We’d like to first thank our friends at OregonLive.com
for sharing their video and photos with us. Please check out the link at bottom
for more coverage and footage from the tournament.
John Wall 6-4 182 PG Word of God (Raleigh, NC)
John Wall | |
Wall had the opportunity to solidify himself as the top prospect
in his class, but he did not play up to his ability and he also showed some glaring
weaknesses in his game. Athletically, there is no doubt that he has more than
enough tools, but fundamentally he is lacking in some aspects of his game. He
thrives in an up tempo, freewheeling game where he is able to go one-on-one and
either finish at the hoop or dish to an open teammate. His deficiencies are most
evident in the half court, when the game slows down and he is forced to make decisions.
People back off of him and dare him to shoot, which cuts down but his passing
and driving angles. He faced a lot of zone on the weekend and at times he completely
disappeared…if he’s not getting in the lane, his effectiveness is minimized. His
shooting touch from the outside has been brought up previously, but also a bit
worrisome is his touch around the hoop; if he is not dunking the ball, he has
problems finishing layups and teardrops over defenders. Finally, on the defensive
end, he needs to change his mentality and fully commit to shutting down his defender,
because he is more than capable of doing it. Even with all of these things said,
the physical and athletic package that Wall boasts is extraordinary and there
is no reason to think that he cannot fix some things and become the player he
is capable of being. Video
footage
John Henson 6-10 185 PF Round Rock
(Round Rock, TX) *UNC
At this point he is still a very raw player, but one that shows a ton of potential.
He is extremely long, but to go with that he has incredible agility and good athleticism.
He showed his ability to block shots throughout the tournament and even more impressive
were some of the rebounds that he snatched at the top of the square. As a scorer
he is able to do a bit of everything, including hit the outside shot, shoot a
mini-hook from the post and even put the ball on the floor and attack. Yet, he
still lacks a “go to” aspect to his offensive arsenal and is more of a tweener
simply as a result of that. He needs to expand and refine his game, add some more
moves with his back to the basket, fine tune his mid-range shot and work on his
handle, but he shows all the signs of becoming a very good player.
Avery Bradley 6-3 180 SG Bellarmine
Prep (Tacoma, WA)
From the tournament alone, he showed that he is the most gifted scorer of the
bunch. His outside shot is a thing of beauty, as he is able to elevate over any
defender and shoot a smooth high release shot at an incredible percentage. He
has nice quickness and effective moves off the dribble that allow him to get into
the lane where he can either throw it down in traffic or finish with a silky smooth
mid-range pullup. He is very deceiving as an athlete because he gets off the ground
so fast and he can get up very high, leaving the unexpecting defenders at his
mercy. Defensively, he also shows a lot of good things as he is willing to put
in the work to stop his man almost every time out. As a prospect for the NBA,
because of his size, Bradley will always have to hear the questions about his
true position. While he is definitely not a PG, it doesn’t really mean all that
much…he is a “player” and he gets the job done every time he steps out. Bradley
also had the dunk
of the tournament which set off a mini-melee 10 seconds later after the player
he dunked on took exception.
DeMarcus Cousins 6-10 250 PF
Erwin (Birmingham, AL) *UAB
 DeMarcus Cousins | |
He showed some very promising things along the way, but at
the same time there are some major concerns. He is extremely long and strong,
and he is not shy about throwing people around. His touch in the lane is surprisingly
soft, many times he will make shots that have no business going in, but when he
does it consistently, it is easy to realize that it’s part of his game. The worrisome
aspects are the fact that he is very limited athletically and he seems to have
a very poor motor. He gets winded fast and at times is unconcerned about playing
both ends of the floor, instead just lingering around the half court line waiting
for the action to come his way. At this point he relies on his body to get him
buckets, but he has not showed many actual moves with his back to the basket.
Where he impressed was with his ability to shoot from long range and even handling
the ball in the open court with confidence. Even with his shortcomings, he is
still a very intriguing prospect because there aren’t many players with his size
and wingspan out there.
Jordan Hamilton 6-7 208 SG Dorsey
(Los Angeles, CA)
Hamilton had a very strong tournament showing the vast amount of talents that
he possesses. He played pretty much every position between 1&4, and he was
a factor at all of them. He has a great body and knows how to use it to create
space both offensively and when going for rebounds. Once he gets a rebound, he
is very good at pushing the tempo in transition and either getting to the hoop
or finding teammates with an uncanny passing ability. His shot is a bit awkward
as he releases it off of his shoulder, but his stroke is very smooth and one cannot
argue with the results. At this point, he is able to effectively play 4 positions,
but eventually he will become a 2 or 3, and the one concern is the fact that his
lateral footspeed isn’t the greatest, so he may have some trouble guarding on
the wing at the next level, but he has many other tools which should allow him
to make up for it.
Milton Jennings 6-9 200 PF Pinewood
(Summerville, SC) *Clemson
He is one of the biggest mysteries that was on display this week. He has the body,
the athleticism and even flashes of brilliant skills that make you think he is
definitely one of the top prospects. Then he will go out and make some very questionable
plays, or he will simply disappear leaving you think that he just doesn’t have
it. He can take people off the dribble, shoot it from deep, play with his back
to the basket, all at a very nice 6’9. Unfortunately, these all come very few
and far between. At this point he is all potential and his game is far behind
his physical set…He is definitely a guy to keep an eye on, as he can possibly
become the next best thing, or the next big bust.
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 180 PG Bellarmine
Prep (Tacoma, WA)
Seeing Gaddy play a number of times over the last few weeks, it becomes clear
the player that he is and the player that he isn’t. Even though he was named the
Co-MVP, he was far less impressive than his fellow running mate Bradley. At his
point Gaddy is a guy that needs a system around him in order to thrive…He needs
to have a set, where he comes off the screen and roll game and finds his different
options. That is a bright spot, but only for the college level… But if you look
at his ability to break people down off the dribble and get into the lane and
create for himself or his teammates, that, he doesn’t have. He lacks the quickness
and explosiveness that many other guys at his position have and long term, it
will be a big issue for him. His jump shot is fundamental, but the release is
a bit on the slow side the results are on the inconsistent side. He is a player
that could definitely use all the time he has in college to refine his game and
maybe then he will have some opportunities for the next level. Gaddy
and Bradley footage
 Royce White | |
Royce White 6-7
210 SF Hopkins (Hopkins, MN) *Minnesota
He is more of a 4/3 right now, but he has the size, the strength and enough game
where he can eventually slide over to the wing permanently. He can comfortably
step out beyond the arc and either stroke the long jumper, or take his defender
to the hoop with a variety of moves. He has a very nice and effective hop step
when he gets into the lane and with his size it becomes that much more difficult
to defend. At this point he excels as a utility sort of guy, where he can just
pick his spots, but to become that elite player, he will need to take a bigger
part and take more responsibility upon himself.
Daniel Orton 6-10 260 PF Bishop Mcguinness
Oklahoma City, OK)
An overall major disappointment, his three game averages were 5.6 points and 5.3
rebounds, for a guy who did not have all that much competition sizewise in the
post, it was a definite let down. In all fairness he does have a big knee-brace
and it seems like his mobility is affected, but he just did not show a promising
skillset.
Tommy Mason-Griffin 5-10 180
PG Madison (Houston, TX) *Oklahoma
He had a very good week and showed some nice things playing the lead guard position.
He is very good off the dribble, where he has a variety of moves to create separation
or to get by people. His vision and decision making are both solid and even his
outside shot is effective where his defender has to close the gap on him, which
allows for good penetration lanes. He is undersized at 5-10 and doesn’t have blazing
speed or quickness, but he does have enough strength and savvy where can still
be effective.
2010
 Harrison Barnes | |
Harrison Barnes
6-6 195 SF Ames Senior (Ames, IA)
Barnes may have done enough this week to play himself into the very top of a somewhat
shallow ’10 class. He is an extremely smooth player who has a natural feel for
the game allowing him to be in the right place at the right time on a majority
of possessions. At 6’6 and sporting a very nice wingspan, he has more than enough
size to be a legitimate 2 guard and his athleticism easily puts him over the top.
He is still young, and as a result he makes some questionable decisions and his
ball handling also gets a little sloppy under pressure or when he tries to push
it in transition. But these are all parts of the growing process and once all
the pieces come together, Barnes could be a special talent.
Roscoe Smith 6-7 180 SF Walbrook (Baltimore,
MD)
He pretty much has all the physical tools that go into making a superstar wing
player. He is about 6’7, very long, athletic, agile, smooth, he can handle it,
he has a smooth shot that he is more than capable of converting consistently.
But the question remains, can he put all of these things together and can he perform
on a consistent basis? As was evident in this tournament, he sometimes not only
takes possessions off, but entire games. For a young player, that may not be the
biggest problem, but until he does become a more focused player, he will only
be considered a prospect and not an actual talent.
Reggie Bullock 6-5 180 SG Kinston
(Kinston, NC) *North Carolina
Bullock is in a similar place that Smith is in, he has a more defined body but
he is a bit shorter and hasn’t shown the same explosiveness. His game is pretty
versatile as he can attack off the dribble, shoot the jumper or finish at the
rim. He is still raw and makes some major mistakes, but as a young prospect he
shows a lot of potential and if he keeps working he could become a player to watch
for a long time.
Jeremy Tyler 6-9 235 PF Senior (San
Diego, CA)
He had an up and down tournament, but had his best game in the last outing. For
a player his size, he moves very well, is extremely agile and most importantly
has good hands. He has focused his game solely on the low post, which may not
be the best idea as he is a bit undersized for a PF at about 6’8. The main issue
with Tyler still remains his temper, just when it looked like he toned it down,
he reminded us of his old self by flaring up and getting a technical foul.
DeShaun Thomas 6-7 210 SF (Fort
Wayne, IN) *Ohio State
Thomas played well all tournament long, he was aggressive and assertive from the
beginning and didn’t let up until the end. His game is most effective when he
can catch it in the midrange area, face up, and then take his defender to the
hoop. He is not the most athletic player, but he has good strength and knows how
to use his body to shield the ball. As a prospect he is somewhat limited because
he does not have many perimeter skills; his shot is only decent, his ability to
take people off the dribble is also not great. He is essentially a 6’5 PF, who
is not a great athlete, but he is still young and has some time to make changes
to his game.
Internationals
Nikola Markovic
The versatile Markovic showed a lot of nice things in the three games that he
played. He is a 3/4 as he is able to consistently hit outside shots from beyond
the arc, he can also handle the ball in the open court, take his defender to the
hoop and he also plays with some physicality on the block. He looks like a good
European in the making, but to make himself a real prospect for the NBA he will
have to eventually make the transition to the wing permanently and the fact is
he is not all that quick or explosive, it will be very difficult for him. Overall,
he is a very smart and skilled player who should have a long career wherever he
ends up.
Alwayne Bigby
The Canadian wing player was among the most consistent players at the tournament.
Over three games he posted averages of 16.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists
and 2.3 steals in just 23.4 minutes per game (Team Canada had a very deep and
talented squad). Bigby is an athletic and strong 2/3 who can do a bit of everything,
he is more than capable of hitting from long range and he is also very aggressive
taking the ball to the hoop. He has a nicely developed body and he knows how to
use it, either by bodying defenders to create space off the dribble, or by shielding
the ball when he is finishing at the rim. Improving his handles and continuing
to gain more consistency on his jumpshot will be key aspects that will help make
him a more complete player.
Mindaugas Kuzminskas
The Lithuanian is a very crafty player and a difficult matchup because of his
size and ability to score from the perimeter. He is not the quickest guy, but
he has nice handles and utilizes an array of jabs, pump-fakes and hesitation moves
to get his defender out of position and off balance. He can also hit from deep
as he has a very smooth and reliable jumpshot. He is somewhat of a stereotypical
European player, as he prefers the finesse game and shies away from contact, and
he is also not very interested in playing on the defensive end. Altogether, he
is a very good player who will have a nice future, but it probably will not be
in the NBA.
Corey Joseph
The young point guard was very impressive, not only showing some nice skills but
also poise and maturity. He has a great feel for the game and as a result he makes
great decisions; whether finding open teammates or scoring the ball himself. He
is about 6’2, so he has good size for the position, he can shoot from the outside
and he is more than capable to getting the ball to the right spots. He doesn’t
have blazing speed or quickness, but his understanding of the game and crafty
moves still allow him to get the job done. Definitely a player to keep an eye
on in the future.
All photos/videos courtesy: Patrick Greenfield / OregonLive.com
I may…
have a better J than Ricky Rubio so Gaddy still has a chance