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NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Louisville target Jay Scrubb may go straight to NBA

By Daniel Benjamin

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 19: The Cardinal Bird, mascot for Louisville Cardinals performs before the game against the Michigan Wolverines in the first half during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 19, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 19: The Cardinal Bird, mascot for Louisville Cardinals performs before the game against the Michigan Wolverines in the first half during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 19, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Jay Scrubb had a tremendous freshman season and is now considering doing something that a junior college player hasn’t done in 16 years.

Top 2020 junior college prospect Jay Scrubb may bypass playing D-I basketball and head straight to the NBA next year. If Scrubb were to go straight to the NBA draft and get selected, it would mark the first time that a junior college player has done so since the Atlanta Hawks tabbed Donta Smith out of Southeastern Illinois College with the No. 34 pick in 2004, per Evan Daniels of 247Sports.

Scrubb is a physically imposing wing as he stands at 6-6 and 220-pounds with a 6-9 wingspan. He is a versatile defender who can score — inside and out — as well as rebound. The Louisville native is also very athletic — measuring a 40-inch max vertical at the NBA combine this spring — and developed into a solid shooter from the perimeter last season.

Scrubb had a strong first season at John A. Logan College last season, compiling 19.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists per game and 1.5 blocks. He also shot 54.6 percent from the field, 46.4 percent from 3-point range and 79.1 percent from the free throw line.

The Trinity Catholic product tried out for the USA U19 team earlier this spring and while he did not ultimately make the squad, he made an impression. Louisville is currently the school that is pursuing him the hardest although he holds 17 offers overall. Cincinnati, Oregon, Ole Miss, Alabama, and Memphis are also in the mix for his services.

Scrubb took an unofficial visit to Louisville on May 28. He has plans to visit Alabama and Cincinnati at some point down the road.

How does Kerry Blackshear’s decision affect the Gators?

Kerry Blackshear Jr., the most sought after grad transfer this year, decided to go home for his final collegiate season as he verbally committed to the Florida Gators on Wednesday. Blackshear is an impact player and will drastically improve the Gators, who went 20-16 and 9-9 in the SEC last season. It was UF’s fewest wins under fifth-year head coach Mike White and marked the first time that the Gators finished outside the top five in the SEC in the last three seasons. Still, the Gators reached the NCAA tournament for a third straight year.

However, the Gators lost key veteran guards Jalen Hudson and KeVaughn Allen along with center Kevarrius Allen to graduation. Junior big man Keith Stone also transferred. The good news is that Andrew Nembhard and Noah Locke decided to return after testing NBA waters and sophomore Keyontae Johnson will also be back. The Gators brought in an elite 2019 recruiting class featuring Tre Mann, Scottie Lewis, and Omar Payne. UF is expected to compete for the SEC title.

White could use Blackshear as the only post in the starting lineup or pair him with Payne or junior Dontay Bassett or redshirt sophomore Isaiah Stewart or redshirt junior Gorjok Gak. Gak sat out the 2018-19 season as a result of a knee injury.

Other recruiting tidbits:

  • 2019 Pitt signee Karim Coulibaly is slated to play for Mali at the FIBA U19 World Cup. The 6-8 forward averaged 13.6 points and 11 caroms while helping Mali win the Africas U18s last summer.
  • Kentucky transfer Brad Calipari, who is the son of Wildcats coach John Calipari, is deciding between Detroit Mercy and Hampton. Calipari will be eligible to play immediately as a grad student and will have two years to play after redshirting this past season. He scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds in 27 games for Kentucky. I believe he will land at Detroit Mercy and play for former Indiana coach Mike Davis, who went 11-20 in his first season with the Titans.

dark. Next. Updated top-25 for 2019-20

  • Three-star 2020 prospect Zed Key (Glen Head, NY) picked up another offer from a high-major program St. John’s on June 27. It is the ninth offer that he has received in the last two weeks. The 6-8, 215-pound forward participated in the NBPA Top 100 camp earlier this month and now holds 30 offers with Virginia Tech, Marquette, Wisconsin, Ohio State, TCU and Pitt being among the most recent programs to make an overture.
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