Kansas Basketball: Anonymous Scout on Ellis, Selden, Diallo

With the NBA Draft coming up on Thursday, we continue our look at the three NBA hopefuls from the Kansas basketball program – Perry Ellis, Wayne Selden, and Cheick Diallo.

Every year, Seth Davis over at Sports Illustrated puts up his “Finch” article. “Finch” is his pseudonym for the collective scouts he polled about various NBA prospects for the upcoming draft. The collection of insights comes from various scouts across the NBA franchises, but “Finch” is their singular voice in this case.

This article always proves to be a brutally honest – it even says so in the tagline – look at the incoming class of NBA players. This year was no different, and the Jayhawks hoping to join the league didn’t receive much praise.

Perry Ellis

"“I don’t think he’s an NBA player. He’s just O.K. at everything. Needs a mismatch at the four to break you down. I don’t know what position he plays in the NBA. He’s not a three, he’s not a dominant athlete, doesn’t have dominant size. He’s a guy you root for because he does all the right things. If he can shoot 40% form the corner three, maybe he ends up making it, but I don’t think he’ll get drafted. Average rebounder who doesn’t dribble.”"

Harsh, especially given how beloved he is by Kansas fans. But is there anything untrue about that evaluation? Perry has always been considered a “tweener” as a pro prospect, namely because he doesn’t have the size to be a four or the skill set to be a three. Perry’s shooting could help him find a small role, but he struggled over his four years to consistently reach college 3-point range, so expecting him to make the leap to the longer 3-point line smoothly might be a bit much.

Cheick Diallo

"“My question is, does he know what he is? If he understands he can make millions of dollars being a rebounder and shot blocker, he’ll be terrific. If he thinks he needs to be a scorer, he’ll hurt himself because he has no offensive game. I hear he’s going top 20. Only a fool would take him there. He’s an undersized four who can’t shoot, and our league is about shooting right now.”"

Diallo should prove to be one of the more divisive players in the draft if he’s taken in the middle of the first round. On the one hand, he’s getting great reviews from general managers and scouts for his workouts. He is actually a solid shooter in practices, and showed flashes of a solid mid-range game in his brief appearances under Head Coach Bill Self. His athleticism probably got a bit overrated because of his running ability, but he’s more than capable of being a defensive presence in the post because of his length. Could he end up being a hidden gem for some general manager late in the first round?

Wayne Selden

"“He’s big and rugged, he’s got a good body on him. What does he do? He doesn’t get better. He is who he is. I don’t think he’s going to change much. Probably guards a four man better than he guards a two man. I think he’s a second-rounder but he probably makes a team. He’s not consistent enough as a shooter. He can’t get to where he wants on the floor. He has the body to be a better defender but he’s not the guy to really get you stops.”"

Wayne suffered from over-hype out of high school, but he ended up with a solid career in Lawrence. His athleticism has never been great – despite his AAU highlight mixtapes – and he needs some momentum to really leap to the rim. His quick-twitch athleticism is lacking, as noted above he can’t get by defenders and relies on being more of a bully with the ball. Does that transfer at all to the NBA? Probably not, but he’s probably the guy that can make the most of this group as a European player.

Next: Jayhawks NBA Draft Outlook with Chris Stone

We will have more NBA draft coverage on the Jayhawks players on Friday, when we know where they’ll be headed. At the very least, we do expect Cheick Diallo’s name to get called on Thursday night, though it doesn’t seem likely he will go in the lottery.