Marques Bolden, Down To Three, Really Two, Is Getting The Business From Everyone

The McDonald's All-American game is tonight, in Chicago, and Duke is represented by point guard/combo guard Frank Jackson and elegant forward Jayson Tatum.

Harry Giles can't play because he didn't play this year after his knee injury but he is generally regarded as one of the top five players in the class.

As has been the case so often lately, Kentucky is also well represented. The future Wildcats in this game include Bam Adebayo, De'Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Sacha Killeya-Jones.

Also playing: Marques Bolden. Perhaps the top center in the class, Bolden's final three include Duke, Kentucky and TCU.

TCU just fired Trent Johnson and hired Jamie Dixon and that may not have gone over too well with Bolden.

So it's most likely going to be either Duke or Kentucky.

The other day, UK coach John Calipari announced his entire team - including the walk-ons - would apply for the draft.

So it's hard to know who exactly will be back.

The only big guy who can't come back is senior Alex Poythress.

That means decisions have to be made by 7-0 Isaac Humphries, 6-11 Skal Labissiere, 6-10 Tai Wynyard, 6-9 Marcus Lee and 6-9 Derek Willis.

Labissiere's game has been mercilessly picked apart this year but for what it's worth, NBADraft.net has him at #14.

He's the only UK big man currently listed although Jamal Murray is currently pegged at #5 and Tyler Ulis is seen as the #45th pick.

The mock drafts don't mean much of course but they do show a sense of where people might go or at least how well they're regarded.

So while UK's big men might not go high, or possibly not at all, that doesn't mean they'll necessarily return.

It's just all really unclear right now.

Kentucky could have seven talented big men next year. The Wildcats are guaranteed to have Adebayo,  Killeya-Jones and Wenyen Gabriel, another talented big man who isn't eligible for the McDonald's game.

We'd be surprised if Humphries and Wynyard drew heavy draft attention.

That's a lot of competition for minutes. Kentucky's never going to do the platoon business again - that was a disaster, especially for recruiting - but they'll have a lot of players to accommodate.

Duke by contrast expects to have Giles, Amile Jefferson, Tatum, Chase Jeter, Javin DeLaurier and AntonioVrankovic.

Vrankovic is on a slower path than the others most likely and DeLaurier is seen as a guy with a motor but some work to do.

Both teams are going to have some serious talent and Bolden will get minutes wherever he plays. He may end up with less competition at Duke, especially at center.

Then again, decisions today aren't always made in what we might call traditional ways.

Bolden seems like a bright guy so we're sure he'll make a thoughtful decision.