Mark Pope has big expectations for freshman Braydon Hawthorne. (Vicky Graff Photo)
He was a one-time West Virginia commit and a late addition to what already seemed like a loaded Kentucky roster — reasons that freshman Braydon Hawthorne has probably been the least talked about UK player so far this summer.
That does not bother the 6-foot-8 Hawthorne because he understood the talent coach Mark Pope already had on the team. However, Pope certainly is not downplaying Hawthorne’s potential or what he might do this season as a true freshman.
Hawthorne’s recruiting ranking soared from not being in the top 100 to inside the top40 after he signed with Kentucky — and Monday Pope sounded like that was not nearly high enough for Hawthorne.
“Braydon Hawthorne, he is a unique player. I can’t wait until you guys get to watch him and see him on the court,” Pope said.
Nothing outlandish there but Pope then came out with his comparison.
“I was with Tayshaun Prince for quite a while, maybe a week ago, and he just — build, body, skillset, there is a whole bunch of Tayshaun Prince in this kid. And I know those are big words,” Pope said. “Tayshaun Prince is one of the best players to ever play here and had an incredible NBA career, a championship NBA career.”
Comparing anyone to Prince is not only high praise but also placing huge expectations on that player.
Prince was SEC Player of the Year and SEC Tournament MVP in 2001 and led the Wildcats to three NCAA Sweet 16 appearances and one trip to the Elite Eight playing for coach Tubby Smith. He was a three-time All-SEC performer and scored 1,775 career points in his four years at UK.
He was a first-round NBA draft pick by the Detroit Pistons in 2001 and played 14 years in the NBA. He won a NBA championship, was a four-time all-defensive selection and won an Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Games.
He ranks in the top 10 in Pistons’ history in games played, points, assists and blocked shots.
There are physical similarities with their height and wingspan. Both are also slim, skilled players.
“You rarely talk about a guy’s ankle mobility, but that was the first thing that my performance team said was, ‘His ankle mobility is insane,’” Pope said about Hawthorne. “And when you see him cut and move, that’s the way it feels.
“He’s kinda all arms and legs but he can change direction and get downhill, he’s got impressive length. He’s going to be really fun.”
He will need all that and more to justify the Prince comparison.
Kentucky was 97-39 in Prince’s four years. He led the SEC in free throw percentage (84.3 percent) his junior season.
Who could ever forget his 31-point, 11-rebound game against North Carolina when he made five consecutive 3-pointers. In the 2002 NCAA Tournament, he had a career-high 41 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three blocks in a win over Tulsa.
I was lucky enough to be at both games and they still rank as some of the most memorable games I have seen UK play and certainly two of the best individual performances in big games.
Hawthorne is an intriguing player — and potentially a special scorer — and now Pope has alerted UK fans and others about just how good he thinks the true freshman can be.
2 Responses
Tayshaun Prince is one of my all time favorite players. He could have been a first round pick after his junior year but he wanted more. He wanted to win a championship and if he would have just a little more help we would have won a championship when Prince was around. Hawthornes game is similar to Princes game. They are both long and hard to guard. They both can shoot the 3 and have a nice runner in the lane. Hawthorne is 6'8" but he is still growing. They are saying he could end up being around 6'10" if he gets to 6'10" he will completely dominate. He's like a big 2 guard or a big long wing. He could end up being the best freshman on the team. In fact I think he is a elite scorer and hes getting better and better on defense. He has that catch up game like Prince did. Where catches up and blocks the layup from behind.
That's great, but with our depth at the 2 and 3 spots, I doubt that he will see much action, especially when we get into SEC play…unless a couple of guys get hurt. If he want's to play for Kentucky he will stick around another year. Hopefully that is his plan.