Harry Giles (Duke)
If not for his lengthy injury history, Harry Giles would be Miami’s top target at power forward. Not only that, he would be in the running for the number one overall pick. Unfortunately for Giles though, his lack of health throughout his young career will give many teams pause come draft time.
That injury history includes Giles tearing the ACL in each knee. It happened once in his sophomore year of high school, and then during the first game of his senior year as well. Further, just before starting his college career, he suffered another setback. Once again, it was knee related.
Duke will be without star freshman Harry Giles to begin the 2016-17 season after undergoing knee surgery. https://t.co/vDn6sVL08S
— Ball Durham (@Ball_Durham) October 5, 2016
Since then though, he has (finally) made progress. Despite speculation that he may sit out his freshman year and go straight to the NBA, Giles suited up for Duke and officially started his college playing career.
Coach Mike Krzyzewski has brought him along slowly. Giles has played a total of ten minutes in two games, and still hasn’t scored his first collegiate basket. And that’s alright, it’s still a step in the right direction.
Even with all the injuries, the young big man has loads of potential. Giles has excellent size for the power forward position. He’s listed at 6-foot-11, with a monstrous 7-foot-3 wingspan. And though he could use more strength, he currently weighs in at a solid 240 pounds.
Giles is also an elite athlete, with a quick second jump, that helps him feast on rebounds. At the high school level, he was phenomenal on both the defensive and offensive glass. Just take a look:
His leaping ability and length help project him as a shot-blocking menace at the NBA level. And though his offensive game needs polish, he has shown that he can knock down the mid-range jumper. Giles is also extremely agile for his size, can run the floor like a gazelle, and has huge hands that make catching the ball in traffic look easy.
For Miami, Giles would be an interesting fit. Even though he may look like a future small-ball center, he’s the type of player that’s good enough to make himself work on any team. A lineup featuring Whiteside and Giles would have a chance to become one of the best rebounding units in the NBA. And thanks to his agility, the Duke forward does a good job guarding perimeter-oriented big men. Meaning that he and Whiteside could work very well together defensively, with one protecting the paint while the other (presumably Giles), mans the outside.
Ultimately, Giles’ draft stock will come down to his health. If he can play this season without a recurrence of serious injury, and show that he hasn’t lost that elite athleticism, he’ll probably go in the top five of the draft, even despite everything he’s been through. That would make for quite the story, and everyone should be rooting for him.