Kentucky recruit Daimion Collins is only getting better — a scary thought for UK foes
Not much changed for two of Kentucky’s three signees when 247Sports revealed its updated basketball recruiting rankings for the class of 2021 this week.
Point guard Nolan Hickman stayed in the exact same spot at No. 30 overall. Small forward Bryce Hopkins dropped just one position, to No. 40 overall.
Daimion Collins, however, saw a relatively dramatic shift in his national ranking.
The 6-foot-9 power forward from Atlanta, Texas, jumped from No. 19 in the class all the way up to No. 10. Nine spots might not seem like much, but it’s always difficult to make much of a move within the top 25, and Collins’ shift was the largest, by far, of anyone in five-star territory.
“I like pretty much everything there is about Daimion Collins,” 247Sports national basketball director Eric Bossi told the Herald-Leader. “Everyone looks at him as this rebounder, shot blocker, athlete — and, certainly, all those things apply — but I have long felt that his overall skill and his game has been overlooked a little bit.”
Collins, who boasts tremendous athleticism and a 7-3 wingspan, is indeed regarded as one of the best rebounders and shot blockers in all of high school basketball, but he’s proving he’s more than just that, both in the present and with his considerable upside moving forward.
The night before the new rankings were posted, Collins went for 32 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and four blocked shots in his team’s 64-55 victory. Bossi has written about his underrated offensive prowess in recent weeks, and his new spot in the 247Sports rankings reflects further recognition of that talent.
Kentucky, the analysts say, will be getting a good one next season. On both ends of the court.
“I don’t anticipate him being a guy that comes in as a first option in the low post on offense,” Bossi said. “But I think he’ll be a good option. I think, eventually, he’s going to have a little bit of pick and pop to him. He can sure run rim to rim, and go catch lobs. He has soft touch on jump hooks. He can make a jump shot. And he can put the ball on the floor a little bit. And when he does it, he doesn’t dance with the ball. He takes a couple of decisive dribbles and gets where he needs to go, and he really seems to have a good grasp on how to use his athleticism to enhance his game, rather than just relying completely on his athleticism.”
Collins averaged 24.6 points, 13.7 rebounds and 7.7 blocks per game as a junior last high school season. While his offensive game is progressing at an impressive rate, it’s still his defensive presence in the post that sets him apart in the 2021 class.
Next great Kentucky defender?
After officially signing with UK last month, Collins was praised by John Calipari as a player that “has that type of length, the athleticism and the versatility that have separated our players from others.” Calipari noted at the time that he didn’t like to compare current and future UK players to past Wildcats, but others aren’t shying away from that.
247Sports analyst Brandon Jenkins, who has watched Collins closely in recent years, acknowledged that he possesses similarly dangerous abilities as recent UK shot-blocking greats Anthony Davis and Nerlens Noel when it comes to help defense and that knack for using length and athleticism to quickly close in on potential shooters.
The most common comparison for Collins seems to be Isaiah Jackson, the UK freshman who — through three games — has been the brightest star on a struggling Wildcats team. Bossi also mentioned them both in the same sentence. He added that no comparison is perfect — every player is different, after all — but he sees the same blend of elite athleticism, shot-blocking and rebounding ability in both players.
Collins might even have a leg up at this stage in his development.
“Their games do match up fairly similarly,” Bossi said. “I do think Daimion has an edge on him offensively. And he’s maybe even a little bit bigger, a little bit longer.”
Another contributing factor in Collins’ rankings rise — and a trait that Calipari mentioned in his first public comments on the UK power forward — is his drive to become a better player.
“He wanted to be pushed and to be in a competitive environment to help him reach his full potential,” the UK coach said last month. “The staff and I cannot wait to help him grow.”
Bossi brought up a specific example. Back in October, the Wootten Top 150 camp was set up as a showcase to get as many of the best basketball prospects in the country together in one spot as possible following a spring and summer travel schedule that was almost entirely scrapped due to COVID-19.
A specific aim was to have these players compete in front of McDonald’s All-American voters, who, in a normal year, would have been able to see them countless times throughout the summer. Bossi noted that a lot of the nation’s biggest-name recruits skipped the camp. Some had other commitments, but many apparently decided not to go because they didn’t feel the need to further prove themselves.
Collins attended the showcase, and he was one of the top performers there.
“He showed up and wanted to play. And he really played hard,” Bossi said. “I think that says a lot about a kid’s character and wanting to test himself and wanting to get better. It seems to me — the kids who have that drive — tend to work out.”
