Draft Updates: Thursday
The countdown until the 2012 draft is down to two weeks, and this week has been heavy on workouts and trade speculation. We'll track the latest news and rumors on both fronts, along with a handful of other draft-related items, right here. New updates will be added to the top of the page throughout the day….
- According to their official website, the Pacers will work out Evan Fournier, Ashton Gibbs, Travis Hyman, John Jenkins, Josh Owens, and Tony Wroten Jr. on Friday.
Draft Updates: Wednesday
With 15 days remaining until draft night, we'll round up today's notes on draft workouts, stock watches, and potential selections right here, with the latest up top:
- Dan Duggan of the Boston Herald believes the Celtics are targeting size with either or both of the team's back-t0-back first-round picks, at Nos. 21 and 22.
- Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal has more on Royce White and his anxiety disorder.
Earlier updates:
Draft Rumors: Tuesday
We'll track the day's draft-related news and rumors here, with the newest updates up top:
- Jonathon Givony of DraftExpress has measurements from Chicago's draft combine, including max verticals for all the prospects in attendance.
- Neither Perry Jones III or Terrence Jones blew away Warriors management when they worked out for Golden State, writes Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group. The Warriors continue to hope they can use their lottery pick to upgrade at small forward, and both Joneses project as power forwards.
Cavs Notes: Kidd-Gilchrist, Fournier, Melo, Leonard
The Cavs hold picks No. 4 and No. 24, but unlike other teams with two first-round draft choices, they aren't looking to trade one of them. The team seems to be zeroing in on Harrison Barnes with the fourth pick, but Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer says a scenario is in play that could have them leaving Barnes on the board.
Sixers Rumors: Draft Targets, Brand, Williams
It figures to be an eventful summer for the 76ers, who hold three picks in the draft, should receive plenty of inquiries on Andre Iguodala, and could use the amnesty clause to clear Elton Brand's $18MM+ salary from their books. I previewed the Sixers' offseason last week, but as the draft and free agency approach, we'll gain a better understanding of their plans. In the meantime, let's check in on the latest items out of Philadelphia….
Prospect Profile: Fab Melo
Before announcing that he would be entering the NBA Draft, the last we heard from Syracuse center Fab Melo was when he was being deemed ineligible for the NCAA Tournament. The Orangemen still made a decent run without him before falling to Ohio State in the Elite 8.
Melo makes for an interesting prospect study. His draft stock and his game would probably have benefited if he decided to return to Syracuse for his junior year. But he did enjoy a breakout season as a sophomore that resulted in him being named the Big East Defensive Player of the Year. Further clouding things are ineligibility questions and the fact that he is from Brazil, potentially making his thought process a bit different from your average college player.
It isn't hard to figure out Melo's primary asset. At 7-foot and 250 pounds, Melo has legitimate NBA center size. His 7-foot-3 wingspan enables him to alter shots effectively – he averaged 2.9 blocks-per-game in his sophomore season. Melo was a big recruit coming into Syracuse and was expected to contribute right away. Unfortunately, he struggled to assimilate to the college game and lacked conditioning.
Melo worked to right the latter of those issues heading into his sophomore year and it showed. He was more in shape and it helped his leaping and quickness on the defensive end both blocking shots and rebounding. Syracuse employs their famous zone defense so projecting how Melo fits in an NBA system will be crucial to teams considering him. Melo pulled down 5.8 rebounds-per-game this season, mostly through size alone. He doesn't yet have the instincts to be a volume rebounder, but again, it's hard to evaluate how he will transition from the zone. Instincts and "feel for the game" are things he has to continue to improve, but he made great strides between his freshman and sophomore seasons.
What will prevent Melo from getting anywhere near the lottery is his complete lack of an offensive game. This is clearly the last piece of his development as a player. He averaged 7.8 points as a sophomore and shot over 56 percent from the field, but most of points came on dunks and put backs from offensive boards. While his size enabled him to get by offensively at the college level, Melo has no semblance of a jumpshot and inconsistent evidence of a post game.
It's not all bad on offense for Melo though. He has shown good hands, solid footwork and a nice touch around the rim. These things suggest that there is at least some hope that through hard work, he can develop into enough of a threat on offense that it will justify him getting on the court.
Overall Melo projects as a late first round pick. He is never going to be a great offensive player, but he has the tools to impact games on the defensive end. As the saying goes, you can't teach size and Melo has it. There will always be a place for guys who can protect the rim in the NBA. Whoever takes him will be taking on a project that will require patience. As we saw in the similar case of Hasheem Thabeet, that is easier said than done.
Draft Update: Melo, McAdoo, Canaan
The latest news about the 2012 NBA draft from around the web:
- The Associated Press reports (via ESPN) that Syracuse center Fab Melo will enter the draft, as expected.
- North Carolina forward James Michael McAdoo will return to UNC for his sophomore season, TarHeelBlue.com reports.
- Isaiah Canaan is also returning to Murray State for his senior season, tweets Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com.
- HoopsWorld's Yannis Koutroupis lists Iowa State forward Royce White, St. Bonaventure forward Andrew Nicholson, and Kentucky guard Marquis Teague among several other players who may have played themselves into first-round pick status over the course of the NCAA tournament.
Draft Updates: Melo, Sullinger, Ross, Moser
We'll post today's draft-related updates here:
- Fab Melo has signed with agent Arn Tellem, which basically nixes a return to Syracuse next year (tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress).
- Jared Sullinger appears undecided about whether or not to return to Ohio State next year, says Doug Lesmerises of The Plain Dealer.
- Jeff Borzello of CBSsports.com reports that Washington sophomore Terrence Ross plans to hire an agent and will declare for the NBA draft.
- According to Matt Youmans of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, forward Mike Moser will return to UNLV for his sophomore season instead of committing to the NBA draft.
- Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.com writes that high-school star Nerlens Noel is still undecided on where he will commit to for next year. His list is down to Georgetown, Kentucky, and Syracuse. Noel could possibly be among the headliners for the 2013 NBA draft.