NBA Draft Mystery Man Shaedon Sharpe Says His Goal Is To Be ‘One Of The Greatest Players To Ever Play The Game Of Basketball’

Shaedon Sharpe hasn’t played an organized game of basketball in more than a year and enters next week’s NBA Draft as the proverbial “Man of Mystery.”

Still, the 6-foot-5 Canadian shooting is projected to go in the lottery, with ESPN.com projecting him as the No. 8 pick and Tankathon at No. 5.

“Yeah, I feel like there is mystery just because I haven’t played for more than a year now, last game was in high school,” Sharpe, who spent the second semester at Kentucky but did not play in a game, said Friday on a pre-draft Zoom.

“So I feel there is curiosity and mystery with me, but I’m just in the gym getting ready.”

Whoever drafts Sharpe could put himself in a position to be a hero if the pick works out down the road, or to be fired if it goes South.

“He has no video vs. college-level competition,” one NBA scout said. “The only teams that can take him are playoff teams or teams with a long development time line.”

“How the [expletive] can you be the fifth pick in the draft if you haven’t played in a year-and-a-half?” one anonymous executive told The Athletic. “It’s not like it’s [James] Wiseman and the guy is 7-feet tall. Show me where the five[-star] sh!t is. Show me.”

Sharpe said he’s already worked out for the Orlando Magic (who pick No. 1), Oklahoma City Thunder (2), Detroit Pistons (5), Portland Trail Blazers (7), San Antonio Spurs (9) and Charlotte Hornets (13). He works out Monday for the Indiana Pacers (6).

Auburn’s Jabari Smith, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren and Duke’s Paolo Banchero are widely projected as the top three picks, not necessarily in that order.

“I think I’m a high-level scorer,” said Sharpe, who was the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2022 before he reclassified to 2021 and enrolled at Kentucky in January. “I can really score the ball, plus I can get my teammates involved. I can find them when they’re open get and them a shot, as well as on the defensive side switching and playing one through five.”

There was a report that Sharpe had a 49-inch vertical leap, one inch higher than Michael Jordan’s.

Sharpe, who chose basketball over football despite being a two-sport star, said he saw the report but wasn’t able to confirm it.

“I did see that on social media, but then I’m in the gym really working so I’m not really worried about that,” he said.

He also impressed NBA personnel at his Pro Day last month.

“He was terrific! Helped himself,” said one NBA Director of Scouting who attended the Pro Day, adding Sharpe is a Top 10 pick “for sure.”

Sharpe is attempting to follow in the footsteps of recent NBA picks Thon Maker and Anfernee Simons, who never played college basketball but instead spent a post-graduate year before entering the Draft.

The 6-foot-3 Simons averaged 17.3 points in 57 games last season for Portland, while the 7-foot Maker has bounced around the NBA, the G League and internationally since being drafted No. 10 overall by Milwaukee in 2016.

Still, Sharpe has his sights set on much bigger things. He said he grew up watching video of Jordan, Kobe Bryant and, more recently, Zach Lavine.

“I really study those three guys,” he said.

His short- and long-term goals are not modest.

“I see myself being one of the greatest players to ever play the game of basketball, just geting after it and competing,” he said. “One of my goals is to win Rookie of the Year and also All-Star and later on Hall of Fame.”

As for his decision not to play this season at Kentucky, which lost to Saint Peter’s in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Sharpe says he has no regrets.

“Everything happens for a reason so I really don’t regret [not] playing,” he said. “I’m working out with NBA teams now so I guess I did something right.”

There was much speculation that his mentor Dwayne Washington was influential in Sharpe’s decision to sit out, but he said ultimately it was his call.

“I did talk to Cal [Kentucky coach John Calipari], my coach and trainer and my parents, but at the end of the day it was my decison to not play,” he said.

He did say part of him wanted to play at Kentucky.

“Me not playing, it’s hard,” he said. “Being a basketball player, you want to get out there and support your guys and play with your teammates and everything and compete. But I don’t think it’s really going to be too hard for me [to play] because I’ve been competing for a long time now.”

TyTy Washington, the Kentucky guard who is also in the draft, said Sharpe ultimately made a business decision not to play.

“He entered the draft, people say he’s supposed to be top five,” Washington said at the NBA Draft Combine. “I’m pretty sure anybody who’s in his shoes, and you don’t have to play a college game, you’re fresh out of high school and you don’t have to see a college floor and they’re saying you’re top five, I mean I see his situation.

“What if he had went out and God forbid, he would’ve tweaked something and now he has to sit and wait until the following season. I see what he’s doing and everything like that,” Washington added. “If I had a child and they’re saying he’s top five and he doesn’t have to play a minute of college, they’re going to take that for sure.”

Sharpe is now poised to be among the next wave of Canadians in the NBA. There were 25 Canadians on NBA rosters last season, including Andrew Wiggins, who played a critical role in the Golden State Warriors’ winning the franchise seventh NBA title Thursday night over the Boston Celtics.

Sharpe said he draws inspiration from players like Wiggins.

“It inspires me a lot just because knowing he came from Canada,” Sharpe said. “He put Canada on the map, he’s doing his thing with the Warriors in the Finals so it means a lot. It’s really encouraging what he’s doing.’