KU Draft Profile: Billy Preston

Billy Preston was thought to be a potential lottery pick entering the 2017-18 season. A lot has happened since then. Preston never suited up for the Jayhawks, as eligibility issues held him out, leading him to eventually take his talents to Bosnia. He hopes to play professional ball in America this fall.

Preston is a power forward, standing 6’10.5” in shoes with a 7’2 wingspan. He has a reputation as a good natural rebounder and shotblocker, who can score both at the rim and from outside. Coming out of high school, there was concern about his low post game and overall basketball IQ. Without a season in college though, it’s tough to say how accurate those assessments are.

Guessing at how well his couple of months Bosnia will translate to the NBA seems like a fool’s errand, so I won’t try. Those who follow this stuff more than I seem to feel like he has a good chance of going in the second round, but a couple of mocks don’t have him showing up at all.

However, he was a star at the high school level, and his physical gifts didn’t just disappear. Though his stock has certainly fallen over the past year, some of that is due to his being out of sight while others had the chance to impress on national television. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t hear his name called tonight.