Article from CJ:
Dozens of NBA scouts have been credentialed for Louisville basketball games this season, stopping in to watch the Cards take on Tennessee, Michigan State, Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia Tech, among others.
While some of the scouts might have stopped in to assess opposing talent, Louisville forward Jordan Nwora is making his case as a future NBA draft pick.
Nwora, a sophomore averaging 17.8 points, is Louisville's leading scorer and the second-most improved scorer in the nation. As Nwora's stock rises, so too does the possibility he will leave Louisville early for the 2019 NBA draft.
But his father, Alex Nwora, told the Courier Journal on Wednesday that nothing is determined.
“If I'm being honest, we are not even thinking of that right now," Alex Nwora said. "He wants to win in the (NCAA) tournament, to see if he can win a national championship. If the NBA is going to happen, if he's that good, it'll find him.
"We're not even talking about it right now. ... He has a chance to do something special at Louisville if they make a great run. At the end of of the year if it's worth it we will sit down with Coach (Chris) Mack and see if that's in the best interest of Jordan."
A versatile 6-foot-7, 225-pound scorer with deep range and good rebounding numbers, Nwora has crept into the fringes of some 2019 mock drafts but is widely considered to be more of a contender in 2020.
Sports Illustrated's big board of top 80 college players ranks Nwora at No. 70. ESPN's Jonathan Givony has him as a second-round pick (No. 36 overall) in the 2020 draft, while NBADraft.net puts him at 38th overall in 2020, 10 spots behind Class of 2019 Louisville signee Aidan Igiehon.
Givony said Nwora's shot-taking ability is undoubtedly his greatest asset.
"He has such deep range on his jumper and is very versatile with them, too," Givony said. "He can shoot in a lot of different ways and that's very appealing for a guy who's his size. He's improved his body a lot and worked on becoming more athletic and improving defensively. He's just a very, very good all-around basketball player."
Sports Illustrated's Jeremy Woo said Nwora is moving up his list and that he evaluates the forward as a second-rounder in 2019.
"Guys in that mold who can shoot it and are big, that's immediately a sell for the NBA," Woo said. "And a second sell is his rebounding. With the way he's shooting it and the way Louisville's turned it around, he should be in position to at least test the draft this year and I think he'd be in decent position to get a combine invitation."
Nwora has also raised his profile by averaging 7.7 rebounds with five double-doubles, including 10 boards and a career-high 32 points against Boston College.
At 20, Nwora still needs to build muscle and there are concerns over whether he could defend NBA wings. Givony said he thinks Nwora would have the most success at the next level stretching the defense and scoring from the power forward spot.
"I do think he's going to have to find a position because he's not the tallest, not the longest, not the most explosive," Givony said. "I do think that's one of the things scouts are looking at the most when they're projecting him to the NBA level."
Aside from pure talent, much of the NBA draft also depends on what certain teams are looking for. As NBC Sports' Rob Dauster said, "to be a first rounder all it takes is for one team to fall in love with you."
"If I was in his ear I'd say come back (to school) for another year and see if you can be an All-American," Dauster said. "I don't think it's crazy to say he could be a first-round pick for sure if he came back. He needs a little work on his body, on improving his explosiveness and quickness. He's better defensively than people give him credit for, but one thing good about playing for Chris Mack is he's going to make you work on that end of the floor."
Alex Nwora credited Mack and his staff as the catalyst for his son's improvement this season.
"Everyone knows Jordan can always play and the talent was always there, but the ACC is not just about the talent," he said. "You've got to put in the work and Coach Mack shows that. ... he's making Jordan the player that Jordan wants to be."
Louisville (17-6, 8-2 ACC) closes the season with one of the toughest remaining schedules in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In their last eight regular-season games the Cards will face the likes of Florida State, Duke and Virginia (twice). The stretch provides a crucial chance for Nwora to match up against NBA-bound players like Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett and De'Andre Hunter.
"We've seen it time and again where recency bias is a big thing in the NBA, particularly in March with the NCAA tournament," Woo said. "Guys who play big down the stretch, it'll help them. I wouldn't say any one game is the end-all, be-all. It's still a process and there are a lot of components to it, but if he does go off versus Duke it's not going to hurt."
Dauster added, "Let's say he averages 22 points per game over the rest of the regular season and gets hot at the right time. That might determine if he gets to the NBA a year quicker but not what he'll be like as a pro. ... It comes down to, is he going to put in the work on his body to make it worth it?"
Alex Nwora, who coached Jordan this summer on the Nigerian national team, said his son hasn't hit his ceiling yet.
I'm not an agent or an NBA GM, so I'm not really in position to say when he's ready (for the NBA)," Alex Nwora said. "As a parent and as a coach, there's always room for improvement for every player. ... He's not even up to his full potential, and I think it would be a no-brainer for anyone to see the opportunity that he could have when he eventually gets there."
The elder Nwora said that while friends who know NBA agents have reached out to him about Jordan's professional prospects, he and his son are determined to focus on helping get Louisville to the NCAA tournament.
"The NBA's not going anywhere," Alex Nwora said. "Whatever happens will happen. He's going to keep getting better, keep helping his team. There's always time for everything. There's no rush. You can't rush life."
Written by Danielle Lerner, Courier Journal
Dozens of NBA scouts have been credentialed for Louisville basketball games this season, stopping in to watch the Cards take on Tennessee, Michigan State, Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia Tech, among others.
While some of the scouts might have stopped in to assess opposing talent, Louisville forward Jordan Nwora is making his case as a future NBA draft pick.
Nwora, a sophomore averaging 17.8 points, is Louisville's leading scorer and the second-most improved scorer in the nation. As Nwora's stock rises, so too does the possibility he will leave Louisville early for the 2019 NBA draft.
But his father, Alex Nwora, told the Courier Journal on Wednesday that nothing is determined.
“If I'm being honest, we are not even thinking of that right now," Alex Nwora said. "He wants to win in the (NCAA) tournament, to see if he can win a national championship. If the NBA is going to happen, if he's that good, it'll find him.
"We're not even talking about it right now. ... He has a chance to do something special at Louisville if they make a great run. At the end of of the year if it's worth it we will sit down with Coach (Chris) Mack and see if that's in the best interest of Jordan."
A versatile 6-foot-7, 225-pound scorer with deep range and good rebounding numbers, Nwora has crept into the fringes of some 2019 mock drafts but is widely considered to be more of a contender in 2020.
Sports Illustrated's big board of top 80 college players ranks Nwora at No. 70. ESPN's Jonathan Givony has him as a second-round pick (No. 36 overall) in the 2020 draft, while NBADraft.net puts him at 38th overall in 2020, 10 spots behind Class of 2019 Louisville signee Aidan Igiehon.
Givony said Nwora's shot-taking ability is undoubtedly his greatest asset.
"He has such deep range on his jumper and is very versatile with them, too," Givony said. "He can shoot in a lot of different ways and that's very appealing for a guy who's his size. He's improved his body a lot and worked on becoming more athletic and improving defensively. He's just a very, very good all-around basketball player."
Sports Illustrated's Jeremy Woo said Nwora is moving up his list and that he evaluates the forward as a second-rounder in 2019.
"Guys in that mold who can shoot it and are big, that's immediately a sell for the NBA," Woo said. "And a second sell is his rebounding. With the way he's shooting it and the way Louisville's turned it around, he should be in position to at least test the draft this year and I think he'd be in decent position to get a combine invitation."
Nwora has also raised his profile by averaging 7.7 rebounds with five double-doubles, including 10 boards and a career-high 32 points against Boston College.
At 20, Nwora still needs to build muscle and there are concerns over whether he could defend NBA wings. Givony said he thinks Nwora would have the most success at the next level stretching the defense and scoring from the power forward spot.
"I do think he's going to have to find a position because he's not the tallest, not the longest, not the most explosive," Givony said. "I do think that's one of the things scouts are looking at the most when they're projecting him to the NBA level."
Aside from pure talent, much of the NBA draft also depends on what certain teams are looking for. As NBC Sports' Rob Dauster said, "to be a first rounder all it takes is for one team to fall in love with you."
"If I was in his ear I'd say come back (to school) for another year and see if you can be an All-American," Dauster said. "I don't think it's crazy to say he could be a first-round pick for sure if he came back. He needs a little work on his body, on improving his explosiveness and quickness. He's better defensively than people give him credit for, but one thing good about playing for Chris Mack is he's going to make you work on that end of the floor."
Alex Nwora credited Mack and his staff as the catalyst for his son's improvement this season.
"Everyone knows Jordan can always play and the talent was always there, but the ACC is not just about the talent," he said. "You've got to put in the work and Coach Mack shows that. ... he's making Jordan the player that Jordan wants to be."
Louisville (17-6, 8-2 ACC) closes the season with one of the toughest remaining schedules in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In their last eight regular-season games the Cards will face the likes of Florida State, Duke and Virginia (twice). The stretch provides a crucial chance for Nwora to match up against NBA-bound players like Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett and De'Andre Hunter.
"We've seen it time and again where recency bias is a big thing in the NBA, particularly in March with the NCAA tournament," Woo said. "Guys who play big down the stretch, it'll help them. I wouldn't say any one game is the end-all, be-all. It's still a process and there are a lot of components to it, but if he does go off versus Duke it's not going to hurt."
Dauster added, "Let's say he averages 22 points per game over the rest of the regular season and gets hot at the right time. That might determine if he gets to the NBA a year quicker but not what he'll be like as a pro. ... It comes down to, is he going to put in the work on his body to make it worth it?"
Alex Nwora, who coached Jordan this summer on the Nigerian national team, said his son hasn't hit his ceiling yet.
I'm not an agent or an NBA GM, so I'm not really in position to say when he's ready (for the NBA)," Alex Nwora said. "As a parent and as a coach, there's always room for improvement for every player. ... He's not even up to his full potential, and I think it would be a no-brainer for anyone to see the opportunity that he could have when he eventually gets there."
The elder Nwora said that while friends who know NBA agents have reached out to him about Jordan's professional prospects, he and his son are determined to focus on helping get Louisville to the NCAA tournament.
"The NBA's not going anywhere," Alex Nwora said. "Whatever happens will happen. He's going to keep getting better, keep helping his team. There's always time for everything. There's no rush. You can't rush life."
Written by Danielle Lerner, Courier Journal
