Looks like Scrubb is headed to the NBA after all.
Evan Daniels
@EvanDaniels
The nation's top Junior College prospect Jay Scrubb, who had committed to Louisville, is signing with an agent and will forgo his college eligibility, his father tells
@247Sports
3:11 PM · Apr 9, 2020
Scrubb likely would have been Louisville's leading scorer next season, or at least been in contention for that. He is a very good perimeter defender too. Instead, he will be contending with Cassius Stanley to be one of the wings taken maybe late in the first round but likely in the first 10 or so picks of the second round.
-Jason "Scrubb is probably a little behind Stanley on NBA draft boards. Jordan Nwora is in that same area too" Evans
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I don't think we mentioned it here but Clemson's Aamir Simms has declared for the draft. He has not hired an agent and says he is just testing the waters. He is not on any draft boards but it would not be entirely shocking if he decided to stay in. His combination of strength and skill is not exactly super easy to find and I would not be shocked if he got some encouraging feedback from teams. No way anyone uses a first rounder on him, but he could get a 2-way contract if the cards fall right for him.
-Jason "Clemson was only going to lose Tevin Mack and could really step up in 2020-21... but losing Simms would be devastating" Evans
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Creighton’s Alexander to declare for the draft.
Luka Garza has declared for the draft but made it clear he's maintaining his eligibility. Sounds to me like a "get feedback and come back" situation, but if he were to go pro that would be a major knock for a potential pre-season Top-10 team.
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Duke Chronicle, Sports Online Editor: 2010-2012
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Ty-Shon Alexander seems more committed to the draft than Luka Garza, but has left open the possibility of returning. Links:
Luka Garza to Test NBA Draft Process (Iowa Hawkeyes website)
Jeff Goodman @GoodmanHoops"With that said, after meeting with my family and coaches I have decided that I will be declaring for the 2020 NBA Draft, and throughout this process I will be keeping my eligibility."
Creighton guard Ty-Shon Alexander (16.9 ppg) expected to declare for the NBA Draft & barring a change of heart, his intention is to remain in the draft and bypass his senior season, NBA source told @Stadium. Hit to a Bluejays team that's currently in everyone’s Preseason Top 4.
10:16 AM · Apr 10, 2020
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Freshman Trendon Watford of LSU is going to the NBA. He hasn't hired an agent yet and seems like a likely 2nd rounder so he may decide to come back. If he returns, LSU will have almost everyone back and will likely be a top 25 club coming into the preseason.
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Immanuel Quickley is headed to the draft and intends to "stay in it".
That now means Kentucky has lost essentially anyone who played any meaningful minutes in the backcourt for them last season between draft entrants and transfers, and it's still expected that they'll lose some if not all of their frontcourt. So for those feeling down about Duke getting decimated by the draft, Kentucky is getting hit even harder, and certainly doesn't look like they can be a "top 5" preseason team returning almost no contributors...
Scott Rich on the front page
Trinity BS 2012; University of Michigan PhD 2018
Duke Chronicle, Sports Online Editor: 2010-2012
K-Ville Blue Tenting 2009-2012
Unofficial Brian Zoubek Biographer
If you have questions about Michigan Basketball/Football, I'm your man!
There was a rumor on a Kentucky blog a few weeks ago that hinted at a mass exodus and that nearly everyone - Hagans, Maxey, Quickely, Richards, and Montgomery - were going to enter the NBA Draft. So far, that rumor is holding up. In addition to the backcourt leaving, Johnny Juzang has transferred. That leaves two big decisions - Richards and Montgomery - remaining. Reserve forward Keion Brooks is expected back. Redshirt freshman Dontaie Allen, who sat out the year after an injury during his senior year of high school, is also expected to contribute. But returning one player that averaged 4.5 points and 3.2 rebounds is asking a lot.
Coincidentally, if Richards does leave for the NBA, Cal will continue his streak of only having 1 McDonald's All-American stay all 4 years in his 11 seasons in Lexington. That player was Alex Poythress.
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Another blow to a blue-blood who would be a preseason Top 10 team next season: Devon Dotson is heading to the draft and appears instead on sticking in.
For everyone who is down on Duke's prospects for a (hopeful) 2020-2021 season, it's worth keeping in mind that many of the teams that would be our primary competition at the national level are also getting hit hard by the draft, arguably harder than Duke is considering it's looking more and more likely we'll retain Wendell and Matt. While teams like Villanova, Creighton (although as mentioned here they could be losing a key contributor too), Gonzaga and Baylor will be atop the pre-season rankings considering their returning talent (you could place teams like Virginia and Iowa in the next tier below them), none of those teams will have the "NBA-caliber" talent that we will with Jalen, Wendell, and Matt all being potential (key emphasis there) 2021 first round picks. We obviously view everything through our own "Duke lens", but remembering the broader context that everyone is/will be losing a lot is important.
Scott Rich on the front page
Trinity BS 2012; University of Michigan PhD 2018
Duke Chronicle, Sports Online Editor: 2010-2012
K-Ville Blue Tenting 2009-2012
Unofficial Brian Zoubek Biographer
If you have questions about Michigan Basketball/Football, I'm your man!
I don't get the hype over Kansas for next season. Their defense was hugely reliant on Azubuike. Sure, they'll have size next year with McCormack and De Sousa. But McCormack isn't a rim protector and neither are nearly as effective at scoring at 'Doke was. Kansas last year was stout defensively, in particular inside the arc. Doke was a huge part of that, both literally and figuratively. The year before, when he was injured, the Jayhawks were mediocre defensively. Marcus Garrett is quite the defender. But you couldn't get anything going inside. You can swing the ball away from Garrett. But you couldn't get the ball into the paint and do anything down low. Vernon Carey, Jr. struggled to score against Azubuike (and vice versa).
Now they lose Dotson. And Moss graduated. Garrett can't shoot. Agbaji isn't much better. Garrett's assist rate is good and he is a heck of a defender. He is not nearly as offensively gifted as Dotson. Can he really facilitate the offense? Here again, Doke was doing a lot of the work. He made life a lot easier on the guards. Freshman Christian Braun proved to be a good shooter if not overly talented. They bring in one very good freshman this next season in Bryce Thompson. There's a JUCO transfer, Tyon Grant-Foster that will play the wing position. They are pretty thin up front after McCormack and De Sousa, who has been a net negative most of his time in Lawrence.
This roster doesn't add up to me. Who's the dynamic playmaker? Who defends inside? Who shoots? Also, what is the NCAA going to do? Probably nothing if we are being honest. But I just don't see it with this Kansas team next year.
... and de Sousa should be in jail...
I wouldn't say that Kansas is pretty thin up front. You've listed two guys already in McCormack and De Sousa (who had a better block rate than Dok last year). That's more size than most teams have already. After that, they have fifth-year senior Lightfoot returning, as well as last year's top-50ish recruit Jalen Wilson and top-100 recruit Tristan Enaruna as options at the PF spot. That's a lot of depth up front. They'll have a bunch of interchangeable parts on the wings in Agbaji, Thompson, Grant-Foster, and Braun. Garrett is a good option as a backup PG and a defensive wizard. If they'd had Dotson returning, they'd easily be a top-10 caliber team. I don't think it would be a team that plays with the same identity as the team with Dok did, but it'd be a VERY good team.
The loss of Dotson definitely hurts though. Now they have questions about who can run the offense. This past year they had two ballhandlers in Dotson and Garrett. Having both return would allow Thompson to play more on the wing next year as he develops. But now Thompson and Garrett are going to be thrust into more prominent ballhandling roles. Either that or lightly-recruited redshirt Dajuan Harris will be asked to provide minutes at PG. What was once a strength now becomes a big question mark.