By JOSH NEWMAN
Special to ZAGSBLOG
Having not played a second of college basketball, Providence College freshman Ricky Ledo is heading for the NBA Draft, the Providence Journal reported on Tuesday afternoon.
The 6-foot-7, 20-year old Providence native committed to his hometown school in Sept., 2011, but never gained eligibility to play for head coach Ed Cooley thanks to his failure to meet NCAA academic standards.
Despite never getting on the court at Providence, NBA scouts had been impressed with what they had seen at practices throughout the winter. So much so that there are indications that despite not playing in a game since his final year at South Kent School, Ledo could find himself chosen in the first round.
“I think he’s a 25-30 guy and if not, certainly in the top of the second round,” one veteran NBA scout told SNY.tv. “He’s an intriguing prospect, but it’s a very tricky deal as far as you haven’t seen him play at a high level.”
All of the uncertainty surrounding Ledo left him projected as the No. 46 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft according to DraftExpress, but the one thing that is not uncertain is that he is a supremely talented offensive player who has been compared in the past to O.J. Mayo of the Dallas Mavericks.
Ledo’s leaving will have a profound impact on a Providence team which finished the season strong, winning eight of 11 at one point to qualify for the NIT, where it advanced to the quarterfinals. The Friars finished 19-15, 9-9 in the Big East and are slated to return four of their top five scorers in 2013-14.
“I watched him do 35 minutes of shooting at a walk through during the season and it was one of the greatest shooting exhibitions I’ve ever seen,” the same NBA scout said. “The coaching staff over there thought he was gonna be the Big East Player of the Year next year.”
