[UNCbasketballbumParticipant]

All the hype has surrouned Harrison Barnes and his dissappointing end to his UNC career.  I as wondering what kind of player you guys think Henson can become.  Player comparisons?

[river09Participant]

 I haven’t been able to decide about Henson yet.. I’d put him in the same category as Anthony Davis in the mold of "dude, go to mcdonalds for a month"… He needs to add weight and strength otherwise he’ll be bounced around like crazy in the NBA.. Until then I’m not sure he’ll be able to attack the rim effectively and doesn’t have enough of a jumper to be a threat. At the same time I’m not sure he’ll be able to rebound well either… So he really doesn’t have a spot outside of weakside shot-blocking.. In essence Henson is a clone of Davis with a little less physical gifts (not a lot less) but no jumper and less of a wingspan. That has me a bit worried.. 

 

Comparing him to someone… Thinking Jajuan Johnson.. But he hasn’t really reached his peak yet (drafted last year.. being mentored by KG.. there’s hope..)..

[DunksNJordans23Participant]

 Henson should be a Hakim Warrick with a little dash of Josh Smith (blocks wise)

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

I’m still wondering why some people compared him to Kevin Durant coming out of High School?

Henson wont be a star,more of a specialist off the bench,blocking shots and providing defense,he’s yet to develope an offensive game,he’s a garbage player with a great work ethic..The type of player coaches and team mates will love….

I saw him constantly get pushed around inside by much smaller,but stronger players…

Becuz he’s from UNC ,some team will select him in the 12 to 25 range…But the more elite players that announce they’re coming out,the farther he’s going to slide in the draft…He reminds me of John Salley..

[chocboywndrParticipant]

He is a tough one to guage. He is great colleg shoot blocker but with his body he can’t play inside right now in NBA. He doesn’t really have a handle to speak of so he will not be able to anything off the dribble. He did progress well compared to last year in his post play but again his body really won’t let him play in their. His outside shot improved also, so maybe he could be pick and pop guy. I think he is better than ed davis but will have similar struggles as kind of a tweener. The height of PF and shot blocking but weight is going to be real issue. He look like a naturally thin guy who might have trouble putting weight on. So a better version of ed davis not sure who that is in the league but where he lands and how willing they are to develop him is going to be key.

[So raspyParticipant]

 hes in the same boat as Sullinger. Chance of being a bust. for a comparison, reminds me of a Larry Sanders a little bit, but with a jumper

[HaleParticipant]

If he packs on some weight he could be a nice mismatch threat. He’s got a solid jumper that could pull out opposing bigs, and has the athleticism to attack slower ones. Then he’s got the size and a decent enough post game to post up some wings. He’s got nice upside as a weakside shot blocker, but he’ll get pushed around early in his career.

[Taylor Gang MikeParticipant]

 I love henson’s game, that is my guy haha, he is skinny but i see him hitting the weights, hopefully how Ed Davis did. I want him to go to my Sixers, that is who we need.. either Henson, Sidney or Plumlee..

But i see Henson as a Dalembert type of player, he has a good jumper and is the 2nd best shot blocker besides ant davis… I think John has the potential to be a haywood

[Anton123Participant]

 I think he is very similar to Larry Sanders as a prospect. They’ve got almost identical height/weight and both are incredibly long

Their offensive games coming out are similar too, both can sometimes hit a jumper or a baby hook, but mostly rely on dunks and put-backs around the basket. Sanders did score slightly more, but Henson was on a much better team. Sanders was a better free-throw shooter though.

Defensively they are similar too: both block shots at a very high rate (Sanders right now is blocking 1.2 shots in 11 mpg) and use their length and explosiveness to get rebounds.

I do think Sanders will eventually find himself a place as a shotblocker off the bench who averages around 8 ppg, 6 rpg and 2 bpg in about 20 mpg and so will Henson

[HadzialijagicParticipant]

 I like Henson but dont compare him and Davis in terms of adding body weight. Henson hasnt been able to add any weight in his 3 years in UNC so to expect him to add on a  lot of weight is wishful thinking. Anthony Davis in his senior year of high school was around 190-195 pounds 200 tops and he is at around 220 now. Davis is going to be able to add on weight. Henson wont but he is long and athletic with an underrated jump shot.

[SpacegrassParticipant]

I agree that I am unsure of exactly what position he plays at the NBA level and I will say this Anthony Davis and Henson are both 220 now but , Henson was about 185 as a freshmen and he has added about 35 pounds since his freshmen year where Davis is a tad bit more explosive and is already physically developed as well as Henson despite being 2 years younger. I can see Davis being about 240 in 3 or 4 years where 225 might be Hensons potential. Don’t forget Marcus Camby was essentially the same size coming into the NBA 6’11 225. Henson has developed a nice jumper and length wise he and Davis both have 7’4 wingspans so they are pretty equal there as well. Henson has a good motor and despite being a thin guy he is not afraid to bang. I only worry about his body holding up past his late 20’s due to his narrow shoulders. Really do think he can be valuable player , not a superstar but , if he can pack on about 10 more pounds of muscle I could see him being a Camby or Noah like player at best. I am just concerned he may be a guy that may only get 8-10 years in the league before his body is too banged up. Other than that he is a great kid who works and plays hard that for a upper classmen has a lot of potential still.

[cbelfordParticipant]

he will be a role player. he reminds me of brendan wright of the mavs.

[cbelfordParticipant]

he will be a role player. he reminds me of brendan wright of the mavs.

[cuseflynn10Participant]

I see Henson going around pick #20. A team like Philly could add him as a backup PF and have him develop. If he pans out, he could eventually take the starting job. If he doesn’t, he still should be a nice role player off the bench.

[r377Participant]

I personally have always liked Henson, will he be a star ? No.   I think he might be a 10-12p  7-8reb type of guy who could be in the top 15 shot blockers.  Possible starter on a bad team or 6th / 7th man on a good team which if he goes pick 15-20 sounds about right.

Comparisons are tough, I see a bit of John Salley in him….

[mrhancocParticipant]

I like Henson’s toughness when challanged more than anything, he’s good defensively blocking shot and may cause some difficulty getting around because of his length, and offensively he can hit like that 12-15 foot jumper consistantly, good post at times when deep in the paint, and his hook shot has gotten a lil better

for me it really depends on what team he is drafted too because Im not totally sure how they intend to use him but do I think he will be a bust? No, I don’t think he is a flat out scoring machine or even the best defensive player that will ever be on the floor, but I do think he will be in the league for a long time and find ways to contribute to a teams needs every game…out of UNC he may be the best all around talent (out of UNC)in the draft
He could also use better handles too, if he is drafted after 10, I would think the team that picked him got a steal deal

[OnionsParticipant]

He’s a PF. He can’t handle or shoot well enough at the 3 and he’s not strong enough in the post at the 5.

One thing I love about Henson is that he’s getting better every year. Any UNC fan (or someone who watched him play as a frosh) would tell you he was flatout terrible as a freshman. First Roy tried him at the 3 and that was a disaster. Then he moved to the 4 and had more of his dunks blocked than any player I have ever seen. He progressed nicely towards the end of the season after Davis got injured and his PT went up. Still was mainly a decent rebounder with good shot blocking instincts

As a soph he really came on. IMO, he was the best defensive player in the country as a sophomore. He went from decent rebounding to borderline elite. Offensively, he worked on his footwork and developed an inconsistent hook shot. No jump shot and very limited post moves, still. At least he stopped getting his dunks blocked.

This season, he came out with a bang looking like Sheed with his turnaround jumper. Side note: Sheed worked out a lot with him over the summer. I mean early on, it was flat out lethal. Kind of went into a slump with the shot and then came back out before the season concluded. It’s certianly his go-to move now. He can go to his left or right in the post and is showing a better touch near the basket. I wish he would go up stronger, though. He tends to avoid the contact and go for the fancy layup instead of dunking. He’s very agile and can make them, but still…

Random stuff:

1) He grew an inch to a legit 6-11 in college. Still has has freakish wingspan.

2) I don’t understand his free throw shooting. The percentages speak for themself, but his rotation and release is great. Sometimes he goes games where he shoots a combined 80+ and then he will miss a ton. It’s definitely not his form and he can hit jumpers mid-game.

3) He’s a very underrated passer. Because he was a combo who had a huge growth spurt (like Davis), he has superior passing vision. He showed it at times.

4) His handle isn’t good. Not at all. However, his first step is quick for a big and his stride is from the free throw line to the rim.

5) Needs to improve his basketball IQ. He makes a bonehead mistake once in a while that makes you think wtf.

6) He’s actually a very good blocker on his own player. He’s not just a weakside defensive player. Watch him against Terrence Jones or CJ Leslie to see what I’m talking about.

 

Obviously his weight is a concern. It is good news that he’s consistently putting on while keeping his same mobility and athletcism. Other than towards the end of this season, he’s never had problems with injuries. Obviously he of course hurts his wrist in the ACCT and then sprains his ankle against KU. All minor and during the game stuff.

The thing about him is you can see how much potential he has and he is taking noticable steps in his game each and every season. His physical tools are elite so it makes you wonder just how good he can eventually get.

I think compares favorably to Noah.

[TheLastWordParticipant]

He is not near the athlete Noah is. Noah has elite mobility and hops for his size, although Henson can make up a lot of it with that wingspan. His FT% is sort of the straw that broke the camels back for me. 3 years at a consistent 50% is no fluke, it will render him pretty useless offensively as Hack-a-Henson will be in full effect the times he does get good post position. If a team desperately needs some shot blocking or interior D, he might warrant a 10-14 range selection.

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