2021 NBA Draft Profile: Isaiah Jackson
Could Isaiah Jackson be the latest University of Kentucky player to show more in the NBA than he did in college? Should the Knicks even care with Mitchell Robinson already in place, or is there no limit to getting good players on your basketball team regardless of position?
Position: Center, University of Kentucky
Age: 19 (1/10/2002)
Height: 6 ft 11 in
Wingspan: 7 ft 3 in
Weight: 205 lbs.
Strickland 2021 Big Board Rank: 31
The Sales Pitch: Tell me if you’ve heard this before: a Kentucky player is criminally underrated coming into the NBA. Despite playing in arguably the strongest conference in college as a freshman, despite playing as a center in college without a point guard, Jackson produced: he is all over statistical leaderboards for both basic and advanced numbers. He had elite defensive impact and elite rebounding. He is not only an explosive leaper, but a versatile one: one foot, two feet, in space, on the break, etc. He also wasn’t afraid to put it on the deck and make 1-2 dribble face-up moves despite being relatively raw. And to top it all off, while he doesn’t shoot threes, his jump shot looks mechanically sound. High ceiling, high floor.
Elite Traits/Skills: Athleticism, rebounding, shot blocking
The Devil’s Advocate argument: Centers are a dime a dozen. Actually, let me rephrase: GOOD centers are a dime a dozen. You can find a Nerlens Noel or a Daniel Theis or a Robert Williams for cheap. Why waste a first rounder on something you can get for cheap unless you are CERTAIN the player is going to be a major game-changer? This is a league of scoring wings and guards, and you’re going to spend a valuable pick on a rim-rolling, non-floor-spacing, non-passing big? Just because of some personal connections? Good luck.
The Misconceptions: He’d be stuck behind Mitch. This is actually true — not a misconception, technically, but it’s brought up a lot regarding Jackson as if any forwards New York picks won’t be stuck behind the two most important cornerstones of the franchise, RJ Barrett and Julius Randle.
Important numbers:
5: The number of college freshmen since 2008 who have compiled a .50 free throw rate, 11% block rate, and shot 60% or higher from the line (AD, Embiid, KAT, Jaren Jackson Jr., Isaiah Jackson)
6.0: Jackson’s defensive box plus-minus, highest in the SEC.
90.7: Jackson’s defensive rating, fourth-highest in the SEC (only freshman in the top five)
23.3%, 17.7%: Jackson’s DREB% and REB%, highest in the SEC
12.7%: Jackson’s BLK%, highest in the SEC
70%: Jackson’s FT%
2.1%: Jackson’s STL%
Knicks Fit: Depends who you ask. I think his fit is good, because you need multiple good centers, and it doesn’t make sense to pass on a great player because you have another great player who plays the same position just to take a worse player at a position of lesser depth. Others think his fit is poor because draft picks are rare and the Knicks have a great center already, so not using the pick on guards or wings would be a waste.
