Young Center Prospects to Consider

[Geaux_Hawks]

Taken from the General NBA board.

Maryland men's basketball head coach Kevin Willard believes that Terrapins freshman center Derik Queen would be the No. 1 pick in the draft if he was European and white, per comments made to Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.

"If he was European and white he'd be the first pick in the draft," Willard said to Norlander, who penned a profile of Queen that published Thursday. "He gets a little penalized because he doesn't have the greatest athleticism. He has better ballhandling skills than most guards, he's like a 15-year-vet in the fact he knows and understands the game."

The 6'10", 246-pound big man is averaging 16.0 points on 54.9 percent shooting and 8.8 rebounds for the No. 20 Terrapins, who have won seven of eight games to move to 10-5 in the Big Ten and 20-6 overall. Queen has been phenomenal over Maryland's last three games, posting 23.7 points and 13.0 rebounds.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/25159374-maryland-hc-derik-queen-would-be-nba-drafts-top-pick-if-he-was-european-and-white


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That's a bit of a stretch. His athleticism alone would keep him out of the hunt for #1 overall. Especially when Bailey, Flagg, Edgecomb, and Harper all are in this draft.

[Jamaaliver]

Taken from the General NBA board.

Maryland men's basketball head coach Kevin Willard believes that Terrapins freshman center Derik Queen would be the No. 1 pick in the draft if he was European and white, per comments made to Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.

That's a bit of a stretch. His athleticism alone would keep him out of the hunt for #1 overall. Especially when Bailey, Flagg, Edgecomb, and Harper all are in this draft.

I think the athleticism issue is directly what he's referring to. That Queen's offensive skill set is extremely high. And while Euro players can get teams to look past those athletic limitations, American born (black) players don't have that luxury.

Once upon a time, there was some merit to this. Guys like Dragan Bender, Jan Vesely, Andrea Bargnani were taken near the top of their respective draft classes despite some concerns with speed/agility/athleticism. But the failuers failures of those guys (and Jahlil Okafor) is exactly why DQ's archetype is no longer en vogue.

Nowadays, post players like Queen tend to fall out of top-10 more often than not -- particularly if they don't project to be rim protectors or switchable defenders.

All that to say, this is just a coach defending his guy against criticism publicly...even if he knows there's probably some merit to it.

[Geaux_Hawks]

Taken from the General NBA board.

Maryland men's basketball head coach Kevin Willard believes that Terrapins freshman center Derik Queen would be the No. 1 pick in the draft if he was European and white, per comments made to Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.

That's a bit of a stretch. His athleticism alone would keep him out of the hunt for #1 overall. Especially when Bailey, Flagg, Edgecomb, and Harper all are in this draft.

I think the athleticism issue is directly what he's referring to. That Queen's offensive skill set is extremely high. And while Euro players can get teams to look past those athletic limitations, American born (black) players don't have that luxury.

Once upon a time, there was some merit to this. Guys like Dragan Bender, Jan Vesely, Andrea Bargnani were taken near the top of their respective draft classes despite some concerns with speed/agility/athleticism. But the failuers of those guys (and Jahlil Okafor) is exactly why DQ's archetype is no longer en vogue.

Nowadays, post players like Queen tend to fall out of top-10 more often than not -- particularly if they don't project to be rim protectors or switchable defenders.

All that to say, this is just a coach defending his guy against criticism publicly...even if he knows there's probably some merit to it.

I know you ended your post by calling his take what it is, but I will add as you mentioned, that Queen also lacks the upside of being a rim protector or versatile defender. Only has a 7'1 wingspan to boot. 3 point shooting is also lacking.

So I mean the offensive arsenal and skillset he has as a post player is great, but that's not going to make you a #1 overall picks no matter what your race or ethnicity is unless you're truly the 2nd coming of Shaq. There's merit for believing he should still go top 10 though. The kid really does has a strong skillset on offense.

[Geaux_Hawks]

Also, can we get an updated Poll with new center prospects to consider.

[Jamaaliver]

Derik Queen | 6-10 freshman center | Maryland | 20 years old | No. 8

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Maryland coach Kevin Willard recently made some [controversial] statements to CBS Sports. Willard’s comments were silly, but Queen is moving up boards now that he’s dominating games both inside and out again after a minor lull toward the middle of conference play.

Queen’s one of the most productive freshmen in the country, averaging nearly 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists while shooting 54 percent from the field. Those look like traditional big numbers, but Queen is anything but that. Yes, he’s a strong post player. But what makes him particularly intriguing to NBA teams is his ball skill. Queen is a fantastic ballhandler and shot creator from the perimeter for a big man. He can really control the ball at a level that most guys over 6-10 just can’t.

Spoiler:

He loves to face up and size his man up before hitting crossovers with some suddenness and hesitation, using shot fakes or pass fakes well to get his man off-balance. Beyond that, he really seems to understand how to use his frame to maintain advantages. Few bigs are better at any level — including the NBA — at using a hostage dribble to keep his man on his back and keep a four-on-five advantage for his team.

He can get all the way to the rim to finish, where he’s relatively effective there given how much he’s self-creating his own shots there. But what makes Queen particularly interesting is his passing. He has terrific vision, but moreover, he really can pass on the move in the way NBA teams love to see. He passes off a live dribble with both his left and right hand which, again, is quite rare for a player this big. That gives him the ability to have quick reactions to double teams or to see mismatch advantage situations; he processes all of this quite rapidly and can manipulate defenders with his eyesight or his passing angles. Then, he’ll hit passes from creative overhead or underarm angles to find windows. This year, he’s averaging 2.1 assists per game, but that undersells his ability. If he proves he can stay on the court defensively and play 30 minutes per game, he could easily average five assists per game in the NBA.

Alas, the defense is where teams are concerned. Queen is going to be undersized for the center position, and he doesn’t have a ton of length to necessarily fall back on either. This is where Queen’s frame brings out the most concern. Maryland does a fairly excellent job of hiding him by pre-switching most ball-screen actions in the same way Purdue did when it had All-American Caleb Swanigan. Queen seems to struggle when he’s asked to go north-south closing out onto players. He’s not as big of an issue moving laterally, but it’s hard for him to close out and stop his momentum, or for him to get to the level in ball screens, stop, then recover. However, he’s also not quite as big as most effective drop-coverage ball-screen defenders in the NBA either, because he doesn’t quite take up a ton of space in those situations. I also wouldn’t call him a particularly active help defender around the basket. He has great hands but often chooses not to rotate across to contest as the last line.

Spoiler:

Teams wonder what exactly the defensive role is. Can Queen continue to do incredible work on his body and slim down even further to play the four? Or maybe he can keep improving his positioning and willingness to contest and play the five? NBA sources and sources close to Queen have told The Athletic that Queen has taken his nutrition extremely seriously at Maryland this year and has done a fantastic job of keeping his weight down. Entering Maryland, he was over 260 pounds. Now, he’s in the 240-pound range and continues to make good decisions regarding his food.

Scouts bring up a lot of different names to compare Queen to, which is unsurprising given that he’s a polarizing archetype. Alperen Şengün comes up, as does Domantas Sabonis. More recently, the name I’ve heard most is Naz Reid because of his ability to handle the ball. The difference between those two is that Reid can really shoot the ball and Queen has not showcased that ability yet. That’s the next step in his development toward becoming a lethal player in the NBA. However, Reid’s ability to create is not dissimilar to Queen’s, as they’re both exceptionally comfortable handling the ball.

Overall, I’m a believer that Queen — who has been elite in basically every setting he’s ever been placed within, from high school at Montverde (Fla.) Academy to camps in front of scouts to McDonald’s All-American week now to college basketball — will just figure it out. Queen has been gifted with incredible overall feel for the game, and he always rises to the occasion and plays his best when it matters most.

The Athletic

[Jamaaliver]

If this kid falls to us with that Sacramento Pick, it would be absolutely perfect for us (and him).

AL Horford 2.0

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[Jamaaliver]

With that ever falling Lakers Draft Pick...

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[Jamaaliver]

Queen of the DAMN!!!

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[Jamaaliver]

Thomas Sorber advanced stats...

Spoiler:

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[Jamaaliver]

Johni Broome Scouting Report

[Jamaaliver]

A strong draft target for the Lakers pick in the mid 20s.

[tbhawksfan1]

A strong draft target for the Lakers pick in the mid 20s.

Only recently watched some of his vids. I really like what I see. The way he moves at 6'11" is very impressive. Add his point forward game and good D. I think he has moved to the top of my PF/C wish list

[Jamaaliver]

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[Jamaaliver]

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[HMFFL]

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Is there any reports what his vertical is?

If it's possible to trade up to draft him I think Fields needs to consider it.

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[Jamaaliver]

Battle of the Big Men (who can't play defense)

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[Jamaaliver]

Top 50 prospects to watch in March Madness

14. Asa Newell, PF/C, Georgia

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Height: 6-11 | Freshman | TS%: 61.7%
First game: No. 9 Georgia vs. No. 8 Gonzaga, Thursday, 4:35 p.m. (TBS)

Newell was selected to the SEC All-Freshman Team after leading Georgia in scoring (15.3 PPG) and rebounding (6.8 RPG), using his size and motor to produce in consistent minutes. The Bulldogs wound up on the right side of the bubble, earning a No. 9 seed and doing enough in a deep SEC to build their résumé.

Newell played a large part in that, and while long-term questions persist regarding his perimeter shooting, defensive versatility and feel for the game, he has put himself firmly in the first-round discussion with what he has shown in college.-- Woo

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[Jamaaliver]

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[atlantabbq99]

These prospects of Centers in this year's draft is one of the weakest in the last decade. Nobody's film jumps off the screen and alot of the prospects have some major flaws.

With that said, their is one guy who is semi interesting.....

Yaxel Lendeborg 6'9 PF/C UAB

He is not long, athleticism and vertical is just average. His jumpshotis good but not great, but if you think that Centers who can lead the break and pass is the new hot thing, then Lendeborg is your guy.

He is the best passing big in the draft and might have the highest IQ of any guy in the draft, regardless of position.

He reminds me of 2010 Smoove. I'm not saying Yaxel is Draymond, but Lendeborg has the same pros and cons Draymond had when he was coming out of college.

Hawks should trade down, but regardless of draft pick, the Hawks should take Yaxel Lendeborg.

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