his scoring was around the hoop.

I don't see Boat as an NBA player yet. The comp offered here is to that of Nate Robinson. While Robinson is more of shoot first point, I think he has better athleticism, strength, and point guard skills. Boat was really our two guard last year and he was fairly disastrous (minus that prayer he hit against PC) in late in the clock playmaking opportunities.

Bazz can play and he has the intangible that will make him bare minimum a solid backup point guard. He's just got that something that separates him. I expect a HUGE senior year from him.

 

[boog204]

DD has to explode onto the national scene this year to end up a lottery pick. He averaged like 20-10 his last four games now he has to prove it wasnt a fluke and do that game in game out from game 1. i think he`ll be more a 16-7 guy but he could surprise me which would be great. The guy im really looking forward to seeing this year is Omar. I think he could be big time this year. Hopefully he worked on his ball handling all summer.

The handle is key for Omar... With it he can become a very, very good player. Without it, he's a poor man's Rashad. Not a bad thing, obviously- but he should be a better all around player than RA was before he's done.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Do other fan bases obsess this much about the NBA prospects of their players? I mean, obviously it's great when they go off and do well, and it helps eventually with recruiting, but I'm a fan of UConn more than the UConn-alum NBA fantasy team.

I'd rather have guys like Thabeet who dominated the college game, but became NBA busts, rather than guys like Andre Drummond, who were so-so in college, but made a big splash in the League.

Next year's team might be the rare one in recent (last 20 years) UConn history that were much better players in college than in the pros, and I'm perfectly OK with that.

 

[Rico444]

Do other fan bases obsess this much about the NBA prospects of their players? I mean, obviously it's great when they go off and do well, and it helps eventually with recruiting, but I'm a fan of UConn more than the UConn-alum NBA fantasy team.

I'd rather have guys like Thabeet who dominated the college game, but became NBA busts, rather than guys like Andre Drummond, who were so-so in college, but made a big splash in the League.

Next year's team might be the rare one in recent (last 20 years) UConn history that were much better players in college than in the pros, and I'm perfectly OK with that.

If you want UConn to become a mid-major, then it's perfectly fine to have every player that comes to your school flame out in the NBA. However, every time we have a Ray Allen or a Caron Butler or a Rudy Gay or a Kemba Walker go into the league and have great success, recruits look at Connecticut as the place that helped get them there, and as a place that can do the same for them.

 

[champs99and04]

I've been saying this for a while now - everybody seems to think Boatright and Daniels are locks to bolt after this season, but the reality is there is a good chance both of them are back, and if that's the case, the 2014 team will be a national title contender. If I had to guess I'd say Deandre returns and Boatright leaves.

Rico - while I hear what you're saying about Daniels, and expect big things from him this season, you have to understand that there are a lot of mouths to feed next season. Omar, Bazz, and Boat are all going to take 10+ shots a game, Giffey will shoot some, Kromah will look to score off the bench, and if Olander ever returns he'll have the green light on offense too. That means even if he improves substantially as a player - which I believe he will - he may not overwhelm scouts with his statistical output.

Deandre's an ordinary prospect. He shows flashes of dominance at the NBA level, but at the next level he isn't quick enough laterally to guard threes and not strong enough to guard much of anybody. His jump shot is unreliable, he's not an elite athlete, and his handle is shaky. His skill set is far enough advanced offensively that I think he can dominate the college game next season if he puts it all together, and he's talented enough to get drafted and maybe push his way into the first round with a dominant junior season, but he's not the lottery-caliber, Rip/Caron type player the boneyard hype machine would have you believe.

 

[Matrim55]

Do other fan bases obsess this much about the NBA prospects of their players?

Louisville fans definitely don't!

Anyway, I agree with those here who feel that DD has a lot of improving to do before he makes the leap. But he has the stuff that teams are craving from mid first-round picks: length, athleticism, and a stroke that says he can hit the corner 3 with time.

"Poor man's Kawhi Leonard" is what he should be aiming for. Lock it down on D, hit open jumpers, and occasionally slash to the hoop for alley-oops.

 

[Rico444]

I've been saying this for a while now - everybody seems to think Boatright and Daniels are locks to bolt after this season, but the reality is there is a good chance both of them are back, and if that's the case, the 2014 team will be a national title contender. If I had to guess I'd say Deandre returns and Boatright leaves.

Rico - while I hear what you're saying about Daniels, and expect big things from him this season, you have to understand that there are a lot of mouths to feed next season. Omar, Bazz, and Boat are all going to take 10+ shots a game, Giffey will shoot some, Kromah will look to score off the bench, and if Olander ever returns he'll have the green light on offense too. That means even if he improves substantially as a player - which I believe he will - he may not overwhelm scouts with his statistical output.

Deandre's an ordinary prospect. He shows flashes of dominance at the NBA level, but at the next level he isn't quick enough laterally to guard threes and not strong enough to guard much of anybody. His jump shot is unreliable, he's not an elite athlete, and his handle is shaky. His skill set is far enough advanced offensively that I think he can dominate the college game next season if he puts it all together, and he's talented enough to get drafted and maybe push his way into the first round with a dominant junior season, but he's not the lottery-caliber, Rip/Caron type player the boneyard hype machine would have you believe.

Who's the last UConn player to dominate the college game and not get drafted high? As good as Shabazz was this year, he didn't dominate the college game.

People forget that NBA scouts said last season that Daniels was the best NBA prospect on the team, and that was before he really put it together. If DeAndre dominates the college game, what does he have left to prove? He's gone.

 

[seanmc94]

K

If you want UConn to become a mid-major, then it's perfectly fine to have every player that comes to your school flame out in the NBA. However, every time we have a Ray Allen or a Caron Butler or a Rudy Gay or a Kemba Walker go into the league and have great success, recruits look at Connecticut as the place that helped get them there, and as a place that can do the same for them.

Disagree; look at UNC and Duke. All their guys are a joke and they still get tons of top talent

 

[James]

bazz isn't much of a nba prospect because he can't catch a windmill off an alley? Your view of him is sullied by his injury ridden junior campaign. if healthy he can take most pgs off the bounce. An nba comp for him is Cassell. Moxy, hands, automatic mid range with ability to hit threes. Ill bump this when he's killing in workouts.

 

[HooperScooper]

bazz isn't much of a nba prospect because he can't catch a windmill off an alley? Your view of him is sullied by his injury ridden junior campaign. if healthy he can take most pgs off the bounce. An nba comp for him is Cassell. Moxy, hands, automatic mid range with ability to hit threes. Ill bump this when he's killing in workouts.

Meanwhile, Ollie said guard Omar Calhoun isn't cleared yet for five-on-five after offseason hip surgery but is working out at full speed with the coaching staff. Ollie added that Shabazz Napier is "looking great. Wow.'' Napier has a real shot to be an All-American, let alone one of the top contenders for American Athletic Conference player of the year.

 

[champs99and04]

Who's the last UConn player to dominate the college game and not get drafted high? As good as Shabazz was this year, he didn't dominate the college game.

People forget that NBA scouts said last season that Daniels was the best NBA prospect on the team, and that was before he really put it together. If DeAndre dominates the college game, what does he have left to prove? He's gone.

Rip - 22 points, 5 rebounds
Caron - 20 points, 8 rebounds
Ben - 19 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds
Mek - 18 points, 12 rebounds, 4 blocks
Hash - 14 points, 11 rebounds, 4 blocks
Kemba - 24 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists

So yeah, maybe you're right in saying DeAndre could sneak into the mid-first round - lottery with a season of this caliber. The problem is I don't see him having a season like this with so much other offensive firepower on the roster. Rip was the undisputed first option on the team, Kemba and Caron both had the green light to shoot on young teams, Ben and Emeka were arguably the best inside/outside tandem in the last decade in college hoops, and Hasheem was dominant defensively.

More stats:

Rip - 16 shots/game, 6 free throws/game
Caron - 15 shots/game, 6 free throws/game
Ben - 14 shots/game, 4 free throws/game
Mek - 12 shots/game, 6 free throws/game
Hash - 8 shots/game, 6 free throws/game
Kemba - 18 shots/game, 8 free throws/game

DeAndre last season - 10 shots/game, 3 free throws/game

DeAndre shot 47% from the field and 31% from three last season. Emeka shot 58% from the field his sophomore season, Ben shot 44% from the field and 42% from three his sophomore year. Hasheem is obviously an anomaly. I guess the point I'm trying to make is this: Emeka was a big man who shot 60% from the field, a completely different player than DeAndre. Ben took a modest 14 shots a game, but over 6 of them were three pointers, and he hit over 43% of them - best case scenario, DeAndre becomes a respectable 36-37% three point shooter this season. Caron and Kemba could basically take as many shots as they wanted because it took a while for a second option to emerge, and Rip was arguably the best pure scorer in UConn history.

Considering:

Bazz - 12 shots/5 free throws a game last year
Boat - 12 shots/5 free throws a game
Omar - 9 shots/4 free throws a game

It's difficult to envision DeAndre exceeding the 15 shot/game threshold like Caron, Rudy, and Kemba did, the three most comparable players to DeAndre from a scoring standpoint. More realistically, he'll take somewhere along the lines of 13 shots a game, hit about half of them, and post a 15/7 type line simply because sacrifices have to be made for the betterment of the team.

Meanwhile, C.J. Fair last season:

15 ppg, 7 rpg, 47/74/76 shooting splits on a final four team, borderline first round pick, opted to return for his senior season.

I don't see DeAndre exceeding those numbers.

 

[Rico444]

Rip - 22 points, 5 rebounds
Caron - 20 points, 8 rebounds
Ben - 19 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds
Mek - 18 points, 12 rebounds, 4 blocks
Hash - 14 points, 11 rebounds, 4 blocks
Kemba - 24 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists

So yeah, maybe you're right in saying DeAndre could sneak into the mid-first round - lottery with a season of this caliber. The problem is I don't see him having a season like this with so much other offensive firepower on the roster. Rip was the undisputed first option on the team, Kemba and Caron both had the green light to shoot on young teams, Ben and Emeka were arguably the best inside/outside tandem in the last decade in college hoops, and Hasheem was dominant defensively.

I really doubt that scouts need to see a player take 15-20 shots a night in order to evaluate whether or not a guy can make it in the league, but I'd be willing to bet that he gets 15 shots most nights. If he improves like I think he will, Shabazz and Boat are going to feed him the ball a lot.

Oh, and don't forget Rudy Gay was a lottery pick while playing on a team with a ton of offensive firepower. He took 12 shots per game. And before someone says it, I am NOT saying DeAndre is nearly as athletic as Rudy, or comparing their styles of play; just showing that if the talent and efficiency are there, NBA teams will be willing to draft you whether or not you're the go-to guy.

 

[champs99and04]

I really doubt that scouts need to see a player take 15-20 shots a night in order to evaluate whether or not a guy can make it in the league, but I'd be willing to bet that he gets 15 shots most nights. If he improves like I think he will, Shabazz and Boat are going to feed him the ball a lot.

Oh, and don't forget Rudy Gay was a lottery pick while playing on a team with a ton of offensive firepower. He took 12 shots per game. And before someone says it, I am NOT saying DeAndre is nearly as athletic as Rudy, or comparing their styles of play; just showing that if the talent and efficiency are there, NBA teams will be willing to draft you whether or not you're the go-to guy.

I'm not saying taking 15 shots is a prerequisite for getting drafted, but it certainly helps, especially when you're a junior like DeAndre who doesn't have the one noticeable NBA skill players generally need to stick around in the league. I'm sure you know this already, but the NBA drafts primarily based on potential, and through two years of college, DeAndre has proven to be a mechanical offensive player and somebody who projects as a major liability defensively at the next level, and I guess that has been my point all along: DeAndre isn't Rudy, or Rip, or Caron, or Ben. He's not as fluid as those guys, not as strong, and not as quick off the bounce. Don't get me wrong; I love him as a college player, and I think he can be a monster next season if he puts it all together, but where we differ is in thinking NBA scouts are going to fall in love with him next season and select him in the first round. I don't think that's going to happen.

 

[Rico444]

I guess it just boils down to that: we don't agree. We'll see what happens next year.