Bro did Shaedon Sharpe kill your father? Have you been practicing swordplay even with your left hand? Like WTF?! I’ve never seen someone try harder to shit on a draft pick with less reason and less accurate information. Do some research a LOT of research before posting more on this please its just absurd at this point. Wait are you Dyson Daniels agent? I mean what gives?!
Not a strong analogy. Finishing college is what gets people jobs, not just showing up for a couple days. Absolutely. Everyone is saying ignore his time in college, because he was #1 ranked in his class for next year. Have you looked outside today?
Scouts and media personnel like Schmitz/Bilas aren't going to practices at Washington State. Kentucky gave him a platform, and that's part of the reason why their fan base is so angry at Sharpe.
Attending practices isn't a huge part of Sharpe's draft stock. (Do those guys attend practices regularly, or were they just there to see the enigma Sharpe? That's a significant element.) Kentucky's fans have a right to feel used and abused. I'm firmly on the record as not liking how Sharpe treated the school, no matter how slimy I think Calipari is.
disagree with this. In this particular case, I think they mattered quite a bit. Kentucky fans have a right to be upset. But I think the entire business of college athletics is slimy to begin with. Especially in the one and done age, so I'm pretty apathetic to their feelings. While it does feel slimy, I think he and his handlers played this perfectly to maximize his value. Joining UK 6 months after his teammates did, and with no training camp and limited practices, there is no way he would have performed well in that environment. His stock was already sky high, so there was only a downside to playing. With his goal of playing in the NBA first and foremost, I doubt he cared about helping that prospect factory they call a college. And given how finicky the draft process is, he would have dropped like a rock in the draft. He did the right thing for himself.
There are some asinine narratives here in this thread. While there is not a lot out there on Sharpe, there is enough pieces to put together a congruous picture. Sharpe graduated early from high school. He graduated....he didn't leave early. His grades can't have been bad. He was too good for High school basketball. His skills and abilities were off the charts. The mystery or issue many people have is not that he didn't play for Kentucky, but that he last played against high school kids, so how do we know if he is ready for the NBA? Or what his real value is? First off, some of the NBA's best players have come straight out of High School. So, how can one say with any definite answer that a high school player isn't ready? I will say, most aren't, but Sharpe isn't most. Also, I want to dispel the idea that Calipari said Sharpe wasn't ready for the NBA. He said Sharpe wasn't ready to play for Kentucky back in January because he came late and had yet to learn the system. He had nothing but good things to say about Sharpe and his decision to join the draft. Deep down Calipari wanted Sharpe to return because he knew Sharpe could help Kentucky get to another championship. Here is why I am not worried about Sharpe. His work ethic. There seems to be this narrative that Sharpe joined Kentucky as a stepping stone and hid himself to keep his value up. He wasn't hiding, not at all. He was working tirelessly. He was putting the work in. He was getting into the best shape, he was honing every faucet of his game. He worked to improve his three point shooting, jump shot, and finishing at the basket, as well as his defense. He intended to stay at first and to play next season for Kentucky. He had in depth talks with his parents about it, and made the decision to enter the draft. He decided he wanted to forgo college ball and compete at the highest level. There is a not a lot of footage of Sharpe playing, but even in his worst games, he contributed across the books. This is a guy who can do it all and he has been in the gym working his ass off to be his best. I'm excited to see him in a few weeks in the summer league. The Blazers made a hell of a pick here.
This should end this thread. This isn't speculation on your part it's exactly what has happened. He reclassified after graduating early. He went to Kentucky to play basketball, he said this. Coach Cal told him he needed to redshirt because he got to school too far into the season to be effective in the system, Calipari said this. He intended to redshirt and then play next year, he said this. Then when he saw his name climb up draft boards he decided not to play college ball next season and enter the draft, he was asked this and confirmed it. As far as if he's ready or not, that is speculation as it is with every draft pick whether or not they've played in college. For the record Shaedon did play against some of the best college players in the country in practice every day while he was there. So he did get an opportunity to see how he did against a step up in competition. If people watch the interview TyTy and Shaedon did together, TyTy said that Shaedon was dominating those practices on both ends. So, if people just watched or read the interviews that Cal, Shaedon and his teammates from Kentucky... this thread wouldn't even exist. Here's some speculation... I think that Shaedon Sharpe is going to be the greatest Canadian basketball player of all time and that would be a pretty big deal considering Steve Nash.
I researched. I looked into this. Before the draft I wasn't buying into Sharpe because of the things I was hearing. But, behind all the noise is an incredible truth. This kid is fucking solid. He has put more work in then pretty much anyone in this draft. Glad the Blazers saw through it all. They got a steal.
You didn't actually address ANY of his broader ethical concerns. WELL DONE!!! I mean for certain, at least one person lost out on a scholarship opportunity at Kentucky. You'll find many Kentucky fans with a sour taste in their mouth. Lots of bad mouthing about his stint in Kentucky. I think it's a little a more complex than what is good for Shaedon Sharpe is what is good for everything. I'm not going to vilify Shaedon Sharpe over this, but it's also evident to me a situation where there ought to have been no basis for a contract and whatever Sharpe benefited was unearned.
Some boomers still believe in being loyal to companies and things that can fuck you over time and time again. "Back in my day we bought houses on one income and worked for the same employer for 37 years"
If I'm not mistaken, even though Sharpe graduated early and reclassified, he missed the cutoff to be eligible for the 2022 NBA Draft. He appealed and the NBA ruled him eligible based on age, even though he missed the cut off. So Sharpe had a choice to make at that point. Start playing at Kentucky when the season was winding down or sit out. While I absolutely hate sitting out from a competitive stand point, he would've been nitpicked to death like many prospects are and could have cost himself a lot of money. Remaining a mysterious prospect with unlimited talent was 100% the right move from the perspective of maximizing his draft stock. Now, they should've handled his workouts and interviews better and he might've gone top-5. I wish Sharpe would've just been honest about it.
Would those same salty fans give Sharpe money and support him for life, if he were to return and tear up his knee ligaments or something? Nope. You are expecting everything to be 1 sided. Treating young student athletes like livestock. Fuck that. Sharpe saw the opportunity to get drafted and made sure he set himself up for life. Anyone who wouldn't do that is an idiot. And who gives a shit about the University of Kentucky? They are making millions and millions of dollars off of kids like this.
This. Exactly this. In today's world, one can only show loyalty to those who would reciprocate if in similar circumstances. Young people today are one accident, health scare, bad decision, broken car, and etc., away from living on the streets.
