After meeting with new Kentucky head coach Mark Pope, Drexel transfer forward Amari Williams has placed Kentucky in his final three as he looks to find his home for his final season of college basketball.
Joe Tipton of On3 reports Kentucky, former UK head coach Rick Pitino and St. John’s and Mississippi State have made Williams final cut.
Tipton also reports Williams will, “begin his final official visit to Kentucky on Saturday (April 20).”
Williams, a 6-foot-10 forward, will be a fifth-year senior and has one year of eligibility remaining. He currently ranks as the 62nd best player in the transfer portal and as the 14th best center.
The England born Williams played just 4.0 minutes per game off the bench for Drexel as a true freshman during the 2020-21 season but saw his role increase as a sophomore as in 28 games and 17 starts, he averaged 9.5 points per game, 7.3 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, 1.1 assists, shot 52.1 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from three on six attempts as he was named the Coastal Athletic Association defensive player of the year and was a third-team All-conference selection.
As a junior during the 2022-23 season, he started all 30 games for the Dragons, averaging 13.7 points per game, 8.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.4 steals while shooting 52.3 percent from the field. He was once again named the CAA Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the second player in school history to win the award in back-to-back years.
This past season, he started all 32 games for Drexel averaging 12.2 points per game, 7.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.8 blocks and 0.8 steals. He shot 51.9 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three. Williams was named the CAA’s defensive player of the year for the third straight year becoming the first ever in conference history to do so while also earning first-team All-conference honors.
Three-star tight end Brody Lennon talks Purdue offer: “It was great, really exciting”
Boiler Sports Report recently spoke with a tight end prospect that the Boilermakers offered earlier this month…
Earlier this month Purdue tight end coach Justin Sinz issued an offer to Gates Mills (Ohio) Gilmour three-star tight end Brody Lennon and it was an offer that got the attention of the Northeast Ohio native.
“It was great, really exciting,” Lennon said to Boiler Sports Report and 247Sports about being offered by the Boilermakers. “It’s a great program and has a lot of tight ends that have gone to the NFL so it means a lot for sure.”
NBA Draft 2024: Kentucky, UConn stars dominate lottery after March Madness in CBS Sports’ new mock
The NCAA Tournament shook up NBA Draft projections.
The national championship game battle between two premier big men in UConn’s Donovan Clingan and Purdue’s Zach Edey put the finishing touches on an NCAA Tournament filled with NBA talent. March Madness pits the best against the best, and across all of the postseason action, future pros like Dalton Knecht and Terrence Shannon Jr. lit up the scoreboard with dominant scoring ability. The Kentucky tandem of Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard also starred throughout the campaign, though their tournament stay was short-lived.
Not every college basketball standout has the required skillset to thrive at the next level, but many of the biggest names from the 2023-24 season project to come off the board at the NBA Draft and embark on professional careers. While this year’s draft is widely considered to be among the weakest in recent history, there is still plenty of talent to go around.
At the end of the NCAA Tournament, CBS Sports’ Kyle Boone unveiled his latest NBA mock draft, and numerous March Madness standouts headlined the biggest risers up the board.
Potential No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher has long been an international prospect to watch, but he made an even bigger name for himself over the last year as a threat to become the first name off the board at the 2024 draft. 247Sports’ Adam Finkelstein noted earlier this year Risacher’s notable signs of growth, particularly as a shot-maker. His 34.1% 3-point clip is the best of his professional career, which dates back to the 2020-21 season when he debuted in the French U21 league as a 15-year-old.
Kentucky sixth man Rob Dillingham landed a National Freshman of the Year honor one week before he declared for the NBA Draft, raising his stock to its highest point as he contends for the potential No. 1 overall pick. The four-star recruit was just the fourth-highest rated signee in Kentucky’s 2023 class but played nearly as large of a role as any Wildcats freshman during his first and only season in Lexington, averaging 15.2 points and just shy of three rebounds and four assists per game off the bench.
Stretch-five Frenchman Alex Sarr is a prototypical new-age NBA center who measures at 7-foot-1 but has the build and athleticism to step out to the 3-point line. He plays his basketball in Australia’s NBL, where he is more of a defense-first threat with the clear ability to develop into a scorer with experience. The potential to become a two-way weapon with immense size and uncanny athleticism for a big man makes Sarr an intriguing option near the top of the draft board.
Star Kentucky freshman Reed Sheppard made his decision Thursday, announcing his intention to declare for the draft after one year with the Wildcats. New UK coach Mark Pope attempted to re-recruit the sharpshooter, whose father played with Pope on Kentucky’s 1996 national championship team, but the NBA-ready shooter with a 52.1% 3-point clip is off to the pro ranks.
“Playing basketball at the University of Kentucky was a huge part of my dream,” Sheppard said in his announcement. “Kentucky is home. Kentucky will always be home. However, there is another part of my dream — to play basketball in the NBA. I believe it is time to pursue that dream.”
College basketball’s top two big men went head-to-head in the national championship game, and while Purdue’s Zach Edey took home all kinds of individual honors over the last two years, UConn star Donovan Clingan beat him in the title bout and affirmed his status as the more refined pro prospect. Clingan was among the most efficient offensive players in the nation during the Huskies’ second-straight championship run, and his defensive ability translates beautifully to the NBA. While he stands at 7-foot-2, Clingan has the athleticism to make plays everywhere on the floor, not just in the low post.
Nikola Topic spent the first part of the 2023-24 season on loan at a lower level of Serbian basketball before moving up in December to the ABA, where he kept pace with his production from the beginning of the campaign before sustaining a knee injury. He has not played since January but already did enough to cement his status as a lottery pick, and there is plenty of top-5 potential for the 6-foot-6 point guard. Topic declared for the draft on Monday.
247Sports national basketball analyst Travis Branham described Matas Buzelis as “a long-term prospect who will excel in workouts and in interviews” with the potential to sneak into the upper half of the lottery. He is, at present, a high-ceiling but low-floor player for G League Ignite with intriguing size and the tools to become a reliable scorer in the NBA. Buzelis was a McDonald’s All-American and five-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class but elected to go the professional route rather than act on his offers from numerous blue-blood programs.
Stephon Castle was the prized possession on the 2023-24 UConn roster from a recruiting perspective as he not only headlined the Huskies’ No. 4-ranked 2023 class but also checked in as a top-10 player overall for his cycle. The Big East Freshman of the Year started nearly every game during UConn’s run to another national title and was a key reason why his team was able to reload so successfully on the heels of its first championship. Castle has a long way to go with regard to 3-point shooting (26.7% last season) but is a plus facilitator and rebounder for his position.
Five-star signee Cody Williams delivered on his billing as an elite recruit, even though he missed extended time due to various injuries. When healthy, he was good for double-digit points and contributions throughout the stat sheet on a team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and nearly squeaked into the Sweet 16 as a No. 10 seed. Williams is the younger brother of lottery pick Jalen Williams and could follow the same path to the NBA with an early draft-day selection.
Ron Holland provided a thrilling recruitment last offseason, committing to Texas as the No. 1 prospect in the 2023 class but backing off his pledge, considering Arkansas and ultimately electing to go the professional route and play for G League Ignite. While his program effectively crumbled, Holland himself did nothing to hurt his status as an elite draft prospect when he averaged 19.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.3 steals for the G League squad. He ruptured a tendon in his thumb and missed the final 19 games of the season but still finished as Ignite’s second-leading scorer of all time.
At 6-foot-9, France native Tidjane Salaun makes for an intriguing prospect given his relative size for the wing position. That length could make him a lethal scorer and premier defender if he reaches his ceiling, but there is immense development to be done for the international 18-year-old. Salaun will be one of the youngest players in the draft pool but already has the shot-making ability to compete with older prospects, though his numbers dipped a bit this season at a higher level of French pro ball.
Prized freshman and one-and-done recruit Ja’Kobe Walter had his share of off-nights against some of the Big 12’s vaunted defenses but dazzled when he was at his best. Walter, a five-star recruit and the No. 1 shooting guard in his class, scored 28 points in his collegiate debut against Auburn, and that was a sign of things to come as he crossed the 20-point mark in eight different games and averaged 14.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists in his lone year at Baylor. He earned the Big 12 Freshman of the Year honor as the Bears’ leading scorer.
Isaiah Collier delivered on his five-star expectations despite USC’s massively disappointing season. The No. 1 college-bound recruit in the 2023 class overcame injuries and the Trojans’ overall struggles as a 15-18 team with a tremendous individual campaign, averaging 16.3 points, 4.3 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game. Collier always projected as a one-and-done player for USC and solidified his status as a potential lottery pick when he displayed remarkable ball skills and facilitation ability in his one year of college basketball.
Dalton Knecht is a transfer portal success story. The former Northern Colorado standout moved to the highest level of college basketball and did not miss a beat, and in fact, he improved upon joining Tennessee for the 2023-24 season. Knecht was among the nation’s most formidable scorers last season, particularly in SEC play, as he averaged 21.7 points per game on 45.8% shooting and 2.6 3-pointers per night. He earned the SEC Player of the Year award in addition to multiple national honors and starred against high-end competition, making him a no-doubt NBA prospect.
A pair of Duke stars headline the group of projected draftees immediately outside the lottery. Filipowski was always a reliable post presence for the Blue Devils and has a strong all-around game that should translate fairly well to the NBA, while McCain made a splash as a true freshman and carries tons of upside to the pro level. The latter scored 30 points in two of Duke’s four NCAA Tournament games to cap off a big lone year of college basketball in which he also logged five rebounds per game from the guard spot.
There is no shortage of offense around the pick No. 20 range in this year’s draft. Edey led the nation in scoring at 25.2 points per game during another historically dominant season, while Shannon Jr. finished just shy of him on the national leaderboard at No. 3 with 23.0 points per contest. The Purdue and Illinois stars were two of the most thrilling players to watch in March Madness.
Furphy made his NBA Draft declaration Tuesday but hired an NCAA-certified agent, allowing him to maintain college eligibility. He has just over a month to withdraw from the draft pool should he desire, and a potential return could bode well for the freshman, who averaged a modest 9.0 points per game but racked up 4.9 rebounds nightly as a 6-foot-9 guard/forward.
Three of college basketball’s top guards cap off this mock first round. Kolek and Newton starred for their respective squads in the Big East while McCullar battled injuries and was Kansas’ best player when healthy. Each of these All-American-caliber ballhandlers are prolific scorers and were some of the most important players on the nation’s top teams.
