He declared for the NBA draft today leaving not doubt that he plans to sign with an agent and not return…I for one am for this type of commitment, one in which their is no uncertainty when you declare. The whole declaring but not signing yet deal has it’s pro and cons spare me the suspense if you’re sure your not coming back then say so because that would help out the coaching staff to recruit whoever is left this late… Anyhow I hope Trey Young has a good career moving forward.
In fairness the kids who aren’t lottery picks don’t know what they are going to do. They can’t make a rash decision to leave and sign an agent. At that point they have crossed the Rubicon. However, it is almost impossible for coaches to replace kids who go through the entire process and then decide to leave. In terms of Gafford, we aren’t going to replace him with an equivalent talent. So, I say take all the time he needs.
Every advantage should go to the kid. JMO
The chances of Trae Young falling out of the lottery are essentially zero. Most mock drafts I’ve seen have him in the top 8 picks. Of course a lot will depend on what a particular team needs at a particular spot in the draft. I haven’t seen Gafford as a lottery pick (top 14) in anyone’s draft yet. As noted, over a four-year rookie deal, where you go within the first round can mean millions of extra (or lost) dollars.
I think the system that is in place now is great. It benefits the kids by giving them a great chance to evaluate their opportunity. It also benefits the schools by allowing them to come back if they’re not quite there. Maybe the schools lose the opportunity to sign a better replacement but they also get the opportunity for a 3rd party to help further develop a player that is is obviously already a good college player.
On another note, I watched Trae Young play quite a bit this year. I would argue that Gafford has more potential to affect an NBA team next year than Trae. Trae did not get along with the rest of the team and often showed a questionable attitude. Yes he averaged 27 a game but he shot a hell of a lot of shots. He led the nation in turnovers (maybe unfair considering how often he had the ball - Westbrook probably leads the NBA in turnovers). He did not hit many clutch shots. In fact, in late game one possession situations he often didn’t even get a shot off. He shot 36% behind the arc which is good considering the amount of 3s he shot. However, he also shot a ton of 3s that even the best players in the world hit at 20% at best. I don’t care who you are jacking up a 3 in the first 10 seconds from 25+ ft without passing the ball is not a good shot. He plays very little defense and is very skinny for 6-2. He doesn’t rebound that well for a guard. Yes, he averaged 8 assist; however, he absolutely did not make the players around him better. I don’t think his teammates were great but they had several players who were developing and were solid contributors at the the end of 2016-17 that digressed in 2017-18. I think in part because they did not expect the ball and also due to poor team chemistry. Lon sold his soul with the promises he made to Trae and family. Promises Calipari wouldn’t make. Mark my words…Trae Young is overrated and not as ready as most think he is for the NBA.
I watched Bama’s first NCAAT game. The announcers said pretty much what you did when they compared Young and Sexton. I don’t understand if they can see he’s not NBA ready, why they wouldn’t tell him.
I think the whole system stinks. It should be just like baseball! Go all the way through the draft and then it’s up to the kid to sign or come back to school.