St John’s Freshman Moe Harkless Leaves Early For NBA

It’s a recipe for disaster, and usually winds up with the player either going un-drafted or being taken in the 2nd Round with a non-guaranteed contract, only to wind up being released or toiling in the NBA D-League with minimal funds.

I get it, surely every top notch HS prospect has dreams of one day playing in the biggest stage against the World’s biggest and best NBA superstars. But what they don’t get is that the trick is not just getting to the Association, it’s staying there.

Just ask former NCAA stars like Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds, who flirted with joining several NBA teams and even wound up trying his luck in professional ball overseas, before ultimately returning home, starting once again from ground zero in the D-League.

Or what ever happened to other recent NCAA stars like Kansas’ Sherron Collins or Nova’s Corey Fisher, who once scored 105 points in a Summer League game.

But when it comes to St John’s freshman Moe Harkless, there’s no denying that he has talent. After all, he was the Red Storm’s 2nd leading scorer at 15.5 ppg, in addition to leading the club in rebounding(8.6), steals(1.6), and blocks(1.4). But the promising 6‘8 and 200lbs forward shot only 20% from behind the arc and at times got pushed around by bigger forwards, something he will get a steady diet of at the next level. In most mock drafts, he’s only projected as a 2nd Round selection and would be wise to return to school.

Harkless cited one of the reasons for declaring early is that he initially decided to play at St John’s primarily to play for head coach Steve Lavin, but he missed most of the year due to cancer treatments. Maurice reportedly is in the process of finding an agent, meaning once hired, he won’t be allowed to change his mind and return for his sophomore season.

Steve Lavin’s comments and Moe Harkless highlights: