NBA TV hosted a 2014 NBA Combine Special show on Wednesday, featuring interviews with some of the top prospects in this year’s class. The interviews conducted by Seth Davis and Steve Smith each lasted around five minutes but gave a better understanding of how each prospect can handle the attention off the court.

Perhaps the most highly rated player that participated was Julius Randle. The 6-foot-9 power forward from Kentucky said the decision to enter the draft was much more difficult than it had seemed.

“From the outside looking in it may have been clear cut, but the relationships and the family that I established when I was at Kentucky made it really hard for me to leave,” he said. “I necessarily didn’t want to just because of the relationships I had with everybody, but at the same time this has always been my dream, always been my goal and there’s no better time to leave.”

Randle mentioned that the past season at Kentucky helped him deal with adversity while he also learned to impact the game in other areas besides scoring. Although the season started rough, he added, “I never lost hope, I always had faith, but you never know what direction it’s going to go. All you can do is just keep working hard.”

From a basketball standpoint, Randle believes his ability to attack off the dribble will give him a leg up above his peers.

“Me handling the basketball is just something that I’ve always done,” he said. “I know especially at my position it’s vital because it can cause a lot of mismatch problems…Handling the basketball and facing up is always going to be a big part of my game and I think it will translate well to the next level.”

James Young, a fellow freshman at Kentucky last season, also spoke at the combine. He agreed that the early struggles helped him going into the draft process.

“We got shot down a couple of times and people thought we were just going to die down,” said Young. “We knew what we could do, so once we got our confidence back and everything started to click, everything was going well. As you can see we had a good run.”

As a standout shooter and offensive weapon, Young believes he will be a two guard because of his scoring ability. Where he needs to improve, and he agreed, was on the defensive end.

“People say I couldn’t really defend, so really I’ve been working a lot on that over the summer, working on my footwork,” he added. If he can improve as a defender, there’s no doubt that the 6-foot-6 lefty can find his way into an NBA rotation early in his career.

Although Kentucky had a great run to the finals, it was Shabazz Napier who led his team to a national championship. As a stellar scorer and shooter, Napier was looked upon to carry the scoring load for the Huskies and, as a result, will face questions about his ability to become a true point guard in the NBA.

“Playing at UConn I was kind of thrust into a role to be the guy who shoots the ball a lot but I always showed I could be a point guard,” said Napier. “For example, the Florida game where I couldn’t take a lot of shots, I didn’t force shots, I was the point guard. I think I’ve showed a lot throughout the whole season but you can always understand where people have doubts in you, but that’s what motivates me. I’m never satisfied in myself, so when even more people continue to doubt me, it’s cool with me, because it gives me more room to improve my game.”

As a 6-foot senior in a youth-filled draft class, Napier may not possess the upside of other prospects, but he’s a leader who isn’t afraid of the big stage. He also spoke highly of his former coach, Kevin Ollie, and the advice he’s given him through the draft process.

“Coach Ollie always praised believing in yourself, believing in your teammates, and I think that’s one of the things that helped him have a long career in the NBA,” Napier added. “He didn’t do a lot of things so well on the court, but he was that guy that pushed you to believe in yourself, that always told you that it can happen but you have to work for it. He kept it real, and the basic thing he always tells me is just to always go out there and have fun, push yourself to the next limit, because anything can happen.”

Another senior who spoke on Wednesday and was perhaps the best player in college basketball this past season was Doug McDermott. The lights out scorer from Creighton spoke of his success in the only way McDermott can, saying. “It’s a huge credit to my teammates just because those guys are so unselfish.”

Despite finishing fifth on college basketball’s all-time scoring list, the 6-foot-8 forward faces questions about his future position. He’s a phenomenal shooter who can stretch the floor, but lacks the athleticism seen in most forwards.

“I just look at myself as a basketball player,” he said. “I feel like I just figure it out when I step on that floor. I don’t really have a position, I’m kind of a tweener, and I think I’m a much better defender than people give me credit. I’m really looking forward to that challenge to be able to guard some of the great players in the NBA, and I think I’m a really good team defender. I think I’m a basketball player, there’s not a specific position, but I think I can figure it out once I get up there.”

Arizona forward Aaron Gordon had a similar response when asked of his future position.

“I see myself as a basketball player,” he said. “Shaka Smart, when I was playing on the U19 team, he told me there’s two positions: there’s on the court and off the court. I want to be on the court so whatever they need me play, I’ll play.”

With his elite athletic abilities and questionable jumper, the freshman is almost the opposite version of McDermott. He shot under 50 percent from the free throw line and was asked of his shooting struggles.

“My jump shot as a whole was just disconnected,” said Gordon. “From the three-point line it was a different shot than I was shooting from 15 feet and the free throw line. It was all a different shot, so what I’ve been doing is working on is making a consistent jumper and it’s looking real nice now. It feels nice, the ball feels better in my hands, I have a different routine, and everything is connected. Each shot that I take from each spot on the court is the exact same shot and now it feels good.”

Gordon’s athletic ability for a 6-foot-9 forward will make him an early pick in this year’s draft. He can rebound, defend, and handle the ball, but an improved jumper would vastly help his draft stock.

Another freshman who should go early in the draft is Indiana’s Noah Vonleh. Like Gordon, he’s still somewhat raw and will need to improve his offensive game, but the 6-foot-10 power forward has shown flashes of stardom. He can face the basket and stretch the floor, but that’s a longer term goal at this point. Vonleh believes his rebounding abilities will help him see the floor early in his career.

“The skill that will make me be able to play right away I think is my rebounding,” he said. “I’m a very good rebounder, I’m very versatile…I can handle the ball, create for others, and do things like that.”

Vonleh has also built the reputation as an extremely hard worker, to the point where he skipped a day at Disney World to work on his game.

He added, “I went to the park, went on a couple rides with them, but I felt that I needed to get in the gym because I had a couple AAU tournaments for the live period coming up the next week so I wanted to be ready.”

Within the Big Ten, there was another power forward who showed the capability of playing in the NBA. Senior Adreian Payne from Michigan State revealed that he played part of the season with mononucleosis and has taken most of the offseason to recover and rebuild his strength.

As a junior, Payne could have very well been selected in the first round, but returned for his senior year to graduate. He was happy with his decision and believed it helped his overall game.

“I think I worked on a lot, especially playing inside-out,” said Payne. “I stretched my game out to the three point line, was able to take some guys off the dribble, finish around the basket, and was just working on my all-around game.”

The 6-foot-10 Spartan added that he’s a big Serge Ibaka fan and models him game after the Oklahoma City power forward. Payne said, “I’m going to be able to play hard, always bring energy, and I’m going to be a defensive player. I’ll do anything that a team asks me to do.”

Elsewhere in the state of Michigan, sophomores Nik Stauskas and Glenn Robinson III will hear their names called in June but for vastly different reasons.

Stauskas is a lethal shooter who has expanded his game during the past season. The issue for him will be if he can defend NBA shooting guards.

“I’m just really going to have to prove to people that I can guard other twos at the next level,” said Stauskas. “I feel like offensively I’ve shown a lot of what I can do and I think I still want to show people my ball handling ability and my play in the pick-and-roll. But I think once I can show that I can really defend at the next level with those two guards, I think that’s really going to separate me from other people.”

To further improve, the 6-foot-6 guard wants to develop as a ball handler who can play in the pick-and-roll or a spot up shooter.

“I know I can catch and shoot already, so the more lethal I can be off the pick-and-roll and be able to pull up and make those different kind of decisions, I think that will help me moving forward,” he said.

Robinson III is a phenomenal athlete with NBA genes who hopes to develop into an all-around threat.

“I want to show my overall skill set,” he said. “That’s tough to find now a days, a player that can do it all. That’s really something that I’d like to improve on and showing my defensive, offensive skill set and my athleticism.”

At the point guard position, freshman Tyler Ennis climbed up draft boards this season while playing for Syracuse. He was the leader and primary ball handler for the Orange and ultimately outperformed expectations.

“Entering the season, I really didn’t focus on how long I’d spend in college, I just focused on winning games,” he added. “I think us starting 25-0 really helped me get recognized and put in that category with the top freshmen.”

Ennis has been projected as a lottery pick because of his calm demeanor and steady play at the point guard position, but believes his athleticism, shooting, and ability to defend are all underrated aspects of his game. These are probably the biggest areas of concern for Ennis and if these are actually underrated traits, he might end up being the best lead guard in this class.

The player who most consider the top college point guard, however, is Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart. He was a potential top three pick last season, but surprisingly returned for his sophomore year.

Smart said, “I feel like I’m more prepared for this opportunity that I have in front of me and I’m ready to take it on with full force.”

Although he remains the strong athlete that he was last season, Smart’s stock has dropped because of his continued struggles from behind the arc in addition to an altercation with a Texas Tech fan earlier this season.

“I definitely had some tough adversity that I had to go through but it happened for a reason and I’m definitely a better person because of it,” he said of the incident. “It matured me in a way that if it didn’t happen, who knows if it happened now how I would have reacted. It’s a little glimpse of what’s to come and what to do in that situation next time.”

P.J. Hairston also had some off the court issues and was ultimately dismissed from the North Carolina program. As a result, he spent the past season in the D-League.

“I’m just the type of guy where I feel like if it’s on me, then it’s on me,” he said. “I don’t really look at anybody else to fix my mistakes and it’s all up to me. As a man now, I have to be able to do those things and correct myself and show that I’m able to be a man instead of a child.”

It wasn’t an entirely bad situation, however. Hairston faced some quality competition where he showed his scoring prowess in addition to his improvement on the defensive end. He mentioned guarding Troy Daniels was a learning experience.

“That was the main thing, chasing guys like Troy Daniels. That was a prime example,” said Hairston. “He came from the D-League, joined the Rockets in the playoffs, and played a big part for the Rockets. Him shooting out there, it was like watching him in the D-League again. I saw games where he put up 25 threes, but that’s who he is. A guy like that, you just have to stay with him.”

A guy who has never had issues on the defensive end is Ohio State point guard Aaron Craft. Unlike the previous prospects mentioned, however, Craft will not likely be a first rounder and may have to battle to earn an NBA roster spot next season. He’s a stellar defender, but his lack of size, athleticism, and a consistent jump shot have hurt his stock. Craft said that he has been working on his jumper the most to prepare for the combine.

“It was being able to knock down an open shot and feeling confident and comfortable with it,” he added. “The progress that we’ve made in the time that we’ve had, I feel great about it.”

Craft’s calling card will be as a defender. He spoke of his experience over the past four seasons, saying, “I think with the players and the teams that we get to play at Ohio State, I’ve been able to guard some of the better players in the country. The more athletic, the people that can shoot, all the various types, and been able to hold my own and do well. So that’s what I’m excited to continue to do, continue to show that I can do that, and just continue to be a leader on the floor. Being that guy out there that’s a calming presence for everyone and get them all on the same page.”

With the diverse group of participants on Wednesday, it was interesting to hear what they had to say while getting an understanding of how the prospects are thinking heading into the combine. Handling the media is key in the modern NBA and each player seemed comfortable in the spotlight. It was just a brief introduction to what these players will receive over the course of their careers.

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