Michigan State Basketball: Aaron Henry drawing attention as first-rounder

Aaron Henry’s growth as a player throughout his Michigan State basketball career was rather impressive as he went from 6.1 points per game as a freshman to over 15 points per game as a junior, doing a little of everything well by the time he decided to enter the NBA draft.

After his sophomore season, he decided to test the NBA draft waters and ultimately chose to come back for one more year and it paid huge dividends.

Henry needed to develop a solid jumper and he showed flashes of being able to light it up from distance, but it wasn’t consistent. He finished his final season with a career-worst 30 percent shooting rate from 3-point range but he did shoot 45 percent from the floor and a career-high 76 percent from the free-throw line.

The junior also put up career-highs in minutes, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. He was a more complete player and that’s why he decided to enter the draft and this time around it wasn’t a questionable decision.

He’s been mocked anywhere from the late-first to late-second and more recently, he’s getting a lot more respect as a first-round prospect.

Where some top sites have the Michigan State basketball star going

According to the latest CBS Sports NBA mock draft, Henry goes No. 25 overall to the Clippers. This would be a great fit because of team need and the fact that the Clippers are already contenders and Henry could learn from some of the best players in the league (looking at you, Kawhi Leonard).

The latest Bleacher Report mock has Henry going No. 27 overall to the Nets and just like the Clippers, Brooklyn is already a contender and probably the best team in the league when healthy. Who wouldn’t want to play with Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Blake Griffin?

Although not a first-round pick on NBADraft.net, they have him going in the second round to the Grizzlies which would make just about every MSU fan a Memphis fan — if they aren’t already. Imagine a team with Jaren Jackson Jr., Xavier Tillman, and Henry (*chef’s kiss*).

Henry is getting more respect as a first-rounder, and for good reason. He’s built for the league.