UNC's Barnes' Stocks Plummets
A year and a half ago, he was the surefire top pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. About a year ago at this time after a above-average, yet not exactly overwhelmingly impressive freshman season, Barnes was still seen as a top-five pick. Now? He's dropping down the lottery with some bogus shooting performances in the NCAA Tournament.
Barnes truly struggled without Kendall Marshall on the floor due to injury. And what player wouldn't without an All-American caliber point guard like Marshall who ran the North Carolina offense so proficiently and effectively, playing the up the strengths in Barnes' game. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for the sophomore wing to show scouts what he was made of- demonstrate that playmaking and diverse offensive skill set that he had only shown glimpses of until this point. But he didn't. He struggled to create any offense for himself, most commonly settled for set jump shot that was misfired or a one-dribble, off-balance pull-up. His ability to look more than average was alarming for quite a number of scouts that continued to push Barnes down their Draft board.
He was 8-of-30 from the floor on the weekend and it looked much worse than the box score suggests; this shooting percentage includes a 2-for-14 mark from 3-point range, while he also racked up 8 turnovers as well. Barnes looked one-dimensional throughout the season, but his inaptitude to handle the ball and create for himself and set up the mid-range shots he loves means he will likely be passed on by at least the first six or seven teams.
By President Corey Ruff - 3 - 27 - 12
