Would Shaedon Sharpe be good fit for Kings? Is his NBA draft stock rising or falling?
Shaedon Sharpe is the potential NBA superstar from Kentucky who never played a game for coach John Calipari.
He is the 19-year-old phenomenon who purportedly recorded a 49-inch vertical leap that would put him in his own airspace above legendary leapers like Michael Jordan, Darrell Griffith, Jason Richardson and Spud Webb, but that record is considered unverified by factcheckers. Sharpe has a world of potential with tools, traits and abilities that look elite even by NBA standards, but he hasn’t proven anything beyond the highest levels of youth basketball.
Some analysts believe the Kings should select Sharpe with the No. 4 pick in the June 23 NBA draft. Some scouts are not even convinced he should be taken in the top 10. NBA executives make difficult decisions all the time, but Sharpe’s future is the biggest mystery facing front offices in this year’s draft.
If Sharpe is indeed destined for stardom, he might be a perfect fit next to Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox. If he he’s no more than a shooting star who burns out after entering the atmosphere, the Kings could set themselves back years like they did when they chose Marvin Bagley III over Luka Doncic in 2018.
Sharpe is the biggest risk-reward prospect in this year’s class. With less than two weeks to go before the draft, NBA decision makers are still trying to figure out who he is and what he will be. At this point, based on a random sampling of executives, scouts and agents, it’s not even clear if his draft stock is rising or falling.
Sharpe is widely projected as a top-10 pick with most mock drafts predicting he will go no lower than No. 8, but on Friday he had a pre-draft workout with the Charlotte Hornets, who have the No. 13 pick. Is Sharpe falling down draft boards? Are the Hornets trading up? Can the Kings, who desperately want to end their 16-year playoff drought, afford to take a chance? Sharpe seems to be at the center of some of the draft’s biggest mysteries.
Who is Shaedon Sharpe?
Sharpe is a 6-foot-5 ¼, 200-pound shooting guard with a 6-11 ½ wingspan. He grew up in Canada and emerged as the No. 1 player in the Class of 2022 at Dream City Christian School in Glendale, Arizona.
Sharpe went from an unranked recruit to the top prospect in the country following a stellar junior season at Dream City. He also starred in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League and represented Canada at the 2019 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Brazil, where he averaged 13 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists to help his team win the silver medal. He solidified himself as the consensus No. 1 recruit after averaging 22.6 points in 28.3 minutes per game for UPlay Canada in the EYBL.
Sharpe committed to Kentucky in September. He reclassified to the Class of 2021 in October when it was determined he had enough credits to graduate. Sharpe enrolled at Kentucky in January, reportedly with plans to play next season, but he ultimately declared for the draft without ever playing a game for the Wildcats.
“A little-known prospect unranked by recruiting services at the beginning of the 2020-21 high school season, Sharpe led the prestigious Nike EYBL in scoring this past July, making a dramatic rise to the No. 1 spot in the ESPN 100 before signing with Kentucky,” ESPN’s Jonathan Givony wrote when Sharpe was declared eligible for the draft. “Sharpe is considered a potential top-five pick in the 2022 NBA draft thanks to his combination of prototypical frame with dynamic shot-making and explosive finishing ability, regularly coming up with highlight-reel-caliber dunks, blocks and putbacks.”
Sharpe says he models his game after the likes of Bradley Beal and Devin Booker. The Ringer’s J. Kyle Mann recently noted Sharpe shot 35% from 3-point range in 12 games at the 2020-21 Grind Session, 36.1% in 12 games in the 2021 EYBL and 36.8% in three games at the 2021 Top Flight Invite.
Scouting report
Sample sizes and film on Sharpe are limited, but he looks like an exceptional shot creator with big-time step-back, stop-and-go and finishing abilities around the rim. He put on a show during an impressive Pro Day performance May 16 in Chicago — a workout the Kings attended — but he left the NBA combine without competing in scrimmages. Sharpe has the positional size, length and leaping ability to become a freakish defender, but there are still questions about his motor, instincts and tenacity.
NBA.com offered this defensive analysis of Sharpe: “With all the tools but little experience playing high-level defense, Sharpe is a bit of a blank slate on that end of the floor. Flashing some instincts in the passing lanes in the EYBL and a willingness to rebound on the prep circuit, he looked more intent to make an impact defensively sometimes than others. The 19-year-old guard figures to face a learning curve in his NBA career as he tries to pick up the nuances of guarding off the ball and adjusts to the league’s physicality and athleticism.”
Some mock drafts have the Kings selecting Sharpe at No. 4 ahead of Purdue shooting guard Jaden Ivey, Iowa forward Keegan Murray and G League Ignite shooting guard Dyson Daniels. Others have him going to the Detroit Pistons at No. 5 or Indiana Pacers at No. 6.
“How the (expletive) can you be the fifth pick in the draft if you haven’t played in a year and a half?” one Western Conference executive recently told The Ringer.
Others are skeptical, too.
An unidentified scout told Rafael Barlowe, director of scouting for NBA Big Board: “I wouldn’t take him in the top 10. It’s too small of a sample size. Someone’s gonna get burned.”
Another scout added: “He barely practiced at Kentucky. Didn’t want to play in games and he didn’t want to play at (the) combine. Who’s advising him? He can’t hide forever.”
This story was originally published June 14, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
