Kansas freshman Josh Jackson’s NBA draft stock is bursting through its already high ceiling three games into the NCAA tournament. He’s carrying a large load for the Jayhawks offense while proving to be a solid defender in a trio of convincing wins over UC Davis, Michigan State and Purdue.
Josh Jackson is living up to his NBA draft hype during March Madness
The freshman keeps showing why he belongs in the discussion for the No. 1 pick.
Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
Jackson is a highlight reel in the making every night. His length, speed, and lift were made to create poster plays, and he has a scorers mentality that has NBA scouts drooling.
DraftExpress and SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell project him to go No. 3 overall in June’s draft, but Jackson is involved in the No. 1 conversation. While on the thinner side, it’s clear he’s NBA ready right now and he’s more than proven it.
Jackson is an explosive rim runner
His strides to the rim are breathtaking. Jackson is able to get to cup a half step before his defender because he’s not only quick, but fundamentally sound as a slashing wing.
His first dribble pushes out far enough that his body goes full speed to catch up to it, and at that point he’s free to put a signature touch on a rim-destroying slam. He’ll be a go-to video game player.
He’s also been scoring efficiently
Shooting is a knock on Jackson. He can be streaky and many wonder if he’ll be a good enough perimeter marksman to keep defenses honest. He shot just 57 percent on free throws this season, and poor free throw shooting is a bad sign when projecting whether a player can improve their stroke.
Shooting hasn’t been a problem at all through the Sweet 16, though.
Against Michigan State, Jackson scored 23 points on 9-of-16 shooting, connecting on 2 of 5 threes and all three of his free throw attempts. He went head-to-head with another wing with lottery pick potential in Miles Bridges, who couldn’t contain Jackson.
In a 32-point win over Purdue he had 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting with 12 rebounds.
Much of the same happened in Jackson’s opening-round game as well, as he scored 17 points in 23 minutes on 8-of-12 shooting and knocked down the only three he took.
He’s a terrific defender
It wasn’t just scoring, either. Jackson had a pair of blocks, including an emphatic one off a fastbreak against Michigan State.
He’s averaging a block per game and has the best defensive rating of all Jayhawks starters.
He’s been trending up since February
On the court, Jackson has improved tremendously through the final two months of the season. In February, Jackson was at his best, shooting 52 percent from the field and making 11 of 23 three-pointers. He connected on just 17 of the 52 he took in the opening three months of the season.
He’s shut down his deep-ball shooting consistency critics as of late, though free throws remain a problem.
Jackson’s legal troubles are a serious concern
The star freshman was charged on one count of criminal property damage after vandalizing a woman’s car on Dec. 9. On Friday, an affidavit filed by police stated that Jackson threatened to beat a women’s basketball player that same night, according to ESPN. Jackson is scheduled to appear in court on April 12, according to ESPN.
Coach Bill Self suspended him for one game for a separate incident in which Jackson hit a parked car and fled the scene.
These are serious concerns that teams must investigate themselves leading up to June’s draft.
On the court, though, Jackson keeps showing that he has the talent to measure up to other prospective top picks like Lonzo Ball and Markelle Fultz.
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