NBA Draft Board: Auburn’s Sharife Cooper
In the 2021 NBA Draft, the Oklahoma City Thunder own two picks just outside the lottery at No. 16 and No. 18 overall. One of the prospects who could fall in that range is Sharife Cooper who most recently played at Auburn.
Profile:
If Sharife Cooper wasn't undersized, he might fall in the top-ten of July’s draft. Either way, he stuffs the stat sheet and will be a spark plug at the next level.
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Strengths:
Although undersized, Cooper was an extremely efficient rebounder for a guard in college. Additionally, he was one of the best passers in the country, dishing out 97 assists in just 12 games.
From a scoring standpoint, Cooper is a walking bucket. He averaged 20.2 points per game, making him one of the few college players to score more than 20 per contest.
Weaknesses:
While he was listed as 6-foot-1 at Auburn, Cooper was measured as 6-foot-3.5 without shoes and 6-4.75 with shoes at the combine. It’s unclear what his true height is, but he’s small nonetheless.
Although an elite shot creator, Cooper will have to get extra crafty at the next level. Not many undersized guards have become elite in the NBA. Luckily for Cooper, he does more than just score offensively.
