Strengths:
– Physique – has trimmed down considerably, legit 6-11 and 270.
– Post play: Establishing position, footwork, power moves… Along the same lines, clears space for teammates to operate simply by being involved or running the floor.
– Ability to run the offense through him, as he’s an excellent passer out of the post and can be utilized effectively in the pick and roll. Should continue to get better in P&R situations.
– Runs the floor harder, more consistently and looking for basketball; big target.
– Plays with high motor, passion to win.
– Quick explosion to rim – very, very quick off his feet for his size; marked improvement from last year.
– Right-handed jump hook.
– Soft touch around hoop.
– Use of spin moves/pump-fakes throws defenders off-balance.
– Alters shots with size without fouling – utilizes length in paint to change shots.
– Solid form, slow release on jumper, but it goes in. Free throw and short corners are bread-and-butter jumpers.
Areas to improve:
– Dribbling in traffic; needs to be more decisive with bounces in the paint.
– Trying to finish with his right hand on left side / through contact. Got blocked multiple times because of this, one time finished because of his size. Needs to use left even more consistently.
– Closing out defensively on quicker players.
– Hedging on pick-and-roll.
– Will need to speed his shot up slightly, will come with decisiveness.
– Develop post game even further to include more counter moves.
– Rebounding out of his area.
For your viewing pleasure.
Jeremy Bauman is an aspiring scout and shooting coach who writes columns and blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter.