Pope & SDSU

In this Matthew Bain article regarding who will be the next talent to step up for San Diego State, this appears:

But who? The Aztecs have a few freshman phenoms, but I strongly believe they wouldn't have chosen SDSU if they hoped to be a "one-and-done." Plus, Malik Pope is the freshman who appears to have the most one-and-done type skills, and he isn't strong enough to enter the NBA after one year in college...

A Bain assessment of Pope from mid-April:

Strengths:

Pope just oozes potential at the wing position. The willowy 3-man runs like a deer, handles the ball like a guard, and possesses catapult-like explosiveness. He has a quick 1st step and he has a nice floater as well. He rebounds well in his area and can lead the break due to his nifty handle and astute court vision. He handed out a number of high-level passes and he can knock down the 3-point shot.

Weaknesses:

His game is still rough around the edges and he plays too fast, but the upside is evident. Once he implements a jump stop and plays fundamentally sound (grabbing rebounds with two hands) his game will go to another level. In addition, he needs to continue to tighten his jump shot (erratic release) to keep his driving game going.

Bottom Line:

Pope is one of the elite wing prospects in the country. If he is willing to work on his ball skills and decision making his upside is tremendous. UCLA, USC, Arizona, Washington, Gonzaga, and host of others are monitoring his progress."

Will he play?

Pope is SDSU's most highly regarded recruit--Rivals.com rates him the 17th best prospect in the country. ESPN bumped him down to 55th best because a leg injury prevented him from playing his entire senior season at Laguna Creek High School. But when he's healthy, he's the full package: quick, strong, athletic, inside presence, perimeter presence, tough in the lane, can knock down a jump shot--oh yeah, and he's 6'8". He reminds me a lot of Dwayne Polee, and the more Polee-type players, the better for SDSU. If he can get healthy, Pope will likely play behind Polee. He could be a potential sixth man candidate. However, if he can't get healthy, Pope might redshirt his freshman season.