Kofi Cockburn enjoyed an illustrious and successful collegiate career, and is now ready to take on the NBA.
Kofi Cockburn 2022 NBA Draft Profile
College Career
Cockburn was a top recruit in 2019, widely seen as a top-50 high school player out of Oak Hill Academy in Virginia. As a matter of fact, he was high school teammates with Cole Anthony of the Orlando Magic and Cam Thomas of the Brooklyn Nets. Eventually, Cockburn chose to attend Illinois over a number of offers including Kentucky, Kansas, Syracuse, Florida State, and more.
He saw immediate success right off the bat. As a freshman, Cockburn was named the Big 10 Freshman of the Year after putting up averages of about 13 points, nine rebounds, and a block per game.
More success followed his sophomore year, as Cockburn was named onto All-Big 10 First Team as well as being a Second Team All-American. He averaged about 18 points, 10 rebounds, and a block per game.
A common trend with Cockburn, he improved once again in his last collegiate season, averaging about 21 points, 11 rebounds, and a block per game. He was on the All-Big 10 First Team again, but this team a First Team All-American.
Simply looking at the numbers, Cockburn is one of the most dominant collegiate big men of the last decade.
Strengths
Cockburn absolutely has NBA-ready strength. His build alone is impressive, and he often looked like a man amongst boys at the college level. He stands at seven feet and weighs in at around 285 – 300 pounds. Adjusting to playing NBA centers, from a physical standpoint, will not be an issue for him.
He’s a terrific rebounder. This is a statistic that may be overlooked at times, but is crucial to any team winning. His rebounding level alone puts him on an NBA radar.
Cockburn is also an excellent offensive player down low. He finishes around the basket with ease and has a growing low-post game. Cockburn can generate plenty of points with putbacks off of offensive rebounds. This ability also allows him to get to the free-throw line quite often.
Weaknesses
Outside of his offensive game in the paint, Cockburn will struggle to score in other ways. He needs to improve on his face-up game as well as his shooting. He doesn’t necessarily have to be the ultimate floor spacer, but it would do him a lot of good if he became a better midrange shooter.
Although he gets to the free-throw line at a high rate, he can also improve his shooting from the stripe.
Cockburn also isn’t the best shot blocker. He has a dominant presence at the rim and a massive build, so teams will expect him to deter more shots.
NBA Comparison for Kofi Cockburn
Cockburn has the potential to be a similar player to Steven Adams. He can score when needed in the paint, but his biggest assets will be his presence down low as well as his strong rebounding ability.
NBA Draft Projection
Cockburn is a second-round prospect with the ability to become a solid contributor quite quickly.
