Pistons Palace NBA mock draft post lottery
By Joe Dexter
29. Oklahoma City Thunder
Cleanthony Early, PF, Wichita State
Mar 21, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; Wichita State Shockers forward Cleanthony Early (11) grabs a rebound ahead of Cal Poly Mustangs forward Brian Bennett (34) in the first half during the 2nd round of the 2014 NCAA Men
Many people think that Early is somehow going to make it into the second round. I think his combination new age style with an old school mentality.
The projected swing 4 has the strength to match up with toughness in the post. He was in my opinion the most physical wing player in the country last season.
Yet his transition game is at a high level. He has an aggressiveness and high motor combination that makes him hard to stop offensively. Could you imagine another Serge Ibaka on the floor alongside Kevin Durant and Stephen Adams? That is a defensive team that can really create stops often.
Early is a versatile player as witnessed in the Shockers’ only loss of the season. Against Julius Randle and Kentucky, he scored 31 points on 4/6 three point shooting. His versatility shined in that tournament game and he showed that being a tweener has it’s benefits. Often times defenses lose him and forget just how dangerous he is.
He still needs to work on his shot selection and decision making though.
The Thunder should have time though to let him develop off the bench unlike other teams, which would benefit Early.