Kofi Cockburn declares for NBA Draft

[Hopingfor500]

Can't make a 15' standing shot either. Amazingly bad FT shooter. Huge guy, though, and a force defensively despite not being explosive by NBA standards. This site has him just outside the last pick.
Draft Projections (Aggregate)

Ayo only in 3 of 9 projections. I would expect Kofi to get listed in the next iteration and I'll guess he'll be slightly ahead of Azbuike.

Azibuike was smart by staying, though injury left him no choice to an extent. He, at this point, is 10 times the player Kofi is. Now, that doesn't mean in the long run that won't change, but currently, the two aren't even close. Kofi is loose with the ball, brings it down around the waist and quite often throws the ball at the rim vs making a quality move and finishing.

Azibuike dunks anything close to the rim. He goes up with authority and finishes with authority. He's also not carrying 290 pounds down the floor. When Kofi can't dominate a player of his size and strength physically (which will occur in 100% of NBA games), he doesn't have the skills yet or the mean streak yet to finish. He gets his shots blocked in college!

This is a terrible, terrible decision if he sticks with it. Literally 100% of opinions say he's not ready. I've seen zero comments on this board or in talking with fans in general, that think he's ready. I guess it only takes one GM to take him at #60, as a project, where no money is guaranteed, but is that's a terrible bet.

His letter to the fans wasn't one that read like he has any interest in coming back. That was a goodbye and thank you for everything letter.

I sincerely hope he's getting good, well informed advice. Given the standstill of sports in general, it's impossible for him to have gotten it to date, but I truly, truly hope he sticks to not signing and this is nothing more than kicking the tires.

All that said.....best of luck with either direction he goes. He will always be part of the family.

 

[Illinoisy]

I'd guess 70-30 on Kofi staying. 80-20 on Ayo leaving. Based on nothing but wild speculation.

Kofi staying would be a huge relief. Ayo staying would be a huge surprise.

Agreed. All indications were that Ayo hoped to jump to the NBA after this season. He's made a good, but not necessarily compelling, case. His strengths and weaknesses have been roundly debated here. If he and his advisers believe he'll be a first round pick, then it's "Good luck, and thanks for the memories". 80% seems about right to me, although I'm in the camp that thinks it would benefit him to get one more college season under his belt. Whatever he decides, it's a risk/reward scenario.

We didn't see Kofi's announcement coming. Now we're wondering how he and his handlers are looking at it, and what the variables are. He's a mountain of a man, still learning the game, but what is his ceiling? is his emerging game suited to the modern NBA, which favors nimble bigs who can score from perimeter and open things up. I think it's most likely he'll return to hone his skills, but that's at best a hunch (or, more appropos, "wishful thinking").

 

[ChocolateThunder]

https://dailyillini.com/sports/2020...ie-gives-draft-projections-for-kofi-cockburn/
Sam Vecenie gives draft projections for Kofi Cockburn

 

[Illini Resurgence]

Is there even one mock draft that includes Kofi?

 

[Illini_Jack]

Is there even one mock draft that includes Kofi?

For 2021 there are

 

[TCTORNADO]

So the NCAA has now granted the student athlete the right to hire an agent yet return to school should the DAB not prove acceptable. Quick question to our accounting types out there, does the student athlete have to declare the agent benefits as income??

 

[Illinoisy]

Vecenie's assessment seems about right. More questions than answers. There always are outlier factors.

Just based on basketball considerations, seems like 70/30 against jumping is a pretty good bet.

 

[Hopingfor500]

https://dailyillini.com/sports/2020...ie-gives-draft-projections-for-kofi-cockburn/
Sam Vecenie gives draft projections for Kofi Cockburn

The key to the whole operation is:

"If he doesn’t want to be in college anymore..."

That's where the rubber meets the road. Nobody in their right mind, from a pure basketball standpoint, would advise him to declare, sign and leave.

If he's just done with school, that is a totally different subject matter and non basketball related. That's just a personal preference.

 

[TheFameProtector]

I would be verrrrry surprised if he doesn't come back. Unless there is one team out there that is enamored with him (that's all it takes), I haven't heard anything that suggests he's valued more highly than 60 other guys. And while there's been a lot of undrafted wings/guards that have done well for themselves, I don't see as many true centers having the same success.

I'm also not going to read much into his Twitter post. What's the alternative? Declare without saying a thing, or declare and say "I'm just testing the waters but will probably be back"? Going with a post is the classy thing to do but doesn't mean he can't turn around and come back. I'm going to stay convinced that he'll be back until something else happens...I can't take any more bad news right now.

 

[TheFameProtector]

If he's just done with school, that is a totally different subject matter and non basketball related. That's just a personal preference.

Maybe it's just team-induced bias, but I always thought he seemed like a really intelligent and thoughtful guy, the kind that would enjoy being in classes at a Big Ten school. Guess that's either off or there are other driving factors here ($$$).

 

[Hopingfor500]

I would be verrrrry surprised if he doesn't come back. Unless there is one team out there that is enamored with him (that's all it takes), I haven't heard anything that suggests he's valued more highly than 60 other guys. And while there's been a lot of undrafted wings/guards that have done well for themselves, I don't see as many true centers having the same success.

I'm also not going to read much into his Twitter post. What's the alternative? Declare without saying a thing, or declare and say "I'm just testing the waters but will probably be back"? Going with a post is the classy thing to do but doesn't mean he can't turn around and come back. I'm going to stay convinced that he'll be back until something else happens...I can't take any more bad news right now.

Ditto that on the bad news part.

 

[PlayAZ]

Vecenie's assessment seems about right.

Pretty damn spot on imo. For all the things Kofi is great at this level or shows potential at this level to improve on, it just doesn't as of now translate.

Areas of note are all okay now, and sometimes elite for the college game, in the PRO's those skills will be magnified for the flaws that still exist though. I actually would not be surprised to see Kofi play 3 years, leave the same time him and Giorgi quit having fun due to Giorgi leaving.

 

[Illini0114]

Just want to point out that you can't(logically) state both that his potential is incredibly high and there is no way he will be drafted this year.. which many are doing

All it takes is one team to be more sure about him reaching that said potential then the others. In that scenario, why not grab him at 50 a year early as opposed to it costing you a lottery pick year later?

Now I have no idea if this is the case, but a person of his frame is unique from other prospects

 

[illinibb76]

One big aspect I don't think has been considered is his emotional maturity. I think right now he would become easily discouraged going up against seasoned men if he's not guaranteed a roster spot and he is competing for their livelihood. And not getting enough playing time means he would need to go to the teams G league team and then it really becomes a mental toughness exercise! No big crowds maybe a good coach but that depends. I have 2 son-in-laws in basketball now. One a G league coach and one a NBA coach in player development. And as far as going overseas, the money is much different than 10 years ago so who knows. Plus that is a whole different animal if you are not in the Euroleague or Eurocup.

 

[PtownIllini8]

Just want to point out that you can't(logically) state both that his potential is incredibly high and there is no way he will be drafted this year.. which many are doing

All it takes is one team to be more sure about him reaching that said potential then the others. In that scenario, why not grab him at 50 a year early as opposed to it costing you a lottery pick year later?

Now I have no idea if this is the case, but a person of his frame is unique from other prospects

Untrue, I can logically say that he's got a lot of potential but a long way to go, so no NBA GM in his right mind would pay for that potential at this early stage of his development. That makes perfect logical sense.

 

[EyeoftheIllini]

I would be verrrrry surprised if he doesn't come back. Unless there is one team out there that is enamored with him (that's all it takes), I haven't heard anything that suggests he's valued more highly than 60 other guys. And while there's been a lot of undrafted wings/guards that have done well for themselves, I don't see as many true centers having the same success.

I'm also not going to read much into his Twitter post. What's the alternative? Declare without saying a thing, or declare and say "I'm just testing the waters but will probably be back"? Going with a post is the classy thing to do but doesn't mean he can't turn around and come back. I'm going to stay convinced that he'll be back until something else happens...I can't take any more bad news right now.

I agree with the comment on Twitter announcement. I don’t follow announcements that closely, but as you say would seem strange to do the alternatives you mention.

i have no idea whether he’ll be back. Seems like he does need more work, but does he want to be in college any longer? If he’d rather not be then makes perfect sense to get feedback and see what his viable options for playing pro.

 

[Illini0114]

Untrue, I can logically say that he's got a lot of potential but a long way to go, so no NBA GM in his right mind would pay for that potential at this early stage of his development. That makes perfect logical sense.

Was unaware that you were a mind-reader and knew what every GM was thinking

My point is, if you are a GM and you like what a prospect brings and you are very sure of them reaching their potential you will take them at a discount whenever you can get them regardless of what anyone else thinks

If a GM is confident they can work with and develop Kofi's game why not take him in the late second now when it will cost you a lottery pick next year

 

[BlueLeader]

Giorgi ain't going anywhere. Kofi will be back to hang with him.

 

[PtownIllini8]

Was unaware that you were a mind-reader and knew what every GM was thinking

My point is, if you are a GM and you like what a prospect brings and you are very sure of them reaching their potential you will take them at a discount whenever you can get them regardless of what anyone else thinks

If a GM is confident they can work with and develop Kofi's game why not take him in the late second now when it will cost you a lottery pick next year

My opinion, obviously, sorry you misread that as me saying what 30+ guys think. My point is that the NBA is built on guys that can shoot, especially out to the 3 point line. A guy that can't make open 15' jumpers isn't likely to enamor them. I'm confident he'll get solid advise and be back next year, like Ayo was last year.

 

[spillini]

Just want to point out that you can't(logically) state both that his potential is incredibly high and there is no way he will be drafted this year.. which many are doing

All it takes is one team to be more sure about him reaching that said potential then the others. In that scenario, why not grab him at 50 a year early as opposed to it costing you a lottery pick year later?

Now I have no idea if this is the case, but a person of his frame is unique from other prospects

Sure you can, logically. You have Point A for each player which is current level and Point B is their potential. Your evaluation for players is: is Point B for this player enough to warrant use of draft/capital given the time and effort it takes to get them from Point A? It’s an opportunity cost assessment against other players. You can say his Point B is high and not take him over others this year.

Put another way, if I offer you $100 tomorrow or $100 next year, which are you taking? That’s more or less what’s happening when you boil it down. How fast are you getting to that potential?

 

[LvilleILL]

This thread is getting ridiculous. If Kofi hears from NBA scouts to come back, he most likely will. If he doesn't which is very unlikely, he will b gone. Just have to wait and see with him and Ayo at this point.
I-L-L

 

[Illinoisy]

One consideration may be his age. He'll be 21 years old in September, the age at which most students are juniors or even seniors. He may be more "ready" to move to the next stage.

 

[Illinoisy]

This thread is getting ridiculous. If Kofi hears from NBA scouts to come back, he most likely will. If he doesn't which is very unlikely, he will b gone. Just have to wait and see with him and Ayo at this point.
I-L-L

Well, that's just too logical . . .

 

[ILFaninFL]

Yes, I'll be sad if we lose both Kofi and Ayo to the pros.

But I'll also be happy.

When was the last time we sent to guys there in the same year? 2005?

Sending guys to the pros can suck in the short term, but if we are getting guys to the show ...

 

[PNWIllini]

Purdue’s Haarns is in the pipeline. 7 ft 3...