Hmm... who ranked him higher? He wasn't even in their class until recently when he re-classified and graduated early, was he? Paolo and Chet were a year ahead. Heck, I think Chet's about a year older than he is. In the 2022 recruiting class, Sharpe was ranked #1 for a while, though.
Ok good catch. I goofed. He was consensus number 1 for 2022 class and when he reclassified the sites I named like 247 I had him ranked 3rd BEHIND Chet and Paolo. Impressive still, but I messed up. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. Hate to spread misinformation! https://247sports.com/Season/2021-Basketball/RecruitRankings/?InstitutionGroup=HighSchool @D-rock
No problem. The whole Emoni Bates, Shaedon Sharpe, Jaden Hardy, etc. re-classification/draft eligibility, "G-League or no" journey was a nightmare for me to follow. People like Bates, Hardy, and PBJ were top 5-10 guys in their class, too, but what a difference a year makes. This is kind of what scares me about Sharpe. Bates, Hardy, and PBJ could still become great players in this draft, but like Rafael Barlowe was saying, if they had just stopped playing after high school, and all we had were their high school videos, we'd be thinking about them probably being a top 5-10 draft pick, too. Like in every draft, there are going to be a lot of blown picks and steals in this one, too, probably.
Yeah it’s hard to keep up with. Here were his final rankings. Sharpe's last RSCI rank: ESPN: #1 in 2022, de-ranked Rivals: #1 in 2022, #3 in 2021 behind Chet, Paolo 247: #1 in 2022, #3 in 2021 behind Chet, Paolo
He is 22 this year and technically a junior already. He did a reverse reclassification, whereas others like Kuminga last year and Jalen Duren this year entered college a year earlier than they should have he entered college a year later cuz he played 1 more AAU season. Murray played PF and C his entire college career. He even won Karl Malone PF award. While thats good enough for college I do wonder how that will translate in the NBA given he is only 6'8 and played in a relatively weak conference (or so I've been told, dont really watch NCAA). This draft has a lot of sf/pf prospects I'd rather get younger guys like Mathurin, Tari Eason, Ousmane Dieng, Sochan etc
It doesnt mean much though since none of them played college at that time right? Reminds me of when Aaron Rivers was ranked no 1 coming into Duke.
Big Ten isn't a weak conference, taking the most teams (9) to the tournament. As for age, it's just not much of a consideration for me as it is for some. I remember a time when everyone taken at the top of the draft was 21+ and would actually come in and immediately contribute to winning. I actually wasn't aware of the year he had at prep school, but looking at the stats, I actually like him even more. He shot 38% from three in 37 games on 7.8 attempts per. Gives me confidence that his sophomore year percentage (.398) is sustainable and that his freshman year (.296 on limited attempts) was an outlier. And it might be worth noting that the stat site for the prep school had him listed at 6'8" with a 6'11" wingspan. If both haven't increased somewhat since then, I'd be surprised. The combine can't come soon enough.
Agree…this could be a red flag. Is he potentially a “lazy” isolated player or is this just coach speak???
It's always fun to see those rankings. Like LaMelo was 40th in his class, Jordan Poole was 99th, Jalen Brunson (19th) was ahead of Donovan Mitchell (27th) and Dejounte Murray (45th), Domantas Sabonis was 92nd.
I really don’t understand all the people worrying about positional fit and that we don’t need another 6’6” player, etc. I don’t even mean that in the ‘positionless basketball’ sense. If he’s got 5” longer wingspan than KJ Martin, who we often play at the 4, why is everyone sweating that he’s ‘another guard’? Sharpe is an long, athletic, strong, off-ball wing (3/SF) with plus shooting and plus finishing, who is also a two-way player with versatility and upside defensively. How does that not fit great with what we have now (Green, Sengun, maybe KPJ)? I get he doesn’t have college tape, we’ll see how his workouts and interviews go, etc. I’m not saying we should definitely draft him. But I really don’t understand how someone could not like the idea of this type of player. If we miss out on on a top three pick and can’t get a possibly generational big, Sharpe is a near perfect archetype for the kind of player we should be looking for next, imo.
Yes, or he could give a GM a decade plus of job security. He is no different than any other prospect at the end of the day.... it all comes down to how well the front office can evaluate a players ability and personality and put the player in a position to be successful. There will be reports from how strong he looked in practice at Kentucky, how his attitude is and how and what he did off the court. There will be investigators hired, etc.
Tracy McGrady had the same thing happen. Sharpe grew quite a bit and filled out physically. He was the best player when competing against the best players in his class. What I have seen of Sharpe is impressive, but I haven't seen enough to really go to bat for him..... but the reality is if he is currently THAT impressive and that age, then it doesn't matter how prolific he was a few years earlier.
He came out a year early.... he should have been a high school senior this year. What exactly did he say that is so concerning? That Sharpe isn't in shape? Calipari said the same thing about all of his freshman in this class. Also.... that interview was after ONE day of practice. I really wouldn't read too much into any of this.
Plus I want back and looked at all the guys 247 ranked number 1 over the past decade and they all went to college and pretty much maintained their status as a top 5 pick with a couple exceptions and that was Mudiay who went 7th and Noel only dropped to 6th because of his knee injury. So historically speaking, it isn’t fair to assume Sharpe’s stock would’ve dropped significantly had he attended college when history suggests otherwise. 247 HS Number 1 2021 - Chet (TBD but a top 5 lock) 2020 - Cunningham (1st pick) 2019 - Edwards (1st Pick) 2018 - RJ Barrett (3rd pick) 2017 - Marvin Bagley (2nd pick) 2016 - Josh Jackson (4th pick) 2015 - Ben Simmons (1st pick) 2014 - Emmanuel Mudiay (7th pick) 2013 - Andrew Wiggins (1st pick) 2012 - Nerlens Noel (6th pick) 2011 - Anthony Davis (1st pick)
Barlowe knows about as much as you and I do when it comes to actual ability to evaluate talent. Bates and Hardy already were viewed with some degree of skepticism by NBA scouts and front offices. Bates and Hardy both lacked some of the measurables to be super elite type guys at the top of the draft. PBJ never was going to be a top 3-4 guy for the same reasons.
The interview says he has not looked good at practice, missed all his shots, literally said you don't have to make all your shots, but can't miss them all. Implies the reason he is not playing is because he is not good enough yet. Also said he could play later in the year depending on injury situation. Later in the year Kentucky was devastated by injuries a couple of games and he still didn't see the floor. It was clear by this interview that whether Sharpe was going to play or not was dependant on how ready he was, aka how good. He never played, so that's all we need to know how he's looked in practice. As for age, there are multiple players in this draft the same age or younger that played major roles and excelled in college. Jabari is a couple months older, Duren and AJ Griffin are both YOUNGER. Age is no excuse for why Sharpe was not good enough to play.
Exactly. Scouts over the last 10-15 years have gotten to the point where they can pretty accurately identify those players that have the physical abilities and skill sets that translate well in the NBA. They cannot always evaluate what is going on in a players head (Jackson/Noel) or what a players work ethic will be (Bagley/Mudiay/Simmons). Still, if you look at all things considered, they are pretty good at top flight evaluation.
