Without being asked about Kentucky freshman and potential top-10 pick Shaedon Sharpe, Troy Weaver was asked about Shaedon Sharpe. He was asked Wednesday on the Stoney & Jansen Show how he might evaluate a draft prospect who hasn't played a competitive basketball game since last summer's Peach Jam -- where Sharpe led the prestigious tournament in scoring with 24.0 points per game.
"I mean, that’s the job," said the Pistons GM. "That’s the world we live in. These guys are coming out young, sometimes they aren’t playing a lot of basketball to be evaluated. But when they do play, you have to have those evaluations and do your background and make a good selection. Guys not playing for six months or whatever the case may be, you still gotta do your work. We’ll do our work and we’ll be excited about that prospect and the rest of them that are on the board."
Everyone is excited about Sharpe. While he didn't play in any games last season after reclassifying and enrolling early at Kentucky, he was originally the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2022 for a reason. For a host of reasons, actually. He's an explosive 6'6 shooting guard who can score from anywhere. And against anyone: He led the Nike EYBL circuit in scoring last summer, a beast in a breeding ground of future NBA players. He has superstar potential.
Or, in the words of ESPN.com NBA draft analyst Jonathan Givony, the 18-year-old combines a "prototypical frame with dynamic shot-making and explosive finishing ability, regularly coming up with highlight-reel-caliber dunks, blocks and putbacks."
A day before Tuesday night's lottery, where Weaver and the Pistons wound up with the No. 5 pick in next month's draft, Sharpe put on a show for evaluators at the combine -- Weaver and the Pistons included.
And if you're still not sold -- skepticism is healthy in regard to a player defined by amateur showcases -- Sharpe can almost out-jump his own ceiling. He can already (maybe) out-jump Michael Jordan, who holds the record for highest measured vertical in NBA history at 48 inches. Sharpe has reportedly been measured at 49 inches, albeit with a running start. And he's already drawn comparisons to the player with the sixth highest documented vertical: Bulls All-Star Zach LaVine.
If the draft were tomorrow -- it isn't until June 23rd -- Sharpe would almost certainly be a top-10 pick. He's widely considered one of the five to seven best players on the board. It bears mention that when Weaver first publicly sized up the draft class several months ago, he said there were seven players he'd be comfortable taking with the No. 1 pick -- a stance he reiterated on Wednesday now that Detroit is picking No. 5.
"It’s seven," he said. "I’m still comfortable with the top seven guys. So like I said, we’ll have some good choices at 5 and be excited about them."
To Weaver's point, the fifth overall pick from 2017-19 produced three of the best young players in the NBA: De'Aaron Fox, Trae Young and Darius Garland. And as he noted himself, "look at last year: (Josh) Giddey was a tremendous player at No. 6, (Jalen) Suggs was a good player at No. 5 and the Rookie of the Year (Scottie Barnes) was at No. 4."
So safe to say that Weaver is OK with picking fifth?
"Nah," he said. "We’re great with it."