Every year some dynamic players make their mark as best as they can on the college basketball court. Every year, those same players deal with the perception that they will struggle at the pro level due to some kind of “tweener” status. The Morris twins went through this last year heading into the NBA Draft and Thomas Robinson has heard some of the talk early as the Kansas Jayhawks star forward attempts to place himself atop the lottery. The good news is that his measurables came out quite positive.
Chad Ford of ESPN reported from the 2012 NBA Draft Combine that Robinson’s size is actually on par with the NBA’s best power forwards, and that should resolve any questions that teams actually have. Up until this point, they believed that Robinson might not measure up well with others at the 4 position, which would likely drop his draft stock. Ford writes:
Much like the situation with Williams last year, NBA scouts have been wondering for months whether Robinson was big enough to play the 4 in the NBA. Robinson’s measurements strongly helped his cause as an NBA 4 man. He measured nearly 6-foot-9 with an impressive 7-3 1/4 wingspan and 8-10 standing reach. Those wingspan and standing reach measurements (the two measurements NBA teams really care about) put him on par with both Blake Griffin and Kevin Love, two NBA all-star power forwards. Ditto for his 35 1/2-inch vertical.
Robinson averaged nearly 18 points and 12 rebounds per game last year for the Jayhawks, taking the team all the way to the title game of the NCAA Tournament before falling to Kentucky.
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