Rivals Roundtable: Rankings bumps, Julian Phillips, NBA Draft steals
Friday is Roundtable Day at Rivals, and basketball analysts Rob Cassidy and Jason Jordan are back with responses to a three-pack of questions. This week, the duo discusses players due for rankings bumps, where touted Tennessee transfer Julian Phillips may land and potential NBA Draft steals.
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WHO DO YOU PERSONALLY SEE AS UNDERRATED IN THE RIVALS150 AND PLAN TO PUSH FOR IN THE JUNE RANKINGS?
“Austin Swartz sitting at 135 seems silly with the kind of tear the talented guard has been on this spring. The last two months have been an extended coming-out party for one of the more consistent and well-rounded scorers in the country, and they should result in a serious rankings bump. We’ve known Swartz had big-time potential for some time, but watching him put it all together playing for a tough Boo Williams grassroots squad has been a pleasure. The strong, athletic Swartz is averaging 19.1 PPG on 45% shooting through 12 EYBL games. He’s also showing a knack for contributing on the glass and defending multiple positions. I don’t think the top 50 is out of reach for him, by any means.” – Cassidy
“Swartz for sure, but I’d also say Micah Robinson. Currently, he’s sitting at No. 108, but he’s following up a quietly strong high school season at Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) with an even stronger spring with Southern Assault on the adidas 3SSB. At 6-foot-7, Robinson fits the position-less label, impacting the game on both ends of the floor in a variety of different ways from guarding 1 through 5 to scoring consistently at all three levels. Robinson served as the go-to man at Oak Hill this past season. He has been one of the brightest stars in the 3SSB, earning an invite to the adidas Eurocamp next month.” - Jordan
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JULIAN PHILLIPS IS THE MOST IN-DEMAND PLAYER STILL IN THE PORTAL. IN YOUR OPINION, WHICH SCHOOLS ARE WORTH WATCHING?
“Phillips’ camp released a long, long list of schools that have signaled interest in his services this week, so I did a little digging to figure out what schools should be monitored closely. After talking to a few people the names I heard most were Auburn, Kansas State, Memphis, Arizona, Kentucky, Texas and Cincinnati. Does that mean he will land at one of those schools? No, but I’d be at least a little surprised if he didn’t. I think we’ll start hearing about visits in the next week or so, and the picture will clear from there.” - Cassidy
“Of the schools that I hear in connection with Phillips, Auburn and Memphis have been the most consistent. That said, most believe that there’s a way to go and the decision will be highly impacted by visits and NIL presentations. Yes, that’s par for the course with big- time portal talents such as Phillips, but this late in the game schools tend to get even more creative when trying to fill out the roster.” - Jordan
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WHICH PLAYER CURRENTLY OUTSIDE THE TOP 10 IN MOST MOCK DRAFTS DO YOU THINK COULD END UP BEING A STEAL?
“I think you have to look at one of the two guys that saw their brief college careers derailed by injury. Would it shock anyone if Arkansas’ Nick Smith or Duke’s Dariq Whitehead end up taking massive strides now that each is healed and healthy? There’s a reason Smith was once looked at as a lock for the top 10, and he could get back to being that kind of dynamic, well-rounded guard on a consistent basis once in the NBA. Whitehead is a bit up and down, even when healthy, but he seemed to have found his footing late in the season. I’m a bit less bullish on Whitehead than I am on Smith, but I think both could outperform their current projected draft slots significantly.” - Cassidy
“I’m still going to say GG Jackson. I always felt like he took a big PR hit after backing out at North Carolina and everyone kept waiting for him to turn into a bust at South Carolina. The Gamecocks were as bad as we thought they’d be, but Jackson was the lone bright spot in Columbia, averaging 15.4 points and 5.9 rebounds a game. Jackson didn’t shoot great from the 3-point line (32%), but that was due in large part to playing on a roster that didn’t alleviate pressure. He’s still the youngest player in the draft class, and he has all the tools to be the proverbial steal.” - Jordan