Maurice Harkless Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Amick On Perry Jones III, Small Forwards, Plumlee

June 2nd, 2012 at 8:36pm CST by Ryan Raroque

At 6'11'', 235 lbs, and the ability to play either forward position, potential-lottery pick Perry Jones III from Baylor stands out as one of the most intriguing prospects among this year's NBA Draft crop. Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated takes a closer look at Jones' draft stock, acknowledging that it can significantly change depending on the impression he makes in his upcoming workouts and interviews. Amick adds that Jones and his representatives aim to put an emphasis on his small forward skills during workouts in order to better market himself to talent evaluators. In an interview, Jones elaborated about his newfound confidence, his current training at UC Santa Barbara, and the belief that he was not properly utilized at Baylor.

Here are some more tidbits from Amick's article, including a brief rundown of this year's top small forward prospects, Miles Plumlee's workout in Minnesota, and a guard prospect from Vanderbilt to keep an eye out for…

Draft Rumors: Bobcats, Cavs, Kings, Blazers

June 1st, 2012 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

Following the Hornets' lottery win, ESPN.com's Chad Ford published his newest mock draft, which includes a handful of interesting scenarios, including Dion Waiters jumping to eighth overall and Austin Rivers slipping to 18th. With less than four weeks until draft day, Ford continues to talk to sources and visit workouts to get a better sense of how things will play out on June 28th. His latest draft blog (Insider link) explores potential options for the top 10 picks and is chock-full of interesting tidbits. Let's round up some of the highlights….

Draft Links: Harkless, Drummond, Zeller, Owens

May 28th, 2012 at 6:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

With 48 hours to go until the draft lottery, here's the latest from the draft front:

Kyle Nelson of Draft Express speaks with St. John's freshman Moe Harkless, the site's 18th-ranked prospect who says he's putting in 12-hour days in advance of the draft.
TNT's David Aldridge, writing for NBA.com, ranks Andre Drummond as the top center in the draft but says Tyler Zeller is the only center most teams would feel safe taking high in the lottery.
Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group passes along observations from the Warriors pre-draft workout Monday, centering around Stanford power forward Josh Owens, whose "incredible" athleticism, according to one NBA executive, has helped him move from anonymity into the second-round picture.

Prospect Profile: Moe Harkless

May 10th, 2012 at 5:14pm CST by Zachary Links

The commitment of Queens native Moe Harkless to St. John's kickstarted a surprisingly talent-rich recruiting class for Steve Lavin & Co for 2011. While the speedy small forward was seen as a big get for the Red Storm, the program probably wasn't expecting him to break out in his freshman campaign and declare for the draft. However, after scoring 25 in a losing effort against Pittsburgh in the Big East Tournament, it quickly became evident that Harkless would be a first-round pick.

As a fairly raw but intriguing talent, Harkless' draft status is based largely on upside rather than what he can contribute to an NBA team in 2012/13. The 6'8" forward was charged with the task of playing at the 4 for St. John's this past season, not unreasonable for a player of his size but still out of place for someone with his skill set. Harkless, for the most part, did just fine in this role and averaged 1.4 blocks and 1.6 steals per contest as he played out of position. On an NBA court, Harkless undoubtedly projects to the small forward position.

There were plenty of games in 2011/12 where Harkless looked like an elite scorer. Just ask the Duke Blue Devils, who watched the forward drop 30 points off of 13-of-21 shooting (plus 13 boards) in late January. Harkless put together this and other strong offensive performances with his ability to slash to the basket. Meanwhile, he has yet to show that he has much in the way of range. If Harkless hopes to produce consistently at the next level, he'll have to develop his jumper in order to keep defenders honest.

So where does a hyper-athletic small forward with significant upside fit on this draft board? Likely just outside of the lottery and behind the likes of Baylor's Quincy Miller, who offers similar promise but with a sweet shooting stroke. Currently, DraftExpress has Harkless going at No. 22 while the latest mock draft from Chad Ford of ESPN.com pegs him at No. 24. Wherever Harkless lands, you can expect the partisan crowd at New Jersey's Prudential Center to give their nod of approval.

Draft Notes: Mitchell, Hummel, Rivers, Sullinger

April 16th, 2012 at 4:42pm CST by Luke Adams

It's already been an eventful day for draft updates, with news that the University of Kentucky has scheduled a press conference for Tuesday afternoon, likely to announce that five underclassmen will officially enter the draft. While we await that formal announcement, let's check in on a few other draft-related items….

Junior forward Tony Mitchell has elected to enter the NBA draft, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Mitchell, not to be confused with the North Texas player of the same name, was averaging 13.1 points and 7.0 rebounds per game for Alabama this season before he was suspended indefinitely in February. Mitchell is ranked 71st by DraftExpress.com.
A number of NBA scouts and executives help TNT's David Aldridge break down the shooting guards in this year's draft class. Aldridge's piece is chock-full of interesting quotes and comes highly recommended.
Purdue senior Robbie Hummel has hired agent Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports in hopes of being drafted, writes Cliff Brunt of the Associated Press. DraftExpress ranks Hummel 81st among this year's draft prospects.
In other agent news, Austin Rivers and Jared Sullinger have signed with David Falk, Moe Harkless will hire Happy Walters, and William Buford has hired Herb Rudoy and Ron Shade.

Draft Notes: Harkless, Davis, Leonard, Paul

March 19th, 2012 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

With the NCAA tournament through its first two rounds, all but sixteen teams have seen their seasons come to an end. For some players, that means looking ahead to the NBA draft, so let's check out some of the latest draft-related links from around the web….

Moe Harkless of St. John's officially declared his intent to hire an agent and enter the draft, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Harkless said he was "fully committed" to his decision and plans to hire an agent within a week or so.
In an Insider piece for ESPN.com, Chad Ford looks at a few players who have seen their stocks rise or fall during March Madness.
If any rumors between now and June 28th suggest a player besides Anthony Davis could go first overall in the draft, don't believe them, says Ric Bucher of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Scouts and GMs say Davis is in a category of his own, according to Bucher.
Illinois underclassmen Meyers Leonard and Brandon Paul have submitted their names to NBA’s undergraduate advisory committee to receive feedback on their draft stock, writes Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com.

Draft Notes: Harkless, Barnes, 2013

March 10th, 2012 at 6:52pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Along the impending excitement surrounding March Madness lies the opportunity for college players to solidify or increase their stock in the eyes of NBA scouts. We take a look at a few names that could be headlining the draft on June 28 as well as introduce you to the hoopla surrounding one name to consider for 2013.

Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.com writes that St. John's freshman forward Moe Harkless is expected to make a decision in the coming weeks concerning whether or not he will leave for this year's NBA Draft. Harkless is currently projected to be the 21st pick by DraftExpress.com.
Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer provides her take on Harrison Barnes of North Carolina and lists her projection of the top 10 players of this year's draft.
Rick Bonnell of CharlotteObserver.com takes a more comprehensive look at Kentucky's Anthony Davis, who appears to have a great chance at being this year's #1 pick if he turns pro.
Pete Thamel, writing for the New York Times, examines the fevered world around high school senior Nerlens Noel, projected by Draft Express as the No. 1 pick in the 2013 draft. He's surrounded by college recruiters aplenty and is being sought by a representative with Creative Artists Agency.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com gives you his updated list of the top 100 prospects of the upcoming draft.

Draft Notes: Irving, Harkless, Moser

February 4th, 2012 at 4:16pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavs are relying on top-pick Kyrie Irving for heavy minutes, notes Tom Reed of The Cleveland Plain Dealer, and a rotation shortened by injuries is taking its toll on the team, Reed says. The heavy use must not be affecting Irving's play, however. Justin Kubatko notes in The New York Times that Kyrie Irving is quietly on his way to perhaps becoming the first rookie to ever shoot 50% from the floor, 40% from three-point range, and 80% from the free-throw line.

Here are a few notes as teams try to find the next Irving in preparation for June's draft:

Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv reports multiple sources have said St. John's freshman Moe Harkless may enter the draft. The 6-foot-8 Harkless is rated as the 36th best prospect by DraftExpress.com. Zagoria quotes a scout who predicts a "great future," but wishes he'd stay another year.
ESPN projects UNLV sophomore forward Mike Moser, a UCLA transfer, as a late first-round pick (Insider only), but Moser tells Jim Beseda of The Oregonian that he's glad to be a Rebel and isn't planning on leaving for the draft after this year.
Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel wonders what would have happened if the Magic hadn't passed over Danny Granger for Fran Vasquez in the 2005 draft.