Nick Ward submits name to NBA Draft, not hiring an agent
Only link I've seen so far is on RCMB so not linking, but this isn't too surprising. Rumors have been that Ward may be leaving and just wants to get paid, whether it's NBA or not. Some draft boards have him as a late 2nd-round pick so this will give him the option of gauging where he's at and returning or staying in the draft.
JJJ has still yet to announce what he's going to do. Common sense says go pro (projected top 3 pick in some places, top 10 at worst) but there are some rumors he may stay for his Sophomore year. I don't get why after getting benched for Carter against Syracuse and seeing how poorly it worked out for Bridges, but if he wants to come back to go 0-2 against Michigan again be my guest.
Why would Jaren Jackson come back? His stock will not get any higher than it is right now and under Izzo I am sure it would slide further down the draft ladder next year.
He's probably being mentored by _______________*.
*Fill in any 5 star of your choice that Izzo coached down to a 2 star. My personal favorite is Kelvin Torbert.
Even if Jaren Jackson is "only" the 10th pick, he would be relinquishing about $3.2 million in salary. This, obviously, doesn't include money from endorsements.
Miles Bridges gave up about $2.7 million in salary returning to Michigan State, and didn't get anything in return. I am assuming he would have been about the 12th pick, hence the $2.7 million figure. However, he may have slipped down the draft boards this year, so it may hurt him even more.
JJJ is going to go back to msu. It is what it is, he won't be better off but college is a good time and his family is good financially and he will still be a lottery pick next year.
However, I'll never understand why any parent would advise their kid to stay in school if they are a projected lottery pick. What is there to gain? There is a lot to lose... It seems to me that you can improve at basketball by playing basketball full time. Is his poli sci course going to improve his shooting?
I could maybe see it if you were skipping your senior year, but I can't imagine his plan is to graduate. Dumb move if he comes back. However, it would be funny as hell to see him come back so he can lose to Michigan and leave the tourney early... Again....
Izzo must be a master of persuasion.
I doubt this has much to do with Izzo. JJJ's father is a sharp guy who played in the NBA, so if the kid stays, it is because his Dad feels like he would benefit from another year of maturity.
He is likely to be picked in the top ten if he leaves. Another year of "maturing" at Staee will result in what? It won't guarantee that he is picked higher. Also, even if he was picked higher, what is another million or two on top of the super rich man he would be if he left this year and was picked 5th? If he blows out his knee it could be all over.
If we are talking about maturity in a non-basketball sense, meaning they are worried he will go nuts on hookers and blow in the NBA, what will one more year at rape U do to prevent that possibility? I didn't transform into a fully mature adult between my freshman and sophomore years of college... He won't graduate if he leaves this year or next year...
If his dad was a sharp guy, he would tell him to take the money and run. Don't risk everything to bring a championship to a coach that hasn't improved your game and sat you for a 6th year senior in the tourney. Even if they sent him to the minors, he would be getting coached up and playing basketball full time without the distraction of school.
It's a bad move and I'm not just saying that because I'd love to see him leave. I can only imagine how bizarre our romanticized concept of "student athlete" must appear to athletes in Europe and elsewhere.
FWIW, I worked in the Pistons front office for 6 years in the early 90's. At that time, an NBA locker room wasn't the ideal place for an immature 18 year old with 10's of millions of dollars. I don't necessarily disagree that he should go, but I do understand if his father thinks one more year of college wouldn't be a mistake. The most important NBA contract is the second one....
Yup. Damn good point! I'd probably hire a nanny or something to follow my kid around... I'd still tell him to take the money though. Shit, college isn't a good place for an 18 year old kid either!
Two thoughts:
1) Can anyone who can't be relied on more than 15ft from the basket play in the modern NBA? His game works well in an Izzo offense, but does the NBA want bruisers anymore?
2) 25 years ago, college players wouldn't enter the draft early unless they were likely to be picked in the first half of the first round. Now, it's "Well, there's always Europe if I don't get drafted." I find that so depressing, and it says a lot of the faded prestige of the college game.
Makes sense. He could probably develop his game far more in Europe than under Izzo.
When is the last time Izzo's blue-chip recruits actually improved throughout their career there? I can't imagine being a recruit, looking at that program's recent track record, and thinking "yeah, this staff will take me to the next level".
What a dump MSU has turned into....
please take that Wagner move and create a gif with 4 Spartans slapping the floor with their hand and Ward slapping it with his head ?
and say that if Ward doesn't burn his bridges (academic or hiring an agent) he may be back.
Why do I say this? Imagine his draft feedback from the NBA:
Nick Ward draft evaluation:
Dear Mr. Ward, it seems you have accidently sent a request for a draft evaluation to the National Basketball Association. We honestly have no idea why as we haven't been interested in 6'7" 300 pound immobile guys since Corliss Williamson.
We suspect that you might be better off trying for the NFL draft. Their address is:
345 Park Avenue.
New York, NY 10154.
Website Address:
www.NFL.com
We wish you luck in your future endeavors.
Look, this isn't a Spartan thing - I think Miles Bridges actually could be a great NBA player when played at the proper position by a legitimate NBA coach - but there is no way in holy hell that Nick Ward is getting taken in any round of the NBA Draft. Frankly, even in the old NBA, he'd be undersized and not particularly skilled. In the current one?! LOL. I think Jordan Morgan has more of a chance of making an impact in an NBA rotation coming from whatever country he's in right now than Nick Ward.
I decided to go back to 2003 (as far back as 247 goes), and see the highly rated recruits (Top 100 based on 247sports ranking) MSU has brought in, and how they did in college (and if they had a pro career (NBA/overseas)).
TLDR Version:
Number of players who played to their high rating, improved every year at MSU, or were a diamond in the rough: 10 players (Neitzel, Suton, Morgan, Lucas, Summers, Green, Payne, Trice, Harris, Valentine)
Number who didn't play to their potential based on ranking: 16 players (Brown, Naymick, Gray, Herzog, Dahlman, Allen, Roe, Lucious, Nix, Sherman, Appling, Byrd, Dawson, Costello, Kaminski, Davis)
Number who were TBD: 6 players (McQuaid, Bridges, Langford, Winston, Ward, Jackson) Analysis below
2003:
(4) Shannon Brown - Highest rated on the list. 3 years at MSU with a great JR year. 408 games in the NBA (only 60 starts). Currently in the NBA G-League
(63) Drew Naymick - Below average 5 years at MSU. Playing overseas.
2004:
(26) Marquise Gray - Terrible 4 years at MSU.
(48) Drew Neitzel - Improved every year, great Jr and Sr year. NBA D-League, retired in 2011.
(119) Goran Suton - Improved every year. Playing overseas.
2005: None in the Top 100
2006:
(34) Raymar Morgan - Great 4 year career, playing overseas now
(47) Tom Herzog - Garbage at MSU, transfer to UCF for 4th year in college.
(87) Isaiah Dahlman - Garbage 4 years at MSU
2007:
(31) Kalin Lucas - Great 4 years at MSU, playing overseas.
(40) Durrell Summers - Improved every year for 4 years at MSU, never a great player. NBA D-League and playing overseas.
(45) Chris Allen - Bad 3 years at MSU, transfer to Iowa St for senior year
2008:
(15) Delvon Roe - Below average 3 years at MSU, ended career with knee injury. Currently an actor.
(69) Draymond Green - Great 4 years at MSU, got better every year. NBA All-Star
(78) Korie Lucious - Terrible 3 years at MSU, transfer to Iowa St.
2009:
(76) Derrick Nix - Bad 3 years, then good 4th year at MSU. Playing overseas.
(80) Garrick Sherman - Terrible 2 years at MSU, transfer to ND
2010:
(22) Adreian Payne - Great Jr and Sr year at MSU. NBA and NBA D-League injury problems.
(37) Keith Appling - Decent 4 years at MSU. Currently in jail.
(96) Russell Byrd - Terrible 3 years at MSU.
2011:
(17) Branden Dawson - OK 3 years, great senior year at MSU. NBA, NBA D-League, overseas career.
(188) Travis Trice - Good to great career at MSU. NBA, D-League, overseas.
2012:
(19) Gary Harris - Great 2 years at MSU. Good NBA player.
(89) Matt Costello - Average 4 years at MSU. NBA D League.
(95) Kenny Kaminski - 1 bad year at MSU. Transfer to Ohio (in the MAC).
(112) Denzel Valentine - Great Jr and Sr year at MSU. In the NBA.
2013: None in the top 100.
2014: None in the top 100.
2015:
(26) Deyonta Davis - Average Fr season. Left for the NBA. Injuries sideline the 31st overall pick.
(71) Matt McQuaid - In his 3rd year at MSU. Bench player who can hit 3's at a 37% clip in his career.
2016:
(12) Miles Bridges - Probably did not play like his rating suggested, and is leaving MSU with a bad lasting memory for MSU fans.
(19) Josh Langford - Still not playing up to his rating; need to see massive improvements on both ends of the floor.
(31) Cassius Winston - Very good on offense, very bad on defense. Probably a 4 year player.
(42) Nick Ward - Writing on the wall; looked to be a strong 4 year player in the typical Izzo "5" position. Status is on the fritz - outlook = Europe after 2 years.
2017:
(8) Jaren Jackson - Looks like an NBA player, needs to start playing like one. Will likely go pro, but you never know with MSU players. This still holds true. Never really took over, but all the tools are there. Go pro dude. Get millions and actualy develop your game. I would say he didn't play up to his rating, with 99% of the blame on Izzo.
This is way more Sparty info than I could ever read. That being said, Shannon Brown was a baller.
A baller, yes perhaps he was.
Did he play like the #4 best recruit? And the best recruit ever under Izzo?
Fr stats: 23 mpg, 8 ppg, 45/34/80 shooting line FG/3pt/FT
So stats: 25 mpg, 11 ppg, 45/33/84
Jr stats: 35 mpg, 17 ppg, 46/39/83
So, great JR year, but nothing of note as a Fr or SO. and He didn't do much in the NBA. Only started 60 games
The better question to ask would be how many of those guys benefitted or improved their stock from their time spent at MSU. The list really shrinks.
Goran Suton - came in as a prospect outside of the top 100, developed toward the end of his college career and became a second round NBA draft pick
Draymond Green - mid 4-star recruit, decommitted from UK after Tubby Smith was run out of town, developed over 4 years to become a dominant college player, first team all-american, and a second round NBA draft pick
Denzel Valentine - recruited as a prospect outside the top 100, developed over 4 years, earned NCAA POY as a senior and a first round draft pick
That's all I can come up with. So it appears that Izzo successfully "developed" 3 players to a high level of NBA potential over a 15 year period. Compare that to Beilein's growing list of unheralded recruits becoming first round early entry NBA draft selections (Burke, Hardaway, Stauskas, Levert, Wilson).
You could probably add Trice to the list. Taking a lower recruited guy, getting 4 good to great years out of him, and then him having a career making money in the D-league and overseas is a success in my mind.
But that takes the grand total to 4. Not a very good resume for Izzo.
Izzo won't play him. If he wants to get to the NBA, he needs to have more playing time. He has a shot, but its not at MSU
What a supreme waste of talent, ward could have been an outstanding 4 year dominant big man if he were allowed to play and got some coaching. When I first saw him early last year I was dreading him owning us for 4 years (since he doesnt have the size to be an nba 5 or the speed outside game to be an nba 4)...instead izzo just doesnt play him. Thanks, I guess, I feel bad for him though.
I don't know what goes on in their locker room, but Izzo comes across as a real jerk, especially this year. And the team just isn't doing anything in the tournament. Bridges is gone, JJJ should leave immediately. Maybe Ward might get more looks next year, but I doubt he will improve his stock much. Ward should probably leave.