INDIANAPOLIS – It seems as if every time Jeremy Roach enters the basketball floor for a crucial game, he’s surrounded by six or seven other players whose names are prominent on myriad mock drafts that represent the majority of NBA fans’ interest in NCAA basketball each winter.
And nearly every one of those times, Roach finds a way to emerge as one of the finest players on the floor. which leads to the inescapable conclusion that although Roach’s name will not be called on the night in the future when he is eligible for the NBA draft, he is going to make a team. He is going to play in the league. He might even turn out to be damn good, perhaps even to the level of a T.J. McConnell or Ish Smith.
It was like that in the NCAA Tournament last season, when Roach excelled alongside Paolo Banchero, Wendell Moore and AJ Griffin. It was like that Tuesday night in the Blue Devils’ Champions Classic loss to Kansas.
MORE: Michigan State passes latest test in Tom Izzo's brutal schedule
But the 75 NBA scouts who were among the audience at Gainbridge Fieldhouse were not there to see Jeremy Roach. They were in the audience to watch the impressive collection of mostly freshman talents dotting the rosters at Duke, Kansas and Kentucky.
It is curious that the two best players on the night, Kentucky center Oscar Tshiebwe (22 points, 18 rebounds, 4 blocks) and Kansas power forward Jalen Wilson (25 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists), are not projected first-round picks. It does not appear that will change for Tshiebwe, no matter how many times he rings up a double-double, but more performances like this for Wilson could lead him into the first round along the same path former teammate Ochai Agbaji followed a year ago.
MORE: Sporting News NBA Mock Draft
It being the third game for most of these athletes, it was less than an artistic triumph. For the majority, though, there were moments to remind the people doing the evaluations why they came to Indy.
Cason Wallace, Kentucky
Position: Point guard
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 9
If he is not swiping the ball from the fingertips of your favorite player, you might never notice him on the floor. In an era that has come to be defined by efficiency, Wallace is the very model of that metric. There is no wasted motion. Rarely does he find himself in the wrong spots.
This could have been his night. In what became a double-overtime game, Wallace twice was fouled with the opportunity to extend last-second Kentucky leads to three points and force Michigan State into attempting a 3-pointer to tie. He missed the first of the two shots each time and left open the door for the Spartans to tie the game. Which they did.
He needs to become more aggressive about attacking the goal and creating options, especially when veteran Sahvir Wheeler is out of the game and Wallace is in complete control. He will be elite defensively at the NBA level.
Dereck Lively III, Duke
Position: Center
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 12
Lively is one of the most electric big men we’ve seen in college basketball since Tyson Chandler – oh, yeah, that’s right. Chandler came along during the preps-to-pros days. So when’s the last time we saw a 7-footer move like this? James Wiseman for three games at Memphis? No, even he wasn’t as dynamic as Lively.
But I’ve always had a saying about young athletes: If you don’t know where to go, you’re not getting there quickly.
And Lively still doesn’t have a great sense for how to make the biggest possible impact. He played 21 minutes in Duke’s 69-64 loss to Kansas, blocked just one shot, attempted only three himself. He did rebound effectively.
Given that he missed of the preseason with an injury, Lively may take a moment to become significant. This team will need all of him to challenge for the ACC title and a deep NCAA run.
MORE: Jon Scheyer embraces challenge of replacing Coach K
Gradey Dick, Kansas
Position: Small forward
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 13
Man, if somebody gets a player this gifted with the 13th selection in the draft, it’ll be one heck of a year. Dick has everything one could want in a player at his position: Size, dynamism, an elite shooting stroke and the toughness to battle along the baseline and take high-pressure shots.
He shot 6-of-11 from the floor but missed three times from long range before teammate Jalen Wilson stole the ball from Duke’s Mark Mitchell with 2:32 left and got the ball to Kevin McCullar, who found Dick open on the wing. Dick had done almost literally nothing to that point in the second half, but he did not hesitate and nailed the 3-pointer that gave Kansas the lead for good.
“That’s in the back of my mind, but at the same time, growing up, it’s really just been: next shot, short-term memory,” Dick told reporters. “That was just my thought process going into that one, kind of forgetting what I did earlier in the game, just getting that shot up.”
Kyle Filipowski, Duke
Position: Center
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 24
Watching him struggle at times to change ends late in the first half made it apparent he’ll have to continue improving his conditioning. Watching him kick everyone’s tail in the final 20 minutes made it apparent that would be a wise investment.
Filipowski battled for 17 points and 14 rebounds, and he did it the hard way. Only one of his half-dozen 3-point attempts connected. He showed tenacity in pursuing offensive rebounds and real ingenuity with some of his finishes inside.
He also moves well on the perimeter defensively. He’s the first player in Duke history, and they’ve had a few good ones, to record a double-double in each of his first three games. There’s a good chance he’ll be more than a bargain if he’s still available this late in June.
Tyrese Proctor, Duke
Position: Point guard
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 26
The short history of point guards who reclassify to enter college early is so bereft it’s almost tragic: Derryck Thornton at Duke, Devin Askew at Texas, Khristian Lander at Indiana. So it’s reasonable to be concerned Proctor’s arrival in Durham comes prematurely.
This does not seem the same as the others.
Proctor has terrific positional size and good vision. He did not shoot the ball well against Kansas, but he collected three assists, and that’s a fair number given Roach remains the primary ballhandler for the Blue Devils. Proctor has much more to show for the Devils, but unlike his predecessors, he appears prepared to deliver it.
Chris Livingston, Kentucky
Position: Small forward
Year: Freshman
Sporting News draft projection: No. 27
The thing that is most promising about Livingston at this point is his approach. The ball is not finding him yet in Kentucky’s offense, but he has not reacted with frustration. He has maintained a commitment to the Wildcats’ success.
As with Wallace, he needs to be more assertive about attacking the lane, because he’s extremely effective on short-range pull-ups. He was 0-for-3 in this game because he was too stationary in halfcourt situations and did not make himself available by running in transition.
“We need to be a team that’s scoring 80 a game,” Calipari said. “You’ve got to get baskets in transition. You’ve got to fly it ahead. You’ve got to throw it and go in the lane.”