Replacements for Top 20 Players to Declare Early for 2016 NBA Draft
So fun to watch but gone so quickly. This is the best way to describe college basketball's top players each year since the majority of them end up turning pro long before their eligibility is exhausted.
A scan of DraftExpress' latest 2016 NBA mock draft sees that 31 of the 60 spots are held by college stars who could have returned to school next season. That includes 14 who left after their freshman year, eight falling among the top 15 picks.
Thankfully, there's always another crop of talented players waiting to take their places the following season.
We've identified the most likely replacements for the 20 best players who declared early for the NBA draft, listed alphabetically. Some were key contributors for their teams during the 2015-16 season, while others are entering their first year of college or stepping into much greater roles after limited action to this point.
Bam Adebayo, PF, Kentucky
1 of 20
Replacement for: Skal Labissiere
Considering the hype and his lofty recruiting rankings, Labissiere proved to be a big disappointment for Kentucky. The 6'11" Haitian-born prospect struggled to handle the interior game, particularly on the boards, averaging just 3.1 rebounds along with 6.6 points in less than 16 minutes per game. Despite that, he remains a coveted pro prospect, and it was no surprise that he left Kentucky after one season.
Had Labissiere stuck around, Bam Adebayo was very likely to move ahead of him on the team's frontcourt depth chart.
The 6'9”, 232-pound Adebayo was the No. 9 overall player in the 2016 recruiting class. He earned that position because of a fierce drive in the paint that often resulted in monster dunks, thus his becoming known as Bam instead of Edrice.
Adebayo is far more sturdily built at this point than Labissiere was, and he should use that to assert himself on the block.
Jabari Bird, G, California
2 of 20
Replacement for: Jaylen Brown
Before there was Brown, there was Jabari Bird, a McDonald's All-American who came to California with high expectations and a lot of pressure to succeed. The 6'6" wing averaged 8.3 points as a freshman and 10.5 as a sophomore but lacked the efficiency needed to make a true impact for the Golden Bears.
Then Brown came along in 2016-17, turning Bird into a secondary offensive option and, for one stretch, a sixth man before Bird started the final 16 games he played. Bird averaged 12.9 points (up from 10.4 for the entire season) and had 40 of his 61 three-pointers in that span, finding his groove at just the right time.
Back spasms kept him out of Cal's NCAA tournament game, an upset loss to lower-seeded Hawaii.
With Brown turning pro after one season, Bird figures to slide right back into his old role. Having seen what it's like to play behind someone for a while, the senior-to-be should have a better understanding of what's expected. And with Cal also losing guards Jordan Mathews and Tyrone Wallace, he's the second-leading returning scorer.
Carlton Bragg, PF, Kansas
3 of 20
Replacement for: Cheick Diallo
After a dominant showing at the NBA Draft Combine in May, it came as no surprise that Diallo opted to remain eligible instead of returning to Kansas. He then sent a thank-you note to Jayhawks fans, many of whom probably watched his combine performance and wondered why they didn't see that while he was in college.
Kansas coach Bill Self didn't have much use for Diallo, who played only 7.5 minutes per game while far down on the depth chart in the frontcourt. Only slightly ahead of him was Carlton Bragg, a less heralded freshman who played 8.9 minutes per contest but, unlike Diallo, appeared in all 38 games.
The 6'9", 220-pound Bragg averaged 3.8 points and 2.5 rebounds, scoring 12 and 10 in consecutive games in the Big 12 tournament before managing just eight in Kansas' final five contests.
Diallo, Perry Ellis, Hunter Mickelson and Jamari Traylor are all gone, leaving the frontcourt a little thinner. The Jayhawks also have Landen Lucas and add 6'11", 265-pound Udoka Azubuike, but Bragg is the future.
Kyron Cartwright, PG, Providence
4 of 20
Replacement for: Kris Dunn
Dunn blessed us with a third college season in 2015-16 even though he could have been a first-round pick a year ago. That allowed Providence to have a skilled ball-handler running the offense, which helped turn Ben Bentil into a star.
With both of them gone, it's now Kyron Cartwright's turn to lead the Friars on offense after serving as Dunn's understudy the past two seasons.
The 5'11" guard averaged 5.9 points and 4.0 assists per game but shot only 36.3 percent from the field last season. Down the stretch, he began to play more alongside Dunn, with Dunn playing off the ball, logging five or more assists in 10 of Providence's final 14 games.
"He won't be Dunn, but the coaching staff won't expect him to be Dunn either," Joey Ciccarello of SB Nation wrote. "What they'll expect (and likely get) is a point guard who will be amongst the top half of Big East point guards next season."
If Cartwright struggles, though, look for the Friars to turn to incoming freshman Maliek White, a 4-star prospect.
James Demery, F, Saint Joseph's
5 of 20
Replacement for: DeAndre' Bembry
It's not just Bembry whom Saint Joseph's has to replace in 2016-17, as the Hawks also lost the other half of the only teammates in Division I to average 17 points and seven rebounds in Isaiah Miles. James Demery isn't nearly good enough to fill both voids, but he's capable of stepping into one of those spots as a junior.
The 6'6" Demery averaged 8.1 points and 3.6 rebounds last season in 21.6 minutes per game. Spread that over 40 minutes, and his rates would be 15 points and 6.6 rebounds, but it was hard to get on the floor with Bembry and Miles combining to play 71.7 minutes per contest.
Demery was a 57 percent shooter last year on two-pointers but lacks the outside shooting touch Miles brought. He's also not as much of a passer as Bembry, but he brings a little bit of each to the court and will be heavily counted on next season.
Noah Dickerson, F, Washington
6 of 20
Replacement for: Marquese Chriss
Washington had one of the youngest rosters in the country among Power 5 conference teams last season, with freshmen comprising five of its top seven scorers. Chriss and Dejounte Murray emerged as stars and parlayed that into unexpected one-and-done campaigns, leaving the Huskies without two of their most dynamic scorers.
Noah Dickerson was part of that freshmen group, starting Washington's first 25 games and averaging 7.5 points and 5.2 rebounds, but he lacked the spark Chriss had next to him. It didn't help that the 6'9" Dickerson couldn't stay out of foul trouble.
His 6.2 fouls per 40 minutes included five disqualifications, including one in just seven minutes against Arizona. He played 22.3 minutes per game, and only two of his 10 double-digit scoring games came when he logged fewer than 25 minutes.
Dickerson's 15.4 percent rebounding rate was tied with Malik Dime—who replaced him in the starting lineup—for the team lead. If he can stay on the court, he's a valuable asset.
Damonte Dodd, C, Maryland
7 of 20
Replacement for: Diamond Stone
Maryland has been waiting for Damonte Dodd to assert himself as a viable post player who can provide more than bench minutes here and there. In 2016-17, the Terrapins will have no other choice.
Stone's departure, along with 6'9" forwards Robert Carter and Jake Layman, leaves Maryland with only the 6'11", 245-pound Dodd and the 7'1", 235-pound Michal Cekovsky as frontcourt options. Cekovsky has been even less productive in his career than Dodd, who averaged 4.0 points and 3.8 rebounds in 15.9 minutes in 2014-15 as a sophomore but dipped to 2.9 and 2.8 in 15.8 minutes last season.
Dodd started 13 games last year but only one in the final two months. That was after Stone was hit with a one-game suspension, and while Dodd scored only four points in 32 minutes, he added nine rebounds and six blocks. That came in a head-shaking loss at Minnesota, though, so the effort was mostly overlooked.
Luke Fischer, PF, Marquette
8 of 20
Replacement for: Henry Ellenson
Ellenson was a one-of-a-kind talent for Marquette, the kind of player it hasn't landed since the days of Dwayne Wade in the early 2000s. The Warriors haven't had anyone like him before and don't have anyone with something even close to his skill set for 2016-17.
Luke Fischer is as close as they'll get, as long as the Warriors are content with their big man staying in the paint. Ellenson was the team's leading scorer and rebounder but also took 104 three-point shots.
The 6'11", 245-pound Fischer attempted 104 fewer threes last year as a junior, opting for more high-percentage shots and making 60.8 percent of them for 12.1 points per game along with 6.2 rebounds. That's up from 11 points and 4.8 rebounds the year before, when he didn't have Ellenson to compete with.
Marquette's 2016-17 roster is overloaded with guards, making it likely it will go small and have Fischer be the lone true frontcourt presence. Having posted an impressive 13 percent offensive rebound rate last season, this could prove to be a good formula for the Warriors.
De'Aaron Fox, PG, Kentucky
9 of 20
Replacement for: Tyler Ulis
Right off the bat, De'Aaron Fox gives Kentucky a major upgrade in the size department since the 6'3" prospect is six inches taller than the Wildcats' outgoing point guard. But Fox brings so much more to the court in his quest to take what Ulis did last season and build off it.
Fox, the No. 2 point guard in the 2016 recruiting class and sixth-best overall player, gives Kentucky the prototypical point guard coach John Calipari has been known for with Big Blue Nation and at Memphis before that. For those scoring at home, that list includes Derrick Rose, John Wall, Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight.
According to Kyle Tucker of the Courier-Journal, Calipari says Fox has "John Wall kind of speed," and if he can improve his shooting, he'll likely be the next high point guard draft pick Calipari coaches.
Fox is part of a lights-out freshman backcourt along with Malik Monk, both of whom are capable of running the offense. Fox figures to handle the ball more often and leave the scoring to Monk, which means needing to keep his assists up and turnovers down like Ulis (3.57-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio) did in 2015-16.
Temple Gibbs, PG, Notre Dame
10 of 20
Replacement for: Demetrius Jackson
Telling Hannah Storm on Sportscenter that Jackson has "done everything he can basketball-wise," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey threw his full support behind his player to turn pro following a junior season in which he averaged 15.8 points and 4.7 assists in getting the Fighting Irish to a second Elite Eight appearance. It probably helped knowing a capable replacement was heading to South Bend for 2016-17.
Temple Gibbs, a 4-star prospect from New Jersey, is the younger brother of former Seton Hall and Connecticut guard Sterling Gibbs. At 6'3" and 190 pounds, he's a mix of the 6'1" Jackson and 6'5" Jerian Grant, Notre Dame's previous point guard.
The Irish might go with 6'0" Matt Farrell (2.6 points, 1.6 assists as a sophomore) at the point to start the season, but Gibbs should eventually assert himself and take over the starting job.
Jayce Johnson, C, Utah
11 of 20
Replacement for: Jakob Poeltl
There didn't seem to be a realistic scenario in which Utah was going to get Poeltl to stay beyond his sophomore year. The 7-footer nearly left after a breakout freshman season in 2014-15 but returned to lead the Utes with 17.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks on 64.6 percent shooting.
Most of Utah's opponents didn't have anyone who could match up properly with Poeltl, but thanks to Jayce Johnson's decision to enroll early, it had one available for practices during the second half of last season.
Johnson, a 7-footer who signed with the Utes in November as a 4-star prospect from California, could have played, but the team opted to keep him out and let him develop while maintaining his full eligibility. That will make him a redshirt freshman this fall despite only one semester on the roster, though one who earned valuable experience playing against Poeltl.
Luke Kornet, C, Vanderbilt
12 of 20
Replacement for: Damian Jones
Vanderbilt had the luxury of having four players listed at 6'10" or taller on its roster last season, though they were all different. Jones, the most accomplished of the lot, averaged 13.9 points and 6.9 rebounds in 2015-16 as a junior before opting to turn pro. Josh Henderson graduated after playing only 10.5 minutes per game, and Djery Baptiste was redshirted.
That leaves Luke Kornet as Jones' heir apparent under the basket. The 7-footer started 25 games last year as a junior but was used as much on the perimeter as in the paint, attempting 93 three-pointers and 123 twos en route to 8.9 points per game.
Kornet was the Commodores' top rebounder, with 7.3 per game, and their best rim protector, with 84 blocks. Look for new coach Bryce Drew, who had an inside-out presence at Valparaiso in 6'9" forward Alec Peters, to let Kornet play wherever he's most comfortable.
Riley LaChance, G, Vanderbilt
13 of 20
Replacement for: Wade Baldwin
After one of the most prolific scoring seasons in school history for a freshman, Riley LaChance saw his numbers dip significantly in 2015-16. Part of that was because of the emergence of Baldwin, whose sophomore performance (14.1 points, 5.2 assists) was enough to spring him into the NBA draft, but LaChance also lost the ability to shoot inside the three-point line.
The 6'2" LaChance made 36.1 percent of his threes but only 34.6 percent of his two-pointers, down from 49.4 percent as a freshman, when he averaged 12.3 points and 2.9 assists. Last year, he was down to 6.9 points and 2.5 assists and had only three fewer turnovers in 346 fewer minutes.
LaChance will get a fresh start with Bryce Drew replacing Kevin Stallings as coach, though he'll need to fix that shot and regain his confidence; otherwise, Vandy might turn elsewhere for its point guard.
Tyler Lydon, SF, Syracuse
14 of 20
Replacement for: Malachi Richardson
It's in no way a stretch to say Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim has a type. It's why all his guards, wing players and even most forwards are long and lean and fond of shooting three-pointers. The Orange's top four scorers, ranging from 6'4" to 6'8", combined to attempt 837 three-pointers in 2015-16.
Richardson made 35.3 percent of his 224 threes en route to 13.4 points per game as a 6'6" freshman, enough of a showing to warrant turning pro after one year. That opens the door for Tyler Lydon, another member of Syracuse's 2015 recruiting class, to step into Richardson's starting spot.
The 6'9" Lydon was one of the top-scoring reserves in the country last season, averaging 10.1 points per game while shooting a team-best 40.5 percent from outside. He added 6.3 rebounds per game, second-best on Syracuse, pulling down 16.5 percent of rebounds while on the court, and added 67 blocks.
Assuming Syracuse can get strong center play, pushing returning senior Tyler Roberson to the 4, that would allow Lydon to be a matchup nightmare at the 3.
Terance Mann, G, Florida State
15 of 20
Replacement for: Malik Beasley
Florida State had arguably the best freshman duo in the country this past season in Beasley and Dwayne Bacon, guards who combined to score 31.4 points with 11.1 rebounds per game. While it was a boon to the Seminoles that the 6'7" Bacon opted not to follow Beasley to the NBA, the Seminoles still need a sidekick for him on the perimeter.
It could easily be Xavier Rathan-Mayes, a junior-to-be who famously scored 30 points in the final 4:38 of a game in his freshman season, but he's better suited as FSU's point guard after chipping in 4.4 assists per game in 2015-16. Instead, the 'Noles can turn to another young guard who came in with Bacon and Beasley but didn't draw nearly as much attention.
Terance Mann averaged 5.2 points and 3.7 rebounds last season, shooting 58.4 percent overall. The 6'6" Mann's 117.5 offensive rating was tied with Beasley for the best among rotation players, though he played fewer than 20 minutes in more than two-thirds of FSU's games.
Malik Monk, SG, Kentucky
16 of 20
Replacement for: Jamal Murray
At 20 points per game, Murray was the highest-scoring player in John Calipari's tenure at Kentucky. Malik Monk may not be able to produce that much with the bevy of other weapons the Wildcats will have next season, but he's got a chance to match Murray in nightly highlight-reel plays.
Between dunks, drives, dishes and deep shots, the 6'3" Monk is the epitome of excitement. A combo guard who can play on or off the ball, he's sure to be as loved by Kentucky fans as Murray was in his one and only college season.
All Monk has to do between now and November is improve his strength, Calipari told reporters during the SEC spring meetings. "We’re going to try to get him to be a little more sturdy and physical," he said. "He can already run by people, shoot it and score."
Duop Reath, PF, LSU
17 of 20
Replacement for: Ben Simmons
Let's be real, folks: There's no possible replacement for Simmons. You don't come across many 6'10" players who lead their teams in scoring, rebounding, assists, blocks, steals and shooting as freshmen.
As much as LSU could have tried to plan for Simmons' no-doubt departure after one season via recruiting or the transfer route, there was no way a single person could handle all he contributed in 2015-16. Instead, it will get divvied up between a number of players, with the guards taking on more of the perimeter stuff Simmons did and the frontcourt handling the rebounding and interior defense.
Duop Reath is coming in to handle much of the latter. The No. 11 junior college prospect in the country played at Lee College in Texas last season, where he averaged 14.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 60.7 percent.
Don't expect Reath to be bringing the ball up the court or dishing out no-look passes on the break, but he can do the interior work Simmons brought to LSU last season.
Gavin Schilling, PF, Michigan State
18 of 20
Replacement for: Deyonta Davis
Davis might not have shown enough during his one season at Michigan State to convince everyone he was wise to turn pro, but with DraftExpress currently pegging him as the No. 13 pick, it apparently made sense for the 6'10" Davis to leave.
That means Gavin Schilling will go back to the role he had in 2014-15, when, as a sophomore, he started 33 of 39 games in the frontcourt, though hopefully with more offensive production. That year, the 6'9" Schilling averaged only 5.1 points and 3.8 rebounds in 16.9 minutes per game. Last season, those figures dropped to 3.8 points and 3.1 rebounds in just 12.5 minutes.
With Matt Costello also returning up front, Schilling won't be asked to do much offensively. Just rebound, play good defense and be open when MSU's guards look inside.
Jayson Tatum, SF, Duke
19 of 20
Replacement for: Brandon Ingram
Depending on what you read or whom you listen to, Duke's Ingram is going to get taken first or second overall later this month. The guy replacing him with the Blue Devils could be in a similar boat a year from now, as Jayson Tatum is third in DraftExpress' 2017 mock draft before playing a minute in college.
The first piece of Duke's No. 1-rated recruiting class—but not its highest-ranked player, who is power forward Harry Giles—the 6'8" Tatum was the fourth-best prospect in 2016. He committed to the Blue Devils last summer and then watched from afar while Ingram dominated as an undersized 4 who was forced to play there after Amile Jefferson was injured early.
Jefferson will be back in 2016-17, and assuming Giles' knee issues go away, he'll also be there in the frontcourt. That leaves Tatum to work at the 3, where, depending on the situation, he can slash to the basket or pull up for a perimeter shot that his smaller defenders won't be able to alter.
Johnathan Williams III, PF, Gonzaga
20 of 20
Replacement for: Domantas Sabonis
When Johnathan Williams III ultimately picked Gonzaga as his destination after two seasons at Missouri, his Instagram post noted that the Bulldogs were "the perfect fit." Who knows if his decision was influenced by the knowledge that, after sitting out 2015-16, he'd be in line to replace a possible first round draft pick in the frontcourt?
The 6'9" Williams averaged 8.7 points and 6.8 rebounds in 67 games for some bad Missouri teams. Now, he's joining a Gonzaga squad that looks stacked for 2016-17. That's in spite of losing 6'10" Sabonis (17.6 points, 11.8 rebounds) and 6'10" Kyle Wiltjer (20.4 points, 6.3 rebounds). In addition to Williams, the Bulldogs add Washington transfer guard Nigel Williams-Goss as well as the No. 11 recruiting class. They're also in the running for California grad transfer guard Jordan Mathews.
It's Williams who holds the frontcourt together. With 7'1" center Przemek Karnowski returning from back surgery, Williams will be the go-to player down low.
If he struggles, though, that recruiting class features two strong options in 6'10" prospects Zach Collins and Jacob Larsen.
All statistics courtesy of Sports-Reference.com, unless otherwise noted. All recruiting information from 247Sports, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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