NBA Comparison: Matthew Dellavedova

Strengths: Combo guard with pure shooting stroke and some intangibles to help make up for lack of ideal physical attributes … Head strong combo guard with excellent shooting ability and polished skills … Very good spot up shooter with great range and touch … Lefty has an excellent shooting stroke and has developed into a knock down outside shooter … Considered more of a shooting guard by most scouts, however he has the vision and passing skills to play the point, his speed may make it difficult to be more than a rotational lead guard … Creative passer … Great vision and anticipation … Sees the floor well and can zip half long passes on a dime effortlessly, setting up teammates for easy buckets … Has the handle and passing of a lead guard, just missing the quickness … Mature, intelligent kid who shined after transferring into the big fish in small pond dynamic at Santa Clara … 8.8 rebounds is a huge number of a guard, showing his willingness to play physical and ability to track down rebounds … A near 44% three point shooter (2.5 makes per game) as a sophomore, illustrating his elite shooting ability … Excellent ball handler. Crafty with use of cross overs and behind the back dribbles, and utilizes a step back to create space on pulls ups well … Utilizes the float game well … has a patented Euro step to extend drives … Crafty at using pump fakes and hesitation moves to get defenders off balance … Good at driving and dishing … Knows how to back down smaller opponents and use back to the basket post moves to score … Has solid upside if he lands in the right situation and his speed deficiencies are overcome/masked … Fun to watch, excellent feel for the game …

Weaknesses: Not the fastest or most athletic guard, and does not have the “look” of an NBA athlete ..Lacks a great first step so defenders can overplay him and jam his shot openings …  Measured a surprising 39 inch max vertical, however he doesn’t necessarily play overly athletic … Struggled at Illinois to crack the rotation as a freshman before transferring to Santa Clara where he had a breakout sophomore season … Detractors will point to the inability to play in a big conference and question whether competition level is a factor … Lack of speed tougher to overcome at the guard positions … his shot is pure, but takes a little while to get off which may make a difference efficiency wise with NBA athletes closing out on him … Not overly strong or physical to help make up for speed shortcomings … Despite being 6’3.75″ barefoot, he lacks length with just a 6′ 5.5” wingspan and only a 8′ 0.5” standing reach, far below standard for an NBA shooting guard … Some questions regarding whether he can be a complimentary player and be a star in his role of a back up at next level … Getting open looks could be a challenge against quicker NBA defenders … Despite being a pure shooter, shot below 80% from the FT line over his two college seasons … Some positional question marks as it’s unclear how well he can operate off the ball and how much value he brings if he’s not able to be a primary ball handler l …

Notes: Measured 6′ 3.75” barefoot, 8′ 0.5” standing reach, 203.8 lbs and a 6′ 5.5” wingspan and a 31.5 inch standing vertical and a 39′ inch max vertical at the 2023 NBA Draft Combine …

Aran Smith 6/15/23