3 Ball...GOT IT
#CediSZN
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Ah, I'm thinking of Culver, Norvell, and Alexander-Walker as likely PGs at the next level, so was baffled that you said you had Morant #1
For now, I'm thinking of Morant as pretty similar to Ponds. Boom-or-bust guards who could be scoring machines or duds at the next level, interesting if I have a pick in the 20's and there's no one else with any decent upside. I'll start to warm up to Morant if he shows more consistency...I think the mainstream has jumped the gun going from completely ignoring him to overrating him a bit.
I'd probably have Culver and Norvell 1a/1b, Garland, Jones, and Alexander-Walker 2a/2b/2c, and then a heap of players including Morant, the other guys you mentioned, Horton-Tucker, Nembhard, and maybe a couple others. Obviously that third tier will start to take a more definite shape after another month or so of basketball.
Yeah there could be a lot of solid PGs in the second round if they come out. I'm not as high on Norvell just because of his shot selection, but I'd still have to watch him more closely to rank him.
Culver looks similar to me on the defensive end, minus the wow athletic plays Morant has. He's not super engaged, seems like he should be a more willing defender but he lacks motor to a degree and for his size and length, his box score output is just ok (similar to Morant last year). To clarify more, he seems to float a lot on defense.....lose his man and miss close outs or not be close enough to challenge shots.
I don't know if I would call him a plodder but he looks like a more average athlete. He's also more of a straight line driver who uses his length to score over smaller college players. I'd imagine most project him as a more of a spot up player at the NBA level. 96% of his made 3's last year were assisted. Really small split this year but it looks like a few more self created opportunities.
I like his size but why do you project him as a PG? He doesn't seem to have the dribble creativity necessary to play that spot in the NBA. I like him a lot as a SG, a lot less as a PG.
I admittedly have not watched Norvell or Alexander-Walker at all, so can't really provide anything useful for comparisons sake.
Yeah Culver's not a PG. He's definitely taller than his listed 6'5" too. How much of him have you watched this year? Cus I actually would consider him a plus defender. I really like him on the ball too... gets around screens well and quick laterally.
Also he's hit a fair number of jumpers off the dribble this year. Would expect that the % assisted number is hugely affected by the situation he was in. Was next to one of the best PGs in the country. Zhaire and Zach Smith were also there. This year he's their primary creator and the three games I've watched he's had stretches where he completely takes over the game. He's in an ideal role right now... Texas Tech runs a fair bit of pick and roll and he's still used off ball a fair amount.
I'd say his athleticism is one of his major weaknesses for sure. Really lacks pop around the rim. He has a solid first step though, and like you mentioned he uses his size really well on drives to the hoop.
He's a top 10 guy for me easily.