NBA Comparison: Jason Richardson

Strengths: 6’7 wing with tremendous size, maturity, explosiveness and scoring skills that should help him make a quick transition to the next level … Elite spot-up shooter who can flourish in a lesser role early in his career before making strides to stardom later on … Shows some ability to utilize a floater … Aggressive slasher with a quick burst and powerful first step … Finishes with good strength and tremendous body control … Rim punisher who can bring the house down with athletic and pulverizing poster dunks (ie dunk vs TCU) … Plays with a ton of energy off the ball on offense with great cuts … Extremely athletic wing with good size for a scorer and long enough arms to be disruptive when he is locked in defensively … Sensational athlete who can elevate with anyone and really run in transition … Everyone on Arizona knows how to cut, but his change of direction is elite and he can create a lot of separation for himself in this department … Excellent form on his shot, with crisp mechanics and a consistent form … Incredible shooting range and big-shot maker with a ton of confidence (also see TCU game) … Good feel for his mid-range jumper and also makes decent reads in pick-and-roll action at the free-throw line … High energy offensive player who can crash the offensive glass with an NBA frame and plenty of upside at just 19-years-old until June … Clutch. High intangibles guy who really elevates his play in big situations … Very determined, hard working player as his immense improvement illustrates … Despite some lapses defensively, shows a ton of upside as a defender due to his athleticism and determination …

Weaknesses: The biggest hurdle for Mathurin at this point is his inability to create offense consistently off the dribble … Defensive effort and intensity is  inconsistent … Still growing and learning the nuances of playing on the wing …  Doesn’t always work hard on box outs and can surrender a ton of offensive rebounds … Could struggle with high energy offensive players as most of his effort comes on the offensive end … Gets lost at times on the defensive end due to ball-watching and can get bullied when he does engage on box outs … Needs to show more energy in transition defense … Free-throw percentage took a dip from 84% to 76% but his volume went up and his mechanics are still sound … Lateral quickness and anticipation is a step behind on defense with smaller guards able to blow past him … Self-creation will need some time to develop, but he has the tools and potential to make this a strength in a few years time … Doesn’t possess the biggest wingspan, but appears to have solid length, with a wingspan likely a few (2-3) inches longer than his height …

Outlook: The latest of foreign stars to excel with Coach Tommy Lloyd … Made a very wise choice to return for his sophomore season and develop under the new coaching staff and it should pay huge dividends to his career as an NBA player … He made incredible strides being one of the most improved players in the country along with Keegan Murray … Very high ceiling, is one of a small handful of players with an outside chance to be the best player to come out of this draft … Figures to be drafted in the 4-8 range on draft night …

Notes: Consensus Second Team All-American as a Sophomore … Pac-12 Player of the Year and Most Outstanding Player in Pac-12 Tournament … Wooden Award All-American … Bronze medalist for Canada’s U19 Team in 2021 FIBA World Cup … Attended NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City … Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada…

Derek Bast 5/11/22

Notes: Measured: 6’4.5” barefoot, 6’6.0” in shoes, 8’8.0” standing reach, 204.6 lbs, 6’9.0” wingspan at the 2022 NBA Draft Combine …