I’m going to breakdown the players I thought stood out, should return to school or disappointed me on the last day of scrimmages.  There are players who participated in the scrimmage’s that I’m not going to mention in either category: Kennedy Meeks, Rawle Alkins, Jamel Artis, Peter Jok, Melo Trimble, Moritz Wagner, Omer Yurtseven, VJ Beachem, Isaiah Briscoe, just to name a few.  These players were pretty forgettable and did nothing to stand out, or, I didn’t have any expectations for them to begin with.

 

Stand Out

 

Derrick White, SR, PG/SG, Colorado ~ He seemed to be more of a scoring guard than a traditional point guard but made some nice passes in transition and off the pick-and-roll.  He’s 6’4, athletic and has a decent shot.  Needs to improve communication on defense and to be more aggressive fighting through screens.  About to turn 23.  Could be back up guard ready for a team picking in the second round.

 

Monte Morris, SR, PG, Iowa St ~ I wasn’t overly impressed with Morris.  He forgot to box out his man on defense fairly often leading to offensive rebounds and putbacks.  He has to improve his off-ball defensive and offensive awareness.  However, I did like the fact he takes care of the ball, doesn’t commit fouls, is patient on offense and has pick-and-roll skills.  During a pick-and-roll the timing, rhythm, angles and spacing all have to be coordinated amid two defenders; it’s kind of a dance.  So even though Morris still has a lot of skills to work on, having pick-and-roll skills is a huge plus that not many players showed at the combine.  He should be a second round pick with backup PG capabilities.

 

Dillon Brooks, JR, SF/PF, Oregon ~ Brooks really made an impression me during the combine scrimmage.  He was able to drive with either hand, change his direction, shift, pivot, attack the rim and score.  His improved 3pt shot has to continue onward to the pro level.  If he can be more consistent from three then that will give him better odds at making a team.  His biggest impediment could be his lack of foot speed and length.  He measures in at 6’7 with a 6’6 wingspan.  Thats terrible.  He did show top level fundamentals and skills which is always a treat to watch.  If he can get past his physical drawbacks then he has a chance to be a solid NBA scoring threat off the bench.  

 

Damyean Dotson, SR, PG/SG, Houston ~ I had no clue who Dotson was before the combine.  He’s 6’5 with a 6’9 wingspan and a great athlete.  He really showed off his versatility by initiating the offense and making plays while also playing off-ball as a floor spacer and cutter.  He needs to improve his handle if he wants to be a combo guard.  It wasn’t tight and he couldn’t keep his head up while driving.  His bad handle lead to too many turnovers and mistakes.  Dotson should be picked in the second round or not at all.  I think he could become a backup combo guard.  

 

Jaron Blossomgame, SR, SF/PF, Clemson ~ Blossomgame was really one of the better stand outs during the scrimmage.  He’s 6’7 with a 6’10 wingspan, athletic and strong.  He played great perimeter defense, not biting on fakes all week, staying attached to his mans hip and keeping his hands active while not becoming over-aggressive.  He was one of the only players during the scrimmage to set strong screens with a well timed roll.  His shooting is very inconsistent and one of his biggest hurdles.  But during combine week he was making his jump shots.  He’s about to turn 24 years old.  Many of the players I really liked this week were older players.  I personally don’t think it’s a bad thing to be an older since older players have more developed skill.  I think Blossomgame should be a first round draft pick but probably won’t be picked until the second round.  If he can consistently make his jump shots, huge if, then he will be a steal.

 

Davon Reed, SR. SG/SF,  Miami ~ Reed and Blossomgame were my two favorite players all week.  Reed is an older player too; 22 years old.  Reed was great at defense, one of the better communicators and weak side rotators at the combine.  He’s 6’6 with a 7’ wingspan, not great but a good athlete and strong.  He was defending 1 thru 5, making hustle plays and looked like a modern day multi-positional wing player.  He needs to improve his handle.  At the moment he is strong hand dominant and a straight line driver.  He can shoot though which is a big help to create cracks in the gaps.  Not many mock drafts have him being drafted.  I think that’s crazy.

 

Jordan Bell, JR, PF/C, Oregon ~ Bell didn’t blow me away with his skills but I did like his energy.  He really looked like a guy who can come off the bench as a back up big and make hustle plays.  He was the best screener all week bar none.  His base was shoulder width apart, strong, well timed, and rolled with his head up, vision on the ball and angled to the rim.  He rarely slipped the screen.  Defensively he needs to be more sound and not bite on fakes but overall he was one of the most versatile defenders at the combine.  Setting screens and rolling hard to the rim are his best attributes on offense; frankly they’re his only skills on offense.  Needs improvement there.  He should be a second round pick and has nice backup big potential.  

 

Return to School/Draft-and-Stash

 

Justin Jackson, FR, SF/PF, Maryland ~ I’ve gone into detail about Jackson many times before but I’ll say it again: he needs to return to school.  He’s 6’7 with a 7’3 wingspan, good athlete and strong body.  He has no discernible skills.  He looks like an NBA player but doesn’t have the requisite skills to back him up.  He’s O.K. at most everything but has not one stand out skill.  If he returns to school and comes out next draft then I think he has lottery potential.  

 

PJ Dozier, SO, SG, South Carolina ~ PJ has great size at 6’6 with a 6’11 wingspan.  His size and athleticism give him an NBA body.  His skills are further along than Justin Jackson but Dozier can benefit from one more year at school to improve his offense.  Dozier was probably one of the better defenders at the combine.  He was wrecking havoc in the passing lanes, taking chances and causing turnovers.  That activity on the perimeter means his hands can be too busy at times and he should be more conservative depending on the matchup.  His offensive game was pretty raw.  His shot is was bad but not broken; his release point was on the way down and overall very inconsistent.  If he returns to school for another year, just like Jackson, Dozier has lottery potential.  

 

Jonnathan Jeanne, 20 yr old, C, France ~ He was probably one of the better players all combine long to correctly adjust his dive with the ball handlers dribble.  He was diving hard and accurate to the rim during the scrimmages.  But his screen setting technique was weak.  He tends to slip every screen he sets or faintly nudge the defender on the roll to the rim.  He should be drafted, maybe first round this year.  But whoever drafts him should stash him for a couple of years overseas.  He’s 7’2 with a 7’6 wingspan and we weighs 207 pounds.  Ergo, he needs to bulk up.  Overall he has solid skill but he got pushed around all combine long and committed too many fouls.

 

Disappointment

 

Devin Robinson, JR, SF/PF, Florida ~ He can’t dribble and doesn’t have any moves off closeouts.  His strong hand drive is weak and he mostly pulls up before getting to the rim.  He’s 6’8 with a 7’ foot wingspan but weighs 200 pounds.  He needs to get stronger.  He has great length and athleticism but since his fundamentals are poor, for a 22 year old, he still has a long way to go.  He should be a second round pick and with a great player development department helping him every step of the way he may have a chance to stick with an NBA team.

 

Nigel Hayes, SR, PF, Wisconsin ~ Unlike Robinson, Hayes does have great fundamentals and is a heady player.  During the scrimmage Hayes pulled the chair out from under Omer Yurtseven while he was backing Hayes down.  Yurtseven fell on his butt and the scouts smriked.  I’m rooting for Hayes but his lack of explosion and foot speed were a problem.  He couldn’t beat anyone off the dribble and he couldn’t stay in front of who he defended with regularity.  In an actual NBA game the athleticism sky rockets.  Hayes might go undrafted but I think a team should take a chance on him in the second round.  

 

Sindarius Thornwell, SR, SG/SF, South Carolina ~ I compare Thornwell to Hayes.  Both are older players who have great fundamentals and a great understanding of how to play the game.  His slow foot speed is a problem.  Unless his feet were fully set to explode, he got beat off the dribble and couldn’t do much with the ball in his hands.  He’s about to turn 23 years old.  I think Thornwell and Hayes’ career is system dependent.

 

Semi Ojeleye, JR, SF/PF/C, SMU ~ Ojeleye was one of the players I was really looking forward to watching in the scrimmage.  He’s 6’7 with a 6’10 wingspan and super strong body.  He improved his 3pt shot to 42% and his FT% to 78% this past year.  His shooting and overall offensive game were very versatile.  And his ability to switch on defense made me think he could be a modern day small-ball 4.  Unfortunately, he had problems all combine long with length.  He couldn’t get his shot up when the defense collapsed on him and he didn’t do that great of a job contesting shots on defense.  His overall defense was a negative for me; not being in the right spots and losing his man.  I still like the thought of him being a point forward but he looked over matched during the combine.

 

Wesley Iwundu, SR, SG/SF, Kansas St ~ He’s 6’7 with a 7’1 wingspan, good not great athlete.  I really liked Iwundu before the combine since he was a great pick-and-roll player.  He averaged 3.5 assists per game last year and improved his 3pt shot to 38%.  I don’t know if it was he felt out of place but Iwundu looked lost.  He forced the issue when he did have the ball in his hands making mistakes galore.  There were a few times his pocket passing off screens were on display and boy did it look nice.  Iwundu played in a system that was tailored for him at Kansas St so maybe now he’s a fish out of water.  The question is can he adapt?  I still like the thought of him being a multi-positional wing.  Before the combine I was thinking first rounder but now he should be drafted in the second round.

 

  

In this part of my analysis I will go over mostly the measurements and the first 5-on-5 drill.  The link for the full list of measurements, brought to you by DraftExpress, is here.

 

• I previously talked about my anticipation about OG Anunoby’s wingspan in my last blog.  I heard from multiple websites, including DraftExpress, that his wingspan was 7’6.  It turns out that it was 7’2.3.  With his height at 6’8 and a freakish wingspan I think Anunoby should be drafted top 15 maybe even top 10.  His knee is still a question mark and his offensive game is a work in progress.  But he’s long, athletic, versatile and defensive minded, that’s a good start at becoming a fantastic two-way player.  

 

• Justin Jackson from Maryland (not North Carolina) had great measurables.  He was 6’7 with a 7’3 wingspan.  He hasn’t hired an agent yet since he’s lacking any discernible skills.  I think he should return to school for another year and develop a skill set that teams can point their finger at as an upside.  His body type is his only upside now but another year at Maryland and he should be in the first round discussion next draft.

 

• Luke Kennard measured in at 6’5.5 with a 6’5.3 wingspan.  I’m a Kennard skeptic.  His short arms and small hands for his size have something to do with it but his poor defensive fundamentals, lack of lateral quickness, no explosion and limited handles are the basis behind my skepticism.  He really needs to add a lot of offensive skills to his repertoire if he wants to stick with a team.  A lot of mocks have him going first round.  I just don’t see it.

 

• As far as “Bigs” are concerned Ike Anigbogu (6’10 with 7’6 WS), Jonathan Jeanne (7’2 with 7’6.5 WS), Justin Patton (6’11 with 7’3 WS), Thomas Bryant (6’11 with 7’6 WS) and Jarrett Allen (6’10 with 7’5 WS) were the players I had the biggest take aways with.  Being tall, long and mobile is super important for the game today so even though all these “Bigs” need to work on their skills having tremendous length is a great start.

 

• Players who I was disappointed in their measurements were: John Collins (6’10 with 6’11 WS). Collins is a good athlete and has good ball skills but if he wants to be a starting center he’s going to have to bulk up to create separation otherwise he’ll struggle getting his shot off.  Zach Collins (7’ with 7’1 WS).  There’s nothing terrible about Zach Collins’ measurements, I just wish he had better length in comparison with his height since NBA length is viscous at the rim.  Semi Ojeleye (6’7 with 6’10 WS).  Semi doesn’t have the speed or quickness to be a small forward so NBA teams, I think, will look at him like a power forward.  He has ball skills and shooting to be a solid swing forward in the NBA today.  His lack of length could be an issue however when it comes to rebounding and defense.

 

• Players who I was pleasantly surprised from: Wesley Iwundu (6’7 with 7’1 WS).  He has good passing skills for a wing; now, he has the potential to be a coveted point forward who can play multiple positions on defense.  Devin Robinson (6’8 with 7’1 WS).  He’s pretty frail.  He needs to add strength but put him in the 3-and-D wing camp.  Davon Reed (6’5.5 with 7’ WS).  That’s an awesome measurement for his height, he might need to spend a couple of years in the d-league but he has upside.  Hamidou Diallo (6’5 with 6’11 WS).  Good day for Diallo.  He didn’t take part in the 5-on-5 drills but his size and athleticism are turning some heads at the combine.  I think he should stay at Kentucky but I wouldn’t blame him if he leaves.  Donovan Mitchell (6’3 with 6’10 WS).  That’s just a wow measurement.  I rarely see guys with that height be that long.  He just went from late first round pick to possible lottery selection.  

 

…

 

I’m going to finish off by going over the first 5-on-5 scrimmage.  There are two twenty minute halves and there were ten players to a team.  I was thoroughly disappointed with this game.  There was no standout performance, no eye popping player, no Pascal Siakam.  Last year Siakam was eye popping.  He made hustle plays, set great screens, dove hard to the rim, had soft hands, finished and play defense 1 thru 5.  I understand this is just one 40 minute game with mostly second round talent; in the scheme of things it’s just a blip on the radar .  Watching game tape is way more creditable anyways.  But these scrimmages can make or break a lot of these players careers.  It’s actually very important even though it might seem ancillary.  Scouts and GMs get a glimpse into what players would be like in a pro-style offense.  They take it very seriously.

 

With that said there were a few players who had solid performances.  Rawle Alkins, SG/SF, freshmen from Arizona was assertive all game long while the same can’t be said about most players at this scrimmage.  He made great drives, shot well and was strong on defense.  He has a strong frame so he really bullied a lot of players around.  

 

Jordan Bell, PF/C, junior from Oregon was probably my lone standout.  He was everywhere on defense, switching, rotating, communicating, moving in unison with his assignments, shrinking the gaps; he had by far the most energy on the floor.  He needs to improve his jump shot and time his dives better but he was setting strong screens which not many players did this scrimmage.  He moved without the ball and became a nice safety valve on offense.  

 

Sindarius Thornwell, SG/SF, senior from South Carolina was a mixed bag.  He really solidified his second round projection.  At times he was moving well on defense, sticking to the players hip coming off screens, then other times he get completely blown by with his slow feet.  He’s a heady basketball player but his lack of athleticism really showed here.  Sometimes he couldn’t stay in front of the ball handler then sometimes he pump-fake and get to the rim with ease.

 

Svi Mykhailiuk, SG, junior from Kansas was probably the best shooter.  Monte Morris, PG, senior from Iowa State was probably the most vocal player.  He looked like a backup PG for sure.  Devin Robinson, SF/PF, junior from Florida.  I think he should return for his senior year.  He needs to add strength and fine tune his handle.  Melo Trimble, PG, senior from Maryland isn’t a NBA player.  Moritz Wagner, PF/C, sophomore from Michigan should return to school for another year but he definitely showed his skills on offense.  Jon Jeanne, C, France, he’s weak as hell.  He got pushed around all game long, committed too many fouls but has such length and ball skills some team might draft and stash him.  

 

This first scrimmage was a let down.  Hopefully the next 5-on-5 drill and Friday’s drills are more competitive.  It feels like no one wants to step on each others toes, no one is communicating and the energy level was dead for most the game.  The Gray team had a spurt of energy in the second half, that was it.  I’ll continue this with more of my analysis later.