As frustratingly inconsistent as A.J. Hammons has been, he’ll probably get drafted in June. Likely in the first round, perhaps late lottery. Sports Illustrated claims that 17% of the population which is 7 feet or taller play in the NBA. Hammons is 7’0 and he’ll be the focal point of the Purdue offense this year.
Matt Painter will run his system from the inside-out as Purdue opponents will play the “Hack-a- A.J. Hammonds ” defense on the Baby Boilers all year. Now with the arrival of 7″2″ freshman Isaac Haas, Hammons has a true sparring partner to push him in practice.
(Related: here is our exclusive with Raphael Davis)
It’s similar to what Illinois had a couple years ago when they had both Meyers Leonard and Mike Tisdale on the roster at the same time. Leonard was the greatest thing for Tisdale, and Tisdale was the greatest thing for Leonard. Likewise, A.J. Hammons is the best thing for Isaac Haas and Issac Haas is the best thing for A.J. Hammons.
Not many teams in the nation run their offense through a big man, and very few have two footers on their roster, let alone even one.
In this semi-exclusive interview, conducted at Big Ten Media Day 2014, Hammons discusses working with Haas, and how much he pushes him. A.J. Hammons gets very technical in this interview discussing all the fundamentals and specifics in both his individual game, and the Purdue offense in general.
Hammons also discusses his aversion to social media. Podcast below:
A.J. Hammons, who weighs about 251, averaged 10.8 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game a year ago for the Boilermakers. He was named to the Big Ten’s All-Defensive Team after leading the Big Ten in blocked shots and ranking second in the league in rebounding.
He was the only player in the country during 2013-14 to post a game with at least 15 points, 15 rebounds, five blocks and four assists. He paced the Big Ten (conference play only) in double-doubles. This year, he is the league’s retuning rebounder and shot-blocker.
“First and foremost, we want to get back to the postseason and compete for a Big Ten title. I feel like we owe our fans some better basketball. Purdue is a special place with a lot of great people and I’m excited to continue my education here and be a part of a great community,” Hammons said this preseason.
He knows he’s got to be more of a leader this year. In Chicago today, he spoke about the low rankings Purdue is receiving from Big Ten preseason prognosticators, and how he, along with the rest of the team, is using that at motivation.
So he’s saying all the right things. But he’s got to do more of the right things. Someone will draft A.J. Hammons much higher than they actually should due to his height. See: Meyers Leonard, Hasheem Thabeet, Shawn Bradley, Alex Len, Steven Adams…..well you get the idea. Just because the true Center is dying out in the NBA doesn’t mean Hammons stock isn’t high. He’s right up there with Caris LeVert, Sam Dekker and Frank Kaminsky as the best pro prospects in the league.
Head coach Matt Painter and A.J. Hammons met multiple times this past spring to discuss his standing with NBA teams and personnel and ultimately decided it was in Hammons’ best interest to return to school.
“Coach Painter has been fantastic during this process with me,” Hammons said in the offseason. “We have gone over every report, and I have a good feel for where I stand and what I need to improve on. I know I have things to work on, and there is no better place for me to develop more as a player and as a person.”
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and very often writes The Sports Bank.net ,which is partners with Fox Sports. Read his features stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Listen to him on 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks). His work has been featured in hundreds of media outlets including The Washington Post and ESPN 2