You know that every home game at XFinity, in the back middle row sat 8 to 20 NBA scouts. I’m not sure why after last night’s draft. I am shocked that Diamond fell not only to the 2nd round but down to #40. With no guaranteed contract, it could be a chore for him to make a Clipper team that already has Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Cole Aldrich. I really though the lowest he would fall to would be 32 to the Lakers. It’s easy to say he should have come back to Maryland but hindsight is always 20-20. If the Clippers are patient with Diamond, he could become the sleeper pick of the draft.
In the last days before the draft Jake Layman’s stock started to soar (unlike the Dow Jones which is certain to take its lumps today after the UK elected to leave the EU). He was grabbed by Portland at pick #47. Once again no guartee to make the squad, although I liked that Portland traded to get him. the scouts love his length, and his motor. If he ever became consistent with the jumper he could rise quickly.
Finally to the shock of most, including Jay Bilas, Robert Carter Jr went undrafted. He had starred at the combine and rumor had it he quickly signed with Golden State who will probably not re-sign Festus Ezeli and Harrison Barnes after mediocre playoff performances.I like his chances to stick.
from umterps.com
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Former University of Maryland basketball players Diamond Stone and Jake Layman were both selected in the second round of the 2016 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Thursday night. Stone was selected 40th overall by the New Orleans Pelicans and Layman was drafted 47th overall by the Orlando Magic.
Stone was tabbed Associated Press Big Ten Newcomer of the Year in 2015-16, his lone season in College Park. The 6-11 center from Milwaukee, Wisc., was a Third Team All-Big Ten selection and ranked third all-time in program history in blocks for a freshman in a single season (56). He was second on the team in scoring (12.5 ppg) and established the Maryland freshman record and all-time mark at XFINITY Center with 39 points versus Penn State (12/30/15) in his inaugural Big Ten game. Stone also established Maryland single-game records for free throws made (19) and attempted (25) against the Nittany Lions.
A two-time All-Big Ten selection from Wrentham, Mass., Layman tied Juan Dixon for the most games played at Maryland (114). He capped his Maryland career ranked 18th in points (1,436) and rebounds (674). The 6-9 forward is one of only 12 players in school history to record 1,400 points and 600 rebounds. Layman shined during the 2015-16 postseason run, matching a career-high 27 points against South Dakota State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 11.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting .500 from the floor and .832 from the charity stripe. Layman earned his degree in American Studies in May.
Todd
It looks like the Stones got some overly optimistic advice. Diamond is a talented player with some upside but not a transcendent talent and he apparently lacks the size and skill set demanded of today’s NBA players at this point in his development.
I personally thought his decision to hire an agent so early in the process was rash and that he might have served himself better had he gone through the process before committing to it. I wish him well.
As for Carter, his choice to forego his final year if eligibility is understandable. He would have been 24 before next year’s draft had he come back to Maryland. I’m not particularly shocked that he went undrafted. I think he’ll need to strengthen his base and significantly improve his outside shooting if he has signed with GS as reported and hopes to stick with them.
As I did with Stone, I wish him well.
· 11/12/2019
freddy from boca
i don’t think stone got the best coaching at md and i think his dad saw that. just my opinion. i mean why when you want to go to your big man does he always set up 7-10 feet from the hoop instead of down on the blocks. why do you want your big man to catch and then dribble for better positioning and then shoot. yet that;s how md used their big men
· 11/12/2019
Todd
You and I could definitely go tooth and nail over the coaching issue, Freddy. Bit I’m not going to jump on that right now.
I’m kind of a Chico Escuela when I talk about the NBA so I could be off base here but I think Stone is something of a tweener for the NBA. He’s not big enough, long enough or strong enough to be the true back to the basket player I think he wants to be. On the other hand he doesn’t have the quickness, ball handling or shooting skills to step away from the basket. So it becomes a question of what do you do with him.
NBA, I don’t know.
· 11/12/2019
freddy from boca
to me no surprise what happened to the terp players.
for all these players in order to make a roster they need to become good teammates who understand the need their team has. if portland needs jake to come in and play d that’s what he has to focus on. he can’t worry about how many points he has at the end of the game. young players have to understand they have a role on a team and they aren’t going to be the star. they have to become excellent practice players.
stone…not as big as advertised. doesn’t have the great wingspan. lacks conditioning. nice touch offensively but not explosive inside-more finese. doesn’t rebound or play defense well and a lot of time that is more “want. has good upside. can run the floor at times really well but better conditioning allows more consistency. needs to get stronger to become a more physical explosive player and needs to want to really work hard on defense and rebounding.
jake’s career numbers at md are inflated because he played in so many games. go back and see how many games lucas and elmore played each yr. also jake played 4 yrs, with a shot clock and 3 pt shot. not all terps in the past played under those guidelines. jake had a good half season last yr. a good half season out of 4 isn’t great. he needs to get stronger, far more consistent with his shooting and be mentally tougher. needs to improve his ball handling and driving skills. scouts do like his length and athleticism as a small forward.
carter fell in love with his outside shot far too much this yr and many md fans remember a couple of games he was really on. they don’t remember the many games he was ice cold. he had a couple of good workouts for the pros but that didn’t mean overnight became a good consistent shooter. he isn’t a stretch 4 . he is kinda of an undersized power forward for the pros. good low post moves. turns it over far more than he should. not abad shooter from 10-15 feet though he seems to think he is a 3 pt shooting machine. doesn’t have a power forwards body particularly his lower body. not surprised at all no one drafted him.
sulaimon just doesn’t shoot well enough nor has great size to be a shooting guard in the nba. plays hard, plays good d, not a bad ball handler and has good court sense. imo, he should work with someone like john lucas to become as good a point guard as possible for any chance of someday making it in the nba.
keep in mind today’s college players go up against mostly younger players than guys did in the past because some many kids leave school early. it’s hard at times to gage their ability because they play primarily against players whose skills aren’t fully developed nor are they emotionally or physically as prepared to enter pro ball as well as a lot of 4 yr players.
varum ram. will probably find more professional success than the above players. guess he’s going to med school or grad school.
i think most fans over value their schools players because it’s hard to be objective with guys you root for,
wish all the former terps best of luck and hope they can find a place with a team, improve their skills and have good careers.
· 11/12/2019
Joterp
Freddy can’t help himself without a dig at Mark Turgeon.All the weaknesses you mentioned in your second comments are reasons you don’t post him up closer to the basket.He was’nt strong enough to post up low against guys like Matt Costello and Aj Hammonds , but he was quicker.Turgeon had to monitor his minutes all year because he was out of shape ,yet he was still Big 10 rookie of the year.What more were you and Mr Stone expectin?
· 11/12/2019