Cameron Jackson

Wheat Hotchkiss

The last 11 weeks have been a whirlwind for the 19-year-old guard from Milwaukee.

Since his freshman season at Kentucky came to a heartbreaking end when the Wildcats fell in overtime to Auburn in the Elite Eight in Kansas City on March 31, Herro has bounced across the country as he prepares for the NBA Draft, working out for and interviewing with a number of teams with draft selections in the middle of the first round.

Herro auditioned for the Pacers on Friday morning at the St. Vincent Center and will visit Minnesota on Saturday. After that, he can exhale and have a few days to rest before heading to Brooklyn for the draft on Thursday night.

"It's a long process, traveling city to city, staying by yourself, and things like that," Herro said. "It's an enjoyable process but I'm happy it's going to come to an end.

"I'm ready to just know what city I'm going to, really."

There is seemingly a good possibility that Herro will be looking into real estate in Indianapolis in a week's time, at least if you believe what you read on the internet. A number of the latest mock drafts have the 6-6 guard headed to the Pacers with the 18th overall pick.

2019 DRAFT CENTRAL: Complete Coverage at Pacers.com/Draft »

Herro fits a definite need for the Pacers with his ability to stretch the floor. Indiana ranked fifth in the NBA a year ago in 3-point percentage but was 29th in 3-point attempts, a number that will have to improve in a league that increasingly values outside shooting.

The Pacers also could be looking to re-stock their backcourt. All-Star guard Victor Oladipo is coming off of major surgery to repair a ruptured quad tendon and it is uncertain if he will be ready for the start of the season. Fellow guards Darren Collison, Cory Joseph, and Wesley Matthews are all entering free agency, as is small forward Bojan Bogdanovic, Indiana's best outside shooter and go-to offensive option after Oladipo's injury.

Herro was the second-leading scorer on a loaded Kentucky team that featured three probable first-round picks in this year's draft. He led the Wildcats in minutes played, averaging 14 points per game while primarily playing off the ball, providing spacing with his ability to stretch the floor.

He posted a respectable .355 3-point percentage but is a much better shooter than that number indicates. After an early-season slump, he converted 37.3 percent of his 3-point attempts in SEC play and led the NCAA in free throw percentage at .935.

Herro shot well in shooting drills in front of the Pacers' coaching staff and executives at the end of Friday's workout, displaying a quick release and smooth stroke.

Herro shoots at Friday's pre-draft workout at St. Vincent Center. (Photo Credit: @Pacers)

While some prospects want to be drafted as high as possible and others want to go to the organization they think is the best "fit" for their skillset, Herro isn't that picky. He said he has tried to "meet with every team possible" during the pre-draft process and isn't too picky about where he ends up. He is seemingly a lock to go in the first round, with a range from the late lottery to the early 20s.

"I watch a lot of NBA basketball," Herro said. "Everybody's really going in the same direction, spacing the floor, shooting threes, and playing defense. So I'm coming in here open minded. I don't care what team I'm drafted to. Just happy to have an opportunity to play in the NBA and make a name for myself."

While Herro played primarily off the ball in college, he does possess the ability to handle the ball as well. He shot better off the dribble than off the catch in college and also displayed a nice array of finishing moves inside the 3-point arc.

While Herro raved about his time at Kentucky and the influence coach John Calipari had on his career, he also realizes that he wasn't able to display his full arsenal of abilities during his year in Lexington.

"At Kentucky, you've just got to make sacrifices for the team," Herro said. "There's usually 10 top-10 guys going there. Everyone brings something special and at Kentucky I brought my shooting.

"I can do more than just shoot. I can play with the ball in my hands (and) come off the pick-and-roll."

While Herro is a good athlete and has plenty of size at 6-6 to play either guard position in the NBA, his wingspan measured at just over 6-3 at the NBA Draft Combine. That lack of length and questionable lateral quickness mean that he could struggle defensively at the next level.

But when you're picking 18th in the draft, you won't find a player without some hole in his game. The gamble with Herro is that his offensive firepower outweighs any potential defensive shortcomings.

The NBA invited Herro to sit in the green room at the draft next week. He plans to be there and will undoubtedly be joined by Calipari, who is becoming a fixture at the draft as Kentucky has had at least two players selected in the first round in each of the past nine seasons.

"He helped me in so many ways," Herro said of Calipari's influence. "He pretty much changed my whole game as far as just being a pro and looking at things as a professional. The first day I stepped on campus, he treated me like a pro.

"It was a good experience to go there and I was happy I made that decision."

Guards Devin Cannady (left), Christian James (center), and Lamar Peters (right) all worked out for the Pacers on Friday. (Photo Credit: @Pacers)

Trio of Guards Hoping to Earn Scouts' Attention

Herro was joined at Friday's workout by three other guards, Princeton's Devin Cannady, Oklahoma's Christian James, and Mississippi State's Lamar Peters. All three are candidates for the second round of the draft and are looking to impress a team enough to at least earn a Summer League invitation if they go undrafted.

For Cannady, Friday's workout was a homecoming of sorts. Cannady grew up in Mishawaka, where he attended Marian High School. In 2015, Cannady had a team-high 17 points leading his home state to victory in the Indiana-Kentucky All-Star Game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

"It's nice having the Pacers bring me in, being home," Cannady said Friday. "I saw my family yesterday. I appreciate them bringing me in. It was a great workout."

Cannady was a prolific scorer in the Ivy League, averaging 11.6 points per game as a freshman and increasing his scoring average every season, up to 18.2 as a senior. Cannady relied heavily on his jump shot, shooting 40.3 percent from 3-point range and 89.6 percent from the free throw line over his college career.

While he played primarily off the ball in college, the 6-1 Cannady will likely need to slide over to point guard at the next level.

"I'm competitive, I love the game," Cannady said. "I can shoot with the best of them, so if teams need shooting, need guys who are tough and smart, I can bring that."

James is a 6-4 shooting guard who averaged 14.6 points and 6.2 rebounds as a senior at Oklahoma. Since he finished his college career, James has actually been training a couple hours up I-69 in Fort Wayne with his agency, Potter Sports Group, founded by Mad Ants founder Jeff Potter.

James credited a lot of his development over his four years with the Sooners to legendary coach Lon Kruger. Kruger has compiled over 600 wins at the collegiate level, including a pair of Final Four appearances, and also has experience coaching in the NBA from 2003-04.

"Coach Kruger has really helped me with my game, just learning the game of basketball," James said. "He's really helped me with my IQ, making plays for (teammates), and being a team leader."

Peters burst onto the scene in his first year at Mississippi State in 2016-17, when he was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team after averaging 10.7 points per game and shooting 36.6 percent from 3-point range.

Those numbers dipped his sophomore season, but he bounced back his junior year, setting career highs for points (11.9 per game), assists (5.2), steals (1.7), and 3-point percentage (.386). Peters elected to forgo his senior season and enter the draft.

Being a smaller guard at just 6 feet tall hurts Peters' draft stock, but he does have experience running the point in college under coach Ben Howland.

"My coaches put in my head that I've got to be a point guard first and make plays for others," Peters said. "Coming out of high school, I was more of a scorer. But coaches instilled in me (that) you've got to get other guys involved."

Big men JaKeenan Gant (left) and Cameron Jackson (right) rounded out Friday's pre-draft workout. (Photo Credit: @Pacers)

Gant, Jackson Hope Effort and Energy Impress NBA Teams

The final two prospects at Friday's workout were a pair of power forwards: Louisiana-Lafayette's JaKeenan Gant and Wofford's Cameron Jackson.

Gant began his college career at Missouri but transferred to Louisiana-Lafayette after two years. He was extremely productive in his two seasons with the Ragin' Cajuns, including a monster senior year, when he averaged 20.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks while shooting 54.4 percent from the field and 37.2 percent from 3-point range.

The 6-8 forward has some intriguing qualities between his athleticism and his ability to stretch the floor (he attempted 113 3-pointers his senior season).

"I bring a lot of energy," Gant said Friday. "I like dunking the ball, I can shoot. I do a little bit of everything."

Gant was an elite rim protector in college, swatting 156 shots over his two seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette and winning Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year honors as both a junior and a senior. The question scouts will want answered in pre-draft workouts is how well that skillset carries over against higher-level competition.

Jackson is a 6-8, 258-pound forward who was a bruising presence on a Wofford team that earned its first-ever NCAA Tournament victory in March. Jackson came up big in that victory over Seton Hall, tallying 14 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists.

On the season, the fifth-year senior (an injury forced him to redshirt his sophomore season) averaged 14.5 points on 57.3 percent shooting, 7.6 points, 2.8 assists, and 1.5 steals.

Like James, Jackson has also been training for the draft in Fort Wayne. He hopes his all-out effort in pre-draft workouts turns some heads.

"I see myself being a junkyard dog, just going in, getting after loose balls, playing defense, getting rebounds, finishing putbacks...just doing the dirty work," Jackson said.

He certainly embodied that mentality on Friday, when he sustained a cut on his left eye during the workout. Jackson received stitches and returned to finish the workout.

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Herro's Shooting Could be Welcome in Indiana

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2019 Draft Workouts: Cameron Jackson

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Height: 6-8
Weight: 258
Position: PF
College: Wofford
Age: 23

2018-2019 Season Stats
PPG: 14.5
RPG: 7.6
APG: 2.8
BLK: 1.0
STL: 1.5

2018-19: Started all 35 games for the Terriers ... Averaged 14.5 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds per game ... Led the Terriers in rebounding (266), blocks (35) and steals (52) ... Named First Team All-SoCon and to the First Team All-SoCon Tournament team ... SoCon's December Player of the Month ... Scored in double figures in 32 contests ... Recorded seven double-doubles, giving him 15 for his career ... Averaged 10.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.2 steals and .9 blocks per game for his career ... 49th member of the 1,000-point club, finishing 19th on Wofford's all-time scoring list with 1,399 points ... Shot .583 from the field for his career which is sixth all-time at Wofford ... Sixth all-time on the all-time steals list with 168 and third with 125 blocks while playing the most games (138) in Terrier history ... Recorded 7 or more rebounds in 24 games ... Had three or more assists in 18 contests with two or more blocks in nine games ... Had two or more steals in 17 games, totaling five in games against Mars Hill and Western Carolina ... Scored 10 points and had nine rebounds in the season-opener against North Carolina ... Totaled 13 points and 11 rebounds against High Point ... Scored 20 points against Coppin State ... Had 18 and 10 against Mars Hill ... Scored 10 points with six rebounds at South Carolina ... Scored 15 points with 10 rebounds at Kansas, eclipsing the 1,000-point mark for his career ... Had a season-high 24 points with nine rebounds against Coastal Carolina ... Scored 20 points at Mississippi State and Western Carolina ... Had 23 and 10 at VMI ... Scored 16 points and grabbed 13 rebounds against Chattanooga ... Totaled 20 points and eight rebounds in an overtime win at ETSU ... Followed that up with 15 and 9 against Western Carolina ... Scored 18 points and nine rebounds at Furman ... Had 14 and 10 at Chattanooga ... Scored 20 points in the SoCon semifinal against ETSU ... Had 15 and 7 in the SoCon Championship win over UNCG ... Recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds in the NCAA Tournament First-Round win over Seton Hall ... Finished his career with 11 points and eight rebounds in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

2017-18: Played 31 games and started 29 ... Named Second Team All-Conference ... Averaged 12.0 points and 5.9 rebounds in 23.2 minutes per game ... Finished just shy of a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds against South Carolina in the season opener ... Led Wofford with 19 points (7-11 FG) and added seven rebounds, six steals and four assists in the first win of the season against Washington & Lee ...Netted 16 points (7-9 FG) with six rebounds, two assists and two steals in a win over Bob Jones ...   Against North Florida, finished 11-14 from the floor and earned his first double-double of the season with 23 points and 10 rebounds while also adding four blocks, three steals and two assists ... Had eight points and eight rebounds at Texas Tech ... Tallied 11 points, five rebounds and three assists at UNC Asheville ...  Scored 11 points at Coastal Carolina ... Totaled 10 rebounds and four steals in the win over Georgia Tech ... Shot 50% (6-12), scored 15 points and added five rebounds in the win over High Point ... Scored 18 points, brought down nine rebounds and had three assists, three steals and a program record six blocks in the upset win at No. 5 North Carolina ... Was named the Lute Olson National Player of the Week and the SoCon Player of the Week after the upset ... At UNCG, had 12 points, eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals at UNCG ... Went 7-9 from the field with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists in the home win over VMI ... Shot 100% (5-5) with 13 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals to earn another double-double against The Citadel at home ... Led all players with three steals and added six points and five rebounds in the non-conference win over Harvard ... Scored 20 points and tacked on five rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks in the home win against Furman ... Netted 12 points on 6-8 shooting at Samford ... Tallied six points against Chattanooga ... Totaled six points, four rebounds, four steals and two blocks at The Citadel ... Scored 13 points at Mercer ... Scored 10 points on 5-5 shooting in the win over Samford ... Had seven rebounds at Furman ... Finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three blocks at Western Carolina ... Netted seven points at Chattanooga ... Scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds against UNCG ... Led Wofford with 18 points, seven rebounds and three blocks in the win at ETSU ... Led the Terriers with 17 points on 8-9 shooting in the regular season finale against Mercer ... In the SoCon quarterfinals against Mercer, earned a double-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and two blocks ... Finished with eight points, a team high eight rebounds, and a team high four assists against UNCG in the SoCon semifinals and was then named Second Team All-Tournament for his play ... Scored 22 points and added nine rebounds, five assists and two blocks against Central Michigan in the CIT game.

2016-17: Played in all 33 games and made 30 starts … Averaged 12.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 20.9 minutes played … Ranked second on the team in rebounds with 188 on the season (5.7 per game) … Led the team in blocked shots with 31 … Recorded five double-doubles over the course of the season … In the Terrier’s first win over VMI (Jan. 19) Jackson scored a season-high 25 points in just 19 minutes on 84.6 percent shooting from the field … Recorded 24 points on 88.9 percent shooting (8-of-9) and 10 rebounds in 22 minutes at Furman (Feb. 25) to close out the regular season.

2015-16: Limited to seven games due to a season-ending injury, and made one start … Played 15 minutes in his season debut at Presbyterian (Nov. 28), collecting five points, two steals and a season-high seven rebounds off the bench to help Wofford to a 10-point victory … Made his first career start at Georgia Tech (Dec. 1) and scored four points with three rebounds, an assist and a steal in nine minutes … Played a season-high 21 minutes at Clemson (Dec. 6), collecting six rebounds and a block … A perfect 3-for-3 from the floor in what wound up being his final game of the season at Austin Peay (Dec. 22), finishing with seven points, four rebounds and a steal in 14 minutes … Granted a medical redshirt.

2014-15: Played in 32 of 35 games off the bench ... Averaged 2.4 points, 1.6 rebounds, 0.4 blocks and 8.3 minutes played his freshman season ... Was 56.6 percent from the field and 76.2 percent (16-21) from the foul line ... Scored in 13 straight games from Nov. 18 - Jan. 3 ... Made his Wofford debut in the season opener at Stanford (Nov. 14), playing 10 minutes ... Scored his first collegiate basket and earned his first rebound and block in the ESPN College Hoops Marathon win over Iona (Nov. 18), shooting 2-of-2 from the field ... Gathered four rebounds against Ohio Valley (Nov. 25) ... Collected a season-high six boards and scored four points against Presbyterian (Dec. 3) ... Went for four points and four rebounds in 15 minutes in a win against Florida National (Dec. 6) ... Had two points and a rebound in seven minutes against NC State (Dec. 14) ... Contributed with four rebounds, two points and a block in a win versus Charleston Southern (Dec. 17) ... Scored five points at No. 18/17 West Virginia (Dec. 22) ... Extended his scoring streak to 12 games with four points and two rebounds in just seven minutes against eventual national champion Duke (Dec. 31) ... Scored a career-high six points (2-2 FT, 2-4 FT) and collected a pair of rebounds in a 68-65 win at Samford (Jan. 3) ... Missed the first game of his career with an ankle injury (Jan. 10) ... Returned from injury against Western Carolina (Jan. 17), tying his career-high of six points while adding three rebounds and a steal in just 13 minutes ... Posted a career-high four blocks, all in the second half, playing a career-high 16 minutes and also going for four points and four boards in a win over Furman (Jan. 22) ... Effective in just seven minutes at UNCG, grabbing four rebounds, blocking two shots and scoring two points to help the Terriers to a 58-42 victory (Jan. 29) ... Hit both of his field goal attempts and his lone free throw attempt, finishing with five points, an assist and a steal at ETSU (Feb. 5) ... Was 2-for-2 to finish with four points, three rebounds, an assist and a block in just 12 minutes played against The Citadel (Feb. 21) ... Made his SoCon Tournament debut in the quarterfinals against eighth-seeded UNCG, playing seven minutes and scoring a basket in a Terrier victory (March 7).

Prior to Wofford: Three year letter-winner and two-year starter at John Handley High School ... Led John Handley to the Virginia State 4A championship game his senior year ... Team captain who was also named District Player of the Year, Region Player of the Year, First Team All-State and Virginia State Coaches Association Player of the Year ... Averaged a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds ... As a junior, he averaged a double-double as the team was 21-5 overall ... He earned First Team All-District, First Team All-Region, and Region II Division 3 Player of the Year honors ... Also played for Virginia Elite.

Personal: Born Feb. 7, 1996 in Winchester, Virginia ... Son of Leanthony and Danielle Jackson ... Majoring in environmental studies and English.

Honors & Awards: 2017-18 SoCon Tournament Second Team...2017-18 SoCon Second Team All-Conference...SoCon Player of the Week (Week Seven, Jan. 2, 2018)...Lute Olson Award National Player of the Week recipient (Dec. 25, 2017)...2017-18 Preseason All-SoCon

Cameron Jackson

Herro's Shooting Could be Welcome in Indiana

2019 Draft Workouts: Cameron Jackson

Cameron Jackson: 2019 Draft Prospect