Big Ten Basketball: Top Players from the Conference in the 2018 NBA Draft
Three Underclassmen and One Senior From the Big Ten
JR Leron Black, F, Illinois, 6’7, 220lb (15.3 PPG, 5.2 RPG 54% FG)
He’s a junior who has already played four years with the Fighting Illini. 2015-16 was shortened to seven games so he’s eligible for one more. Black hasn’t averaged more than 8.1 points per game before this season. He’s a poor-man’s college basketball power forward. His scoring certainly went up nicely, but he certainly isn’t a rebounding machine and doesn’t have much of an outside shot. Going back for another year would’ve been a wise idea, but Illinois is in rebuilding mode.
JR Corey Sanders, G, Rutgers, 6’2, 175lb (15.1 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 3.1 APG)
This one really surprised a lot of people. I guess you could make a case for why Black did it because of where the Illinois program is right now. But why did Sanders choose to go out? Rutgers had such an awesome run in the Big Ten Tournament. They actually won two games and looked exciting. The Scarlet Knights would be returning four out of their top six scorers. Sanders is now gone though. He’s been a great scorer all three years at Rutgers and was a decent point guard, but certainly probably wasn’t ready to go out.
SO Justin Jackson, F, Maryland, 6’7, 225lb (9.8 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 1.9 APG)
His breakout season was cut to only 11 games due to surgery on the shoulder. Jackson was supposed to be the star of the Terrapins since Melo Trimble was gone. He had a pretty decent freshman season, averaging double digits, hitting 45 three-pointers and efficiently rebounding the ball. The injury bug came and the Big Ten fell short on seeing him shine at College Park. Jackson still has potential in college and going pro. Maryland is starting something nice right now and Jackson figures he’s better off going to the NBA.
SR Vince Edwards, F, Purdue, 6’7, 220lb (14.6 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.9 APG)
Here’s a player who has no choice but to go pro. Vince Edwards has played four good years at Purdue. He’s been in double-digits the final three. Edwards became a better rebounder and continued to hit shots from deep. He shot close to 40 percent from the three-point line and made over 50 this season. If Edwards can develop a nice shot, he’d be a great body off the bench to throw up a couple per night. Right now though he’s being considered a rotation player on our Big Board and is 72nd overall on SI.com.