KU star: Bring on Draymond
Josh Jackson must like pain. The Kansas star, who some project as a top candidate for NBA Rookie of the Year next season, went to the Suns as the fourth selection in the NBA draft Thursday at Barclays Center. And during his meet-and-greet with the media, he was asked who he looks forward to playing against in the pros.
“Draymond Green,” Jackson said.
As long as you wear a castiron supporter …
“I’ve been knowing him for a long time now. And I’ve watched him grow since he was in high school and playing at Michigan State,” Jackson said of Green, the emotional leader of the champion Warriors who was suspended one game in the Finals last year for swatting LeBron James in the groin. “He’s kind of exactly how I am in terms of being competitive and a little bit of trash talking, so I’m really excited to get out there and be able to play against him.”
Oh, and there are a couple of other guys, too.
“Obviously there are a lot of great players in this league, LeBron James, one of the best players in the world, Kevin Durant,” Jackson said. Arizona’s Lauri Mark
kanen was seen as the best shooting big in the draft, but the guy many considered to carry the highest upside was 6-foot-10 Florida state power forward Jonathan Isaac, who spent his first 10 years in The Bronx before his mother moved the family to Florida.
One element that makes Isaac — selected No. 6 by the Magic — so intriguing is his ball-handling skill. He began high school as a 6-foot-2 perimeter player and one massive growth spurt later, he is a big with huge potential.
“It’s definitely helped me. It’s made it harder to maintain my guard skills because I was shorter back then, but it’s opened other doors, like being able to be a versatile defender and block shots, move my feet,” Isaac said. While most correctly forecast the top two picks as Markelle Fultz and Lonzo Ball, there was some debate at three. Some thought Jackson, others thought Jayson Tatum of Duke. Tatum admitted he didn’t know but then he had an idea.
“I had no clue. The only indication I had was right before he [commissioner Adam Silver] called my name, all the cameras came to my table,” Tatum said.
Last year, a record 14 freshmen were selected in the draft, topping by one the number in 2015.
And that record fell again Thursday when 16 freshmen were picked in the first round alone: Bam Adebayo (Kentucky), Jarrett Allen (Texas), Ball (UCLA), Tony Bradley (North Carolina), Zach Collins (Gonzaga), De’Aaron Fox (Kentucky), Fultz (Washington), Harry Giles (Duke), Isaac (Florida State), Josh Jackson (Kansas), TJ Leaf (UCLA), Lauri Markkanen (Arizona), Malik Monk (Kentucky), Justin Patton (Creighton), Dennis Smith (NC State) and Jayson Tatum (Duke).