2018 updated NBA mock drafts

[RoyKent]

Pretty good collection of where UK guys stand.

Baffles and pisses me off that a team this bad is still somehow going to have 3-4 guys leave for the NBA

https://www.seccountry.com/kentucky...ountryUK&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social

 

[armchairpg]

Knox, fine. SGA is a stretch but I guess he is a 6'6 guard with some ability. Diallo will never be a factor on an NBA team. Vanderbilt can pass and rebound but he has shown zero offense. PJ is too undersized to get by at his current skill level. I think all could be good college players in time but I don't see how they translate to the NBA.

 

[ManitouDan_anon]

Is mock another word for effed' up ?

 

[dorkmeister]

mock or mockery of a draft?

Is this the worse draft ever? If so, I could see them all leaving because none will get drafted next year if its better.

 

[katwest]

If that's what it takes to get drafted, then most of the teams we have played have 3 or 4 players that will get drafted too and go for the fools gold. I guess the name Kentucky can help you out as far as getting drafted according to that. That's an awful lot of money to throw at kids that don't know some of the fundamentals of the game.

 

[UK90]

Baffles and pisses me off that a team this bad is still somehow going to have 3-4 guys leave for the NBA

Doesn't help that they now come with the intent to leave from the beginning.

In the past, they came with the mindset that they'd have a full UK career, but might leave early for the pros if things went well.

Now they come with the mindset that they will leave early, but might be forced to stay longer if things don't go well.

There's just been a fundamental change in how the typical UK recruit views the UK experience.

 

[TheDude73]

I will be looking for the General Manager that drafts Diallo in round 1 to be fired within 12-18 months of such a laughable decision.

 

[richbrookstomato]

If Diallo and Vanderbilt are 1st round picks, it doesn't matter what a kid does for 1'year at Kentucky.

It is amazing to me how horrible those 2 have been on the offensive end and Hami on both, to still be even considered ready for the NBA.

 

[Wall2Boogie]

This list is retarded. I don't care where they rank our guys. If this was Willam and Mary, none of our guys would be on this list and they don't deserve it now

 

[UKWildcatT]

Honestly, this is why people are having a huge issue with this season.

If you knew these guys were all coming back, most fans would “get” a season of struggling.

But when you see these ridiculous mock drafts, with the potential of leaving, yet are squarely on the bubble, you can’t blame fans for being a little pissed.

If you’re a player and bust your ***, 99% of fans get you leaving. We’ve had those guys over the years. Kentucky fans are passionate and know basketball. It’s frustrating to see guys not giving their all, yet potentially leaving.

 

[qwesley]

Mocks generally run about a month behind what NBA scouts are thinking. My guess is Knox will stay late lottery, SGA will be late first, Diallo/Richards late 2nd. Rest undrafted.

 

[theGspot_rivals384545]

Knox is the only consensus lottery pick on the list and I could never blame someone for taking that, ready or not. SGA is kind of anywhere form lottery to mid 20's and seems to be trending downward a bit. Diallo is a late first round pick or early 2nd rd in most mocks. I could see those 3 leaving, but unless someone else just wants to give up a chance to make real money in a year or 2, I can't realistically see any of the others turning pro this year and Diallo and SGA should strongly consider staying as well as neither will be contributors for a few years in the league.

 

[gossie21_rivals69805]

Doesn't help that they now come with the intent to leave from the beginning.

In the past, they came with the mindset that they'd have a full UK career, but might leave early for the pros if things went well.

Now they come with the mindset that they will leave early, but might be forced to stay longer if things don't go well.

There's just been a fundamental change in how the typical UK recruit views the UK experience.

I know. It's just been constantly terrible all the time, nothing good has ever come from this change.

 

[UK90]

If Diallo and Vanderbilt are 1st round picks, it doesn't matter what a kid does for 1'year at Kentucky.

It is amazing to me how horrible those 2 have been on the offensive end and Hami on both, to still be even considered ready for the NBA.

Once again, remember the NBA drafts on future potential. "Ready" has nothing to do with it. It's not about the player you are today, but instead the player you will become in the future.

The players on these SEC teams that've been kicking our *** might look better today, but they're also older than our boys, were not as good as our boys when they were the same age, and don't have the same sort of physical potential to improve in the future.

In the case of Vanderbilt, I can absolutely see why he intrigues scouts, despite his current struggles. The kid has tremendous rebounding instincts, very athletic, plays with a very high motor, and has quite unusual ballhandling skills for his height. If he just could hobble together some sort of decent shot, I can certainly see him developing into a good NBA player in the future.

But with Diallo I don't really see it either. He sure has the body and athletic potential, But I doubt he's ever gonna develop NBA level guard skills.

 

[CatColumbia]

Not only you have to factor the 3 that will leave for the NBA, there's also the ones who transfer or go overseas. There's rumblings of Gabriel leaving due to money issues with family and SKJ.

 

[bthaunert]

Doesn't help that they now come with the intent to leave from the beginning.

In the past, they came with the mindset that they'd have a full UK career, but might leave early for the pros if things went well.

Now they come with the mindset that they will leave early, but might be forced to stay longer if things don't go well.

There's just been a fundamental change in how the typical UK recruit views the UK experience.

It's not even a Kentucky thing anymore. Using the Rivals rankings for last years freshman class, here is what it looked like in terms of declaring for the NBA draft for all 5 star recruits:

1. Josh Jackson - decalred
2. Harry Giles - declared
3. Jayson Tatum - declared
4. Lonzo Ball - declared
5. Markelle Fultz - declared
6. De-Aaron Fox - declared
7. Bam Adebayo - declared
8. Jonathon Isaac - declared
9. Malik Monk - declared
10. Miles Bridges - returned
11. Marques Bolden - returned
12. Frank jackson - declared
13. Wenyen Gabriel - returned
14. Terrance Ferguson - returned
15. Jarrett Allen - declared
16. TJ Leaf - declared
17. Rawl Alkins - returned
18. Omari Spellman - returned
19. Mustapaa Heron - returned
20. Joshua langford - returned
21. Zach Collins - declared
22. Andrew Jones - returned
23. Kobi Simmons - declared
24. Sacha Killeya-Jones - returned
25. Ike Anigbokgu - declared
26. VJ King - returned


15 of 26 declared for the draft. It will continue to be more and more. It's a 5 star thing and not just a Kentucky thing. It seems more with us because we bring in more 5 stars.

 

[RKulmer]

in some cases, the fact they came out of highschool as 5* and showed potential outweighs their first year performance in college. we seem to have some of those this year.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

The JV writeup was 20 days ago.. and in that time JV really showed nothing to suggest he's ready for the NBA. That guys quote is very outdated at this point.

So keep in mind, CBS's is 20 days old. NBADarft is horrible. B/R and The Athletic are from last Friday, we've since dropped two games. SB Nation is over a month old.

A lot has happened in the past month, and not much of it is any good.

Sporting News was updated this morning, and only has 1 lottery player (Knox) and 1 st rounder (Shai). I don't think it's a coincidence the one that was updated most recently has the worst outlook for our guys: if you keep losing games, it's because you're not playing well and the scouts will take notice.