Kenneth Faried arrived to Morehead State out of Newark as a scrawny 6'7" 'burst of energy'.

Head coach Donnie Tyndall was one of the only coaches to recruit Faried and now considers him a once-in-a-lifetime player for the program.

“He’s improved his strength, size and conditioning, with that same motor he had as a 17-year-old high school kid,” Tyndall said. “It’s allowed him to become the best rebounder in the history of college basketball. And absolutely, positively, no doubt we could not have projected he’d be what he is today.”

On Wednesday, Louisville Coach Rick Pitino said that Faried is unique, partly because of his “relentless pursuit.” “The reason I think he’ll be a high draft choice is, the N.B.A. is in dire need of a guy like this who goes after every basketball,” Pitino said.

Faried is currently projected by RealGM as the 17th player overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.