Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler! Print and Go Back ESPN.com: NBA [Print without images] Thursday, November 5, 2015 Updated: November 6, 9:31 AM ET Dragan Bender tops 2016 power forward draft prospect rankings By Chad Ford ESPN Insider Last season was a bit of down year for power forwards. Kristaps Porzingis and Trey Lyles were lottery picks, but only one other 4 was taken in the top 25. 2016 NBA Draft Get ready for Ben Simmons, Skal Labissiere and the 2016 draft with analysis from Chad Ford and other ESPN experts. • Top 10 PF prospects | Top 10 SF prospects • Top 10 SG prospects | Top 10 PG prospects • Top 100 rankings | Big Board 1.0 • Mock Draft 1.0 | Way-too-early preview This year looks stronger. We have three power forwards ranked in the lottery and another five ranked as potential first-rounders, more in line with traditional norms. The players below are the best NBA prospects at the power forward position at the moment. To compile this preseason ranking, I spoke to NBA general managers and scouts. As college games begin and the season develops, players will move up and down the list. You can visit our Top 100 prospects list for the latest updates. Potential NBA superstars 1. Dragan Bender Croatia Age: 19 6-foot-11, 211 lbs Bender has been on the NBA radar for a while, but got a significant bump in his draft stock a few weeks ago when his Maccabi Tel Aviv team played two exhibition games against Milano in Chicago and New York. Bender was terrific in both games while matched up against Allesandro Gentile, a player who's likely to be in the NBA next year. His versatility is a big plus. While his offensive game is still rounding out (as is his body), he can play the 3, 4 and 5 on offense -- much like Porzingis in the Liga ACB last year. Bender's 3-point shot is improving and he shows terrific athleticism. What's not to like? "I think the biggest takeaway from those two games was that Bender is going to get significant playing time for Maccabi," one GM said. "That's huge. If he can play big minutes in the Euroleague and make the impact that we saw him make early, he's got a shot at the No. 1 pick. "He's a skilled 7-footer that can score from anywhere and defend three positions. Those guys don't come along very often. "I'd probably put Ben Simmons and Skal Labissiere in front of him. Maybe Brandon Ingram too. But if he has a big year in Europe, I might be inclined to go with Bender. Especially if Porzingis ends up having a big year in New York." Potential NBA starters 2. Henry Ellenson Marquette Freshman 6-10, 228 lbs Ellenson broke his hand in March, robbing him of the opportunity to show off his game to scouts at the McDonald's All American Game and the Nike Hoop Summit. Otherwise he would be more front of mind in NBA circles. He's the rare big man with such a complete offensive package: great athletic ability, the strength to dominate in the post, the shooting ability to stretch the floor and terrific ballhandling skills. He dominated in a four-game trip to Italy for Marquette in August, averaging 21 points and 7.5 rebounds. In other words, he can be an instant impact player. Concerns about his defense abound. And there were conditioning questions until he slimmed down during the past year to a svelte 228. Overall, he's the closest thing we've seen to Kevin Love since Love. "He's the most underrated kid in this draft class," one NBA scout said. "His game and his body have improved so much the past year. Offensively, there isn't anything this kid can't do. "He's a bit of a defensive liability right now, but there's no reason he has to be. He's got great mobility and long arms. He just needs to learn how to play on that end, too. I think he'll pick it up on that end with time. I wouldn't be surprised if you have him in your top five in June." 3. Cheick Diallo Kansas Freshman 6-9, 220 lbs Diallo is still waiting to hear whether he'll be cleared by the NCAA to play for Kansas. If he is, he'll be an immediate impact player, especially on the defensive end. There isn't a player who plays with more energy or toughness than Diallo. He uses his elite athleticism, long arms and speed to protect the rim and harass players on the perimeter. On offense, he's unpolished. He's been playing basketball for only five years and his game is still coming along. But scouts who watched him closely this spring all say the same thing -- his game is developing rapidly on that end, too. "He's my favorite player in the draft," one GM said. "I'm not saying he's the best player. Just my favorite. I love guys that go [all] out on both ends for 48 minutes. They guy just doesn't stop. Bill Self is going to love him. He's going to have a major impact at Kansas on both ends. "And I think if his offense ever catches up to his defense he could be a star. He's got the physical tools and the work ethic and the right demeanor to be one. I love him." 4. Ivan Rabb Cal Freshman 6-10, 215 lbs Rabb is one of the harder freshmen to rank. For much of high school, he was a consensus top-five player in his class. By the end of his senior season, scouts had cooled a bit, as they wondered whether Rabb was a center trapped in the body of a small forward. He has tried to address both of those issues this summer. By August he had put on 11 pounds of muscle. He's been working on refining his face-up game. The rest of his game is NBA-worthy. He's a very good athlete with great length, he plays hard and he's one of the best rebounders in his class. He might be behind the other top freshmen in this class, but he has the talent of a lottery pick. "He might need two years," one NBA GM said. "But he's a really talented kid. He's just skinny and he's still figuring out what his game is. But I love guys with his athleticism and his ability to rebound. Rebounding translates and he's as good of a rebounder as any freshman in the country." Potential NBA rotation players 5. Zhou Qi China Age: 19 7-2, 209 lbs Since Yao Ming took the league by storm in 2002, we have awaited the next star from China. Yi Jianlian looked the part when playing against a chair, but in the NBA he struggled. Since then the talent pipeline from China has dried up. Until now. Scouts are in agreement that Zhou has the potential to be a very good NBA player. He's got an arsenal of offensive moves and the size and athletic ability to succeed. He can be an absolute menace as a shot-blocker. He just has to get stronger -- a lot stronger to survive the NBA. "If he could pack on 30 or so pounds, I see a lot of Kris Porzingis in him," one GM said. "He's so skilled in so many ways. But he's 7-2, 210 pounds. He's got a long ways to go. I'm glad he stayed in China another year. It might need to be another two years. But talent-wise? He's got lottery-type talent." 6. Nigel Hayes Wisconsin Junior 6-7, 250 lbs Hayes was a popular player among NBA scouts last year during a breakout sophomore campaign. Not only is he a versatile forward who can score from anywhere on the floor, he's got a world-class personality on and off the court. The question is, with Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker now both off to the NBA, can he transition from role player to leading man at Wisconsin? If he can make the leap, we have him too low, but there are plenty of skeptics that fear he'll get exposed under the spotlight. 7. Domantas Sabonis Gonzaga Sophomore 6-10, 230 lbs Sabonis drew lots of praise from NBA scouts last year. While he doesn't yet have the elite basketball IQ of his legendary father Arvydas Sabonis, he's still an intelligent player who made an immediate impact off the bench for Gonzaga as a freshman. He was one of the best rebounders in college basketball last season. He's strong and can score in the paint. But his lack of a consistent jump shot and his below-average length and athleticism for his position raise questions about his NBA upside. 8. Carlton Bragg Kansas Freshman 6-9, 220 lbs Bragg was ranked just 21st among our ESPN 100 top high school seniors. But the near-universal consensus among scouts who've traveled to Lawrence to watch Kansas practice is that he's going to be a NBA player someday. The question is when. His athleticism and offensive versatility (he can score from anywhere on the floor) can make him an attractive prospect. But he still lacks a high basketball IQ, his intensity level can wax and wane and currently he's stuck behind Perry Ellis and Jamari Traylor in KU's rotation at the 4. He might not break out until next season, but scouts will be watching closely anyway. 9. Robert Carter Jr. Maryland Junior 6-9, 235 lbs Carter spent two years at Georgia Tech putting up solid numbers before deciding to sit out a year so that he could transfer to Maryland. At Georgia Tech, scouts saw a talented power forward who excelled as a rebounder and had the ability to stretch the floor and score in the post. But conditioning issues and maturity dogged his draft status. Now Carter is in the best shape of his life (down to a slim 235 pounds, according to his coach) and seems to have matured. Scouts visiting College Park say he could be ready for a breakout year and a shot at the first round of the draft. 10. Alpha Kaba France Age: 19 6-9, 225 lbs Kaba drew serious interest this summer after a stellar workout in Santa Monica, California, in front of a horde of NBA scouts. The big man with a huge 7-foot-3 wingspan played in just eight games last season for Pau-Orthez in France. If he can get more run this year, he's going to be intriguing. He can run the floor, and he has a soft touch and the length and athleticism to thrive at the position. But he needs to develop his basketball IQ and motor. Others to watch: Petr Cornelie, 20, France; Marcus Lee, Jr., Kentucky; Egemen Guven, 19, Turkey; Marquese Chriss, Fr., Washington; Chase Jeter, Fr., Duke; Lauri Markkanen, 18, Finland; Martynas Echodas, 18, Lithuania; Shawn Long, Sr., Louisiana Lafayette; Caleb Swanigan, Fr., Purdue; Brice Johnson, Sr., UNC; Rico Gathers, Sr., Baylor; Jordan Bell, So., Oregon; Jalen Reynolds, Sr., Xavier; Joel Bolomboy, Jr., Weber State; Perry Ellis, Sr., Kansas; Kyle Wiltjer, Sr, Gonzaga; Devin Williams, Jr., West Virginia; Octavius Ellis, Sr., Cincinnati; Ryan Anderson, Sr., Arizona; Jameel McKay, Sr., Iowa State; Bonzie Colson, So., Notre Dame; Jameel Warney, Sr., Stony Brook.
All Kentuckys prospects looked solid -great last night ...not so much for the Duke players tho I still think Murray is gon be a better college than pro player so I wouldn't want my team picking him in the top 10 ...anything after that he can be a solid player in the rotation, especially if he plays the 2 Valentine can be one of those late 1st/2nd round picks that can develop into a solid role player
Good signs for top NBA prospects Ben Simmons, Brandon Ingram http://www.si.com/thecauldron/2015/11/19/early-signs-nba-prospects-ben-simmons-lsu
Yo yall think Simmons can play the 3 in the NBA? Sucks that the best player in this draft seems like a natural 4 when my team needs guards & small forward
I think the path to reaching his full potential is by playing the 4. I'm just really feel there is a hard ceiling on how effective non shooters can be on the perimeter.
Yea that's basically what i figured. So who do you suggest a team like the Sixers take if they end up with 2 top 10 picks if the Lakers dont retain theirs from us. Please dont say any big men
Skal and Dragan really could play PF both have potential as shooters. So it wouldn't be as bad as last year where Jahlil is a pure C. and I wouldn't want to take Brandon Ingram or Jamal murray at 2.
We already got Noel & Saric coming next year tho. We need wings Hinkie got us tanking for nothing then
Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler! Tuesday, November 17, 2015 UK slipping in recruiting? Calipari puts that theory to shame By Jeff Borzello There seemed to be a point in each of the past couple years when we just for a second began to question -- again, just for a second -- John Calipari’s recruiting strategy at Kentucky. It happened last spring, when the Wildcats missed out on nearly every remaining five-star prospect from the 2015 class. So what happened? Calipari went out and landed five-star Canada native Jamal Murray and then top-50 Australia native Isaac Humphries, convincing both players to reclassify from 2016 to 2015. Naturally, Kentucky ended up with the No. 2 recruiting class in the country. It started happening again late in the summer a few months ago. Back in July, Calipari told Andy Katz that Kentucky’s 2016 recruiting class “could be our best class ever.” At the time, going down the list of ESPN 100 prospects, it was unclear where Calipari was getting the idea that Kentucky could get the No. 1 class in the country this season -- let alone one of the Wildcats’ best ever. John Calipari John Calipari has put questions about Kentucky's recruiting momentum to bed -- emphatically. Harry Giles and possibly Wenyen Gabriel were leaning toward Duke, Dennis Smith and Bam Adebayo seemed NC State-bound, Miles Bridges was going to be a battle with Michigan State, and would Arkansas really let Malik Monk leave the state? Where was Kentucky getting its customary handful of top-notch recruits? While we’ve reached the point where we typically take as read that Calipari will end up with a great class, it wasn’t obvious how good this class could actually be. Then high-level four-star forward Sacha Killeya-Jones committed in August. Gabriel ended up setting a surprise announcement date and popped for Kentucky. De'Aaron Fox, a player Kentucky began focusing on in the summer, waited until the early signing period to choose the Wildcats -- but most assumed he was Lexington-bound for several weeks. And Tuesday brought the biggest coup: elite power forward Edrice “Bam” Adebayo spurned NC State and announced for Calipari’s program. Adebayo was long assumed to be an NC State lean, as AAU teammate Dennis Smith Sr. pledged to the Wolfpack and head coach Mark Gottfried prioritized him very early in the process. But Adebayo chose to leave the state and head to the SEC instead. So as we head out of the early signing period, look where Kentucky is: No. 2 in the 2016 class rankings and quickly closing the gap on No. 1 Duke. And if the Wildcats get Monk -- and it’s looking like a tight battle between Kentucky and home-state Arkansas -- they will pass the Blue Devils atop the rankings. Would it be the best class of all time? That’s tough to say, as Kentucky’s 2013 class included five of the top nine players in the country and a sixth top-25 prospect. That’s really beside the point, though. John Calipari has once again worked his magic during recruiting crunch time and delivered an elite group to Lexington. How does he do it? During a time when players are looking for playing time and a guaranteed starting spot, Calipari is able to lure elite prospects regardless of who is currently on the Wildcats’ roster. Sophomore Tyler Ulis and five-star freshman Isaiah Briscoe might be back next season? No problem, come on down De'Aaron Fox. We already signed three power forwards and could still have Marcus Lee, Isaac Humphries and Derek Willis? Welcome to the fold, Bam Adebayo. It’s uncanny the way he does it -- but something he said to ESPN’s Paul Biancardi in a Q&A last week sheds some light on his pitch. “My question to them is: Do you want to be drafted, or do you want to play minutes and score in college? Tell me your goals. If you want to be prepared for the NBA, have a great campus life, be with a group of guys who are all trying to eat, not just you … If you want to be the face of the program, then you’re not coming to Kentucky, because you are not the only guy. It’s just not happening.” Going to a school where there is a potential logjam at a position could scare away even the best prospects -- but that’s certainly the not the case at Kentucky. Prospects don’t seem to worry about the absurd depth in Lexington. Of course, a season like 2014-15 helps, a season in which Calipari publicized the idea of “platoons” and tried to use a 10-man rotation when healthy. Four players from that team were drafted in the lottery, including a player (Devin Booker) who didn’t start a game and another (Trey Lyles) who didn’t start until midway through the season. No one averaged 26 minutes per game. Calipari has said he will never use platoons again, but the seed has already been planted: it doesn’t matter how many minutes you get, it doesn’t matter how many points you score, you can still be drafted in the lottery if you come to Kentucky. And it’s worked, time and time again. The proof is in the success on the recruiting trail: Calipari has never had a class finish below No. 2 nationally since arriving at Kentucky in 2009. Recruits don’t doubt Calipari -- and after the eighth straight year in which Kentucky will have either the No. 1 or No. 2 recruiting class in the country, no one else probably will either.
Give and Go: Ben Simmons's potential, sleepers and more NBA draft debates http://www.si.com/nba/2015/11/23/nba-draft-ben-simmons-lsu-kris-dunn-jamal-murray-kentucky-duke
Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler! Print and Go Back ESPN.com: NCB On The Trail [Print without images] Wednesday, November 11, 2015 Recruiting Q&A: Kentucky coach John Calipari By Paul Biancardi As the early signing period begins in college basketball Wednesday, few coaches will be under more scrutiny than Kentucky coach John Calipari. Calipari has built a reputation as one of the foremost recruiters in the history of the sport, assembling teams that have reached six Final Fours, including one national title, and yielded a total of 31 NBA players. ESPN National Recruiting Director Paul Biancardi sat down with Calipari to discuss his philosophies on the trail, the challenges he faces in identifying talent that will uphold the Kentucky standard, and the way the recruiting climate has changed since he became the UMass head coach at age 29 in 1988: Paul Biancardi, ESPN: Obviously every coach wants to have the most talent he can at his disposal, but how challenging is it to recruit at a place like Kentucky where there are constant unknowns about players leaving for the next level, players reclassifying, etc.? John Calipari: Well, our recruiting comes back to who really wants this situation, because there's some unknowns. The unknown of how much are you going to play. Are you going to start? How many shots are you going to take? Who are your teammates going to be? There are really a lot of unknowns and you know what? Some don’t like that. John Calipari John Calipari is 190-38 (.833) in six seasons as head coach at Kentucky. The knowns are: I am going to improve, I'm going to learn servant leadership, I'm going to learn to be a great teammate, to share, to have what I need for the next level, I'm going to be drafted after one, two, three or four years, I'm going to get a second contract in the NBA -- we currently have 15 guys in the NBA with second contracts. That's what our guys get. That's the difference at Kentucky. Biancardi: How much time do you spend with your staff going over contingencies, i.e. who should we recruit if this player leaves after a year, if this player stays, etc., when you're putting together your list of targets? Is there a point where you risk overanalyzing those contingencies? Calipari: We don't recruit that many guys. We only recruit eight, nine, or 10 prospects, normally it's to fill four, five or six spots -- we never know exactly how many we have to fill. We target our recruits in this way: Is there anyone out there that has said publicly they want to play at Kentucky? If so, my staff evaluates to see if they are good enough and if so, let's go see them play. If they are good enough then let's stop right there, we won't go any farther. Next, let's get a little deeper into it and see if they really like us and really want us. We are never begging a kid, we are not going to spend time trying to "flip" a kid -- we don't do that. "We really like you, do you like us with the same level of interest? No? Fine -- who's next?" That's how we get it down to less than 10 guys for a handful of spots. Biancardi: What would your message be to a high-level recruit who voices concerns over potential minutes ... is that a red flag for your staff or is it something you seek to address with the recruit? John Calipari with players John Calipari has sent many to the NBA, including 2015 first-rounders Devin Booker, Willie Cauley-Stein and Karl-Anthony Towns. Calipari: You have to answer their questions, and it's OK to have those questions. A recruit will tell me that some schools promise starting positions, minutes, shots, and that the offense will center around them. We don't promise those things, and some are not comfortable with that. I ask them why [they're not comfortable], and explain how Devin Booker came off the bench and was the 13th pick in last year's NBA draft. My question to them is: Do you want to be drafted, or do you want to play minutes and score in college? Tell me your goals. If you want to be prepared for the NBA, have a great campus life, be with a group of guys who are all trying to eat, not just you ... If you want to be the face of the program, then you're not coming to Kentucky, because you are not the only guy. It's just not happening. Biancardi: Do you, or have you ever recruited to a system, i.e. we want to play up-tempo so I need a certain type of player, or we need to "play big" so I need a certain type of player? Calipari: I would like to play small ball with 6-[foot-]9 players. I want position-less players who have a good heart and high character because everyone is trying to eat, and then piece it together based on their strengths. There is no real system, we always want to play at a fast tempo, we want to attack, shoot more and make more free throws than our opponents. I only want to average 11-12 turnovers a game, no more, and I don't want much less than that because it might mean we are not playing aggressive, with unselfishness, and making defense a priority. How it happens depends on who we have. When you have a yearly changeover like us you can't say, "This is how we're going to play." We can't have a system, but we do have a philosophy. Right now, with this year's team, I haven't figured out how we are playing. Calipari has to sell recruits on not being the main attraction at a program where the brand is the star. Biancardi: After you establish a recruit's talent level, what traits are most important to you in the evaluation process? Calipari: Does he help other players get better, by him being on the court does everyone else better? Does he make the game easier for his teammates? Character matters when groups of young people come together to do something special. One guy can ruin it for everyone else, one guy without character who goes out on his own, he hurts the chemistry of the group. So it boils down to does this guy make the game easier for his teammates? Is he disrespectful to his family? There's no way that he can make it here, because it's not going to be about him anymore, it's going to be about us. Biancardi: Kentucky has a great tradition ... is that something you try to sell to recruits? Do 17-year-olds really care about tradition or is that just something fans would like to believe? Calipari: This is about a relationship that my staff and I have with a player and his family. That relationship is based on trying to help them achieve their goals. We try and make them understand there is a plan and a process to this. You have to understand what it means to be a servant leader, to share, to be unselfish, what it means to be a great teammate -- it's more about that than the history of Kentucky. Now, Kentucky is the stage, it's Carnegie Hall. You can be off-Broadway and maybe make it, or you can make it on the biggest of the big stages, which means you are making it -- that's what Kentucky is for us. When I leave here there will be another coach, and it will still be Kentucky. Fifty years from now, it's still going to be Kentucky. This is about a relationship me and my staff are going to have with that young man making sure he eats first, that we know what his dreams and aspirations are, and help him reach those goals. Biancardi: How has the recruiting climate changed from 1988 when you took the UMass job, until today? John Calipari Calipari (here in 1996) admits that the recruiting terrain has changed measurably since his days at UMass. Well, back then you had guys for four years. When we recruited at UMass we weren't worried about positions, we were just trying to get guys. I didn't care if they were centers, forwards or point guards. One team had five centers on it by position -- I had to make someone the center, the power forward and small forward. We took them because they were the best players we could recruit. When we got them they were staying four years -- we had time to develop them. Every third class, you had to have a really good group. In between you could land a player or two, or sometimes we would strike out, but it was OK because you had your team coming back, so it was not that big a deal. Now it is a totally different look. With this new television deal and the NBA collective barging agreement, this becomes generational poverty to generational wealth, and I don't take that lightly. We offer kids a lifetime scholarship, or they can leave after one, two, three years or stay and graduate. They don't have to stay and they don't have to leave, it's about what's right for you. Some, mentally, physically or skill-wise are not ready to leave. Some are, and they go. I only had one guy talk me into [the player] staying -- it was Patrick Patterson. (Patterson came back for his junior year of 2009-10, and left for the NBA with a degree after that season). Biancardi: What do you think is the biggest mistake young coaches make in recruiting, whether they're young head coaches or young assistants? Calipari: Probably trying to recruit too many guys. But I understand the fear of not getting anybody who's out there, so I wouldn't blame them. At UMass we had the guys we wanted on a list, and then if we missed on those we had another list. And if we couldn't get anyone, and we were in total desperation we would go to another list, reach on a kid, and hoped that he would be good enough in time. Now I think it's different, but there are still schools in that frame of mind and that's OK. But when you talk the top 50 programs, they are in the same boat I am in. If any school were to say, "I am not taking a kid for one year," please say it publicly so I have less people to recruit against. We are all looking for the best players. Biancardi: If you could have given a lifetime scholarship to one player over any of your previous stops, so you could have coached him forever, who would it have been? Calipari: Wow. There is no way it's just one player. [pauses]. This is impossible because at UMass we had guys like Lou Roe, Derek Kellogg and Tony Barbee; at Memphis, Derrick Rose, Chris Roberts, Antonio Anderson, Tyreke Evans and here at Kentucky ... there's a bunch.