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Sharife Cooper Over 20.5 Draft Position (-182)
I was minutes late of grabbing this at -143 odds, but paying -182 is what it is. This prop looks too good to pass up on and will likely be the last addition to my NBA Draft card unless some must-have news comes through Thursday morning.
Sharife Cooper is currently being projected 23rd or higher on most experts’ draft boards with the consensus he can slip past the No. 20 selection.
With the likes of Chris Duarte, Cameron Thomas, Tre Mann, Jaden Springer, Trey Murphy and Ziaire Williams all lurking around or after the lottery, it’s hard to picture Cooper hearing his name called in the top 20.
NBC’s futures model has watched Cooper’s stock drop from 21.5 to 20.5 and the price become juiced.
By the time Wednesday morning rolls around, this line will be 21.5 or 22.5 with odds juiced to the Over -- so pay up now.
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Cooper was electric in his only season at Auburn, playing 12 games and averaging 20.2 points per game on 39.1% from the field and 22.8% from three.
His shooting was an issue, as it can be for 20-year-olds. Cooper still has room to grow offensively despite attempting 15.3 field goals per game, 4.8 triples and 8.6 free-throw attempts.
Cooper constantly was the aggressor, which is his most beneficiary factor despite poor shooting outside from the free-throw line (82.5%). Despite all the freebies, Auburn went 5-7 in his 12 games played.
When Cooper shot five or fewer free throws, he averaged 14.6 points per game on 16-of-53 from the field (30.1%) and 6-of-23 from deep (26.0%) over three games.
Cooper averaged 8.1 assists and 4.3 rebounds as a freshman, so he looks like an absolute stud on paper. However, his jump shot and height (6-foot-1) have caused teams to cool off on Cooper.
Taking a one-year undersized guard that relied on 35% of his 20 PPG scoring output to come from the charity stripe is not ideal for a top 20 pick.
Throw in the fact Cooper is a poor three-point shooter and a worse defender -- and you can see why his stats tell a deeper story.
I would not be surprised to see Cooper slip to the second round but I think around Houston at No. 23 and beyond seems appropriate for Cooper.
cannot imagine the Knicks (No. 19, 21), Hawks (No. 20) or Lakers (No. 21) take a guard that struggles with his shot.
If Cooper makes it past the Thunder at No. 16 and 18, I like the chances this bet cashes with ease.
I would play this to 22.5.
Pick: Sharife Cooper Over 20.5 Draft Position (1u)
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