College Hoops Video

The Kansas Jayhawks head Coach must  be wondering if he should be lighting votive candles due to the fact that he has secured one of the top high school prospects in the country. After all the hoopla surrounding Xavier Henry, the young man finally made the decision to become part of the 2009 Kansas Jayhawks Men’s Basketball Recruiting class. Bill Self must be waking up with a smile on his face every single day. Many basketball experts feel that with the signing of Xavier Henry and the returning players that Self will have at his disposal, Kansas now positions itself as possibly the team to beat in the upcoming 2009-2010 NCAA basketball season.

 

2009 Kansas Jayhawk Recruiting – Xavier Henry’s Background

 

This native of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, played 4 years for the Putnam City Pirates winning 2 state championships in the process. When all was said and done, he had received every All State and All American honor that could be handed out. He ended with a scoring average of over 28 points per game and for the longest time was considered the top basketball recruit in the country. His ranking may have suffered due to an accident that left him with a broken cheekbone before the start of his senior season, but those who had the pleasure of watching him play knew what a talent this young man truly was. Many times it looked like a man playing against boys, yes, he was just that dominant. 

 

 

2009 Kansas Jayhawk Recruiting – Xavier Henry’s Skill Set

 

Let’s face it, the 6ft 6in. tall and a solid 225lbs. Henry should create match-up nightmares for the opponents of the Kansas Jayhawks in the upcoming 2009-2010 season. Although he is listed as a shooting guard, he has the athleticism and the strength, yes, a body of a tight end, to play down low if he so chooses. With his excellent size and strength, he has the ability to overpower smaller defenders and score easily jn the paint. With his long range shooting ability, he also can spread out the defense to create open lanes for his teammates. He has shown consistency from 3 point range but still needs to develop a midrange jumper to keep his opponents guessing. What he needs to work on is his ball handling skills so he won’t be prone to the quick hands of smaller defenders. With his size, Henry showed excellent rebounding ability on both ends of the floor and wasn’t hesitant to go coast to coast if the defense was caught sleeping. Overall this young man has a solid game both offensively and defensively and look for him to start contributing for the Jayhawks right from the opening of the 2009-2010 basketball season.

 

 

Refs:

 

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Xavier-Henry-1324/

http://collegebasketball.about.com/od/recruiting/p/xavier-henry.htm

http://www.maxpreps.com/athletes/bgnDhsZ70E2LiwfKd8p0Yw/basketball-winter-07-08/stats-xavier-henry.htm

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/player?recruitId=43687&season=2009&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fplayer%3frecruitId%3d43687%26season%3d2009

 

Updated: May 30^th, 2010

The following is our June update for the 2010 NBA Mock Draft. The mock is updated with the 2010 NBA Lottery Draft order but only goes through the first round for now. We have past the NCAA declaration deadline and have four of the Kentucky Wildcat freshmen from last season in addition to Junior Patrick Patterson declaring for this year’s draft. Kentucky point guard has been the odds-on #1 pick favorite since before he played a game for the Wildcats, although many think he could be inter-changeable with Ohio State star Evan Turner. The following is the College Hoops Video update for the 2010 NBA draft.

2010 NBA Mock Draft

#1 Washington Wizards: John Wall, PG, Kentucky, 6-4, Fr.

John Wall is considered to be the top point guard pick in this year’s draft. Most expect the Wizards to take Wall with the first pick and that they will move Gilbert Arenas over to the 2 guard spot with the drafting of Wall.

#2 Philadelphia 76ers: Evan Turner, G/F, Ohio State, 6-7, Jr.

Philly needs a “go to” player to help bring life back to the team. They have a chance with landing the second spot in the draft to pick a franchise player, and Turner looks like the perfect fit.

#3 New Jersey Nets: DeMarcus Cousins, C, Kentucky, 6-11, Fr.

Its hard to say if the Nets will take Cousins, Favors, or Wesley Johnson with this pick, but Cousins has demonstrated the most talent amongst the three players.

#4 Minnesota Timberwolves: Derrick Favors, PF, Georgia Tech, 6-10, Fr.

If for some reason Evan Turner drops to #4 look for the T-Wolves to take him in this spot. If not, then either Derrick Favors or Wesley Johnson would provide the most help to the current team needs.

#5 Sacramento Kings: Xavier Henry, SG, Kansas, 6-6, Fr.

The Kings need some help on the wing and Xavier Henry could be the answer…though it may take him a few years to get there. This may be a bit high for X to be drafted, but it wouldn’t be surprising.

#6 Golden State Warriors: Al-Farouq Aminu, SF, Wake Forest, 6-9, So.

Golden State needs wing and front-court depth. Aminu can provide them a player with the size to play inside or expand his skill set to play in in the team’s running style.

#7 Detroit Pistons: Ed Davis, PF, North Carolina, 6-10, So.

The Pistons need size, and Ed Davis is one of the most athletic options available at the #7 spot in the draft. They could end up drafting Greg Monroe, Ekpe Udoh, or if we see one of the other bigs drop. Shouldn’t count Cole Aldrich out of the game just yet either.

#8 Los Angeles Clippers: Greg Monroe, PF, Georgetown, 6-10, So.

The Clippers may take Johnson if he’s still available in the 8 spot, but don’t count out Greg Monroe’s upside potential with his athleticism.

#9 Utah Jazz: Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky, 6-9, Jr.

The Pistons need a player to play in the half-court. Patterson is one of the prospects that will be available and could fill their needs. Although his wing play was an area of focus during his junior year, its unknown how it will hold up to NBA level competition.

#10 Indiana Pacers: Eric Bledsoe, PG, Kentucky, 6-1, Fr.

The Pacers need a point guard to run the team into the future and Bledsoe looks to be the best available to take with the pick. A bit high for a player with his stats from last year, but remember that he played alongside John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, etc for the season.

#11 New Orleans Hornets: Ekpe Udoh, PF, Baylor, 6-10, Jr.

The Hornets need another big. Look for them to take the best one available, and don’t be surprised if you see Cole Aldrich get picked in this spot. Udoh has a great defensive game and could be the pick here.

#12 Memphis Grizzlies: Wesley Johnson, SF, Syracuse, 6-7, Jr.

The Grizzlies are coming off of their best season in a long time. Johnson could be just the all-around help they need to get over the hump and back into the playoffs.

#13 Toronto Raptors: Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas, 6-11, Jr.

The Raptors will likely lose Chris Bosh and could use Aldrich to help fill the void left if he signs with another team.

#14 Houston Rockets: Hassan Whiteside, C, Marshall, 7-0, Fr.

Houston doesn’t have a lot of holes to fill this offseason, but Whiteside could be the perfect draft pick to take now and work on his potential.

#15 Milwaukee Bucks: James Anderson, SG, Oklahoma State, 6-6, Jr.

The Bucks need a shooter and traded their solution for the aging Michael Redd last season (Jodie Meeks). James Anderson could fill that void and help provide additional scoring for the Bucks.

#16 Minnesota T-Wolves: Jordan Crawford, SG, Xavier, 6-4, Soph.

The T-Wolves are still very young, and Crawford could provide them a scorer for the near term.

#17 Chicago Bulls: Donatas Motiejunas, F/C, Lithuania, 7-0, 1990

Motiejunas gives the Bulls another wing option to play alongside Rose. If the Bulls believe they have a strong shot at landing the “King” in free agency, this pick may change significantly.

#18 Miami Heat: Gordon Hayward, SF, Butler, 6-9, So.

The Heat could need a significant amount of help next season if they lose D-Wade. If Hayward is available this deep, then look for Miami to snatch him up.

#19 Boston Celtics: Damion James, SF, Texas, 6-8, Sr.

The Celtics may lose Ray Allen solely due to finances after this season. Damion James could be the best wing player available to take as a potential backup or replacement for Allen.

#20 San Antonio Spurs: Luke Babbitt, SF, Nevada, 6-9, So.

Babbit could be the perfect wing/inside player to add to the Spurs squad to try and make it deeper into next year’s playoffs.

#21 Oklahoma City Thunder: Solomon Alabi, C, Florida St, 7-1, So.

The Thunder made it to the playoffs, but need to have a defensive paint presence. Alabi could provide that need for the team with his 7’1” height.

#22 Portland Trail Blazers: Daniel Orton, F/C, Kentucky, 6-10, Fr.

Portland needs some size and Orton may be the best pick for them to take. He is relatively un-proven at the college level, but showed a lot of upside towards the end of last year’s college basketball season.

#23 Minnesota Timberwolves: Paul George, SF, Fresno State, 6-8, So.

#24 Atlanta Hawks: Avery Bradley, G, Texas, 6-2, Fr.

#25 Memphis Grizzlies: Terrico White, SG, Mississippi, 6-5, So.

#26 Oklahoma City Thunder: Devin Ebanks, SF, West Virginia, 6-9, So.

#27 New Jersey Nets: Elliot Williams, G, Memphis, 6-4, So.

#28 Memphis Grizzlies: Kevin Seraphin, PF, France, 6-10, 1989

#29 Orlando Magic: Lance Stephenson, SG, Cincinnati, 6-5, Fr.

#30 Washington Wizards:Willie Warren, G, Oklahoma, 6-4, So.