NBA Comparison: Marco Belinelli

Strengths:  Long, rangy player who appears to have excellent upside as a shooting specialist … High level outside shooter, particularly catch and shoot. Three point shot dipped in sophomore season (34.2%),but remains a very intriguing outside shooter having hit 41% as a freshman and shot 89% from the FT line this season … Tremendous form on his shot, balance, follow through and quick release … With solid length, he’s able to get his shot off over defenders without much space … While he’s only 6’4 in shoes, he has good length with a 6’7.5 wingspan and 8’5 standing reach … Frame appears that he should be able to add weight … Solid anticipation playing the passing lanes on steals … Has sneaky athleticism when he’s given a lane to the basket … His ability to shoot, combined with his length and fluidity make him intriguing … Did a solid job of cutting down on turnovers in sophomore year 1.7A/1.2TO … Solid defender and should improve as he adds strength …

Weaknesses: Struggled from three as a sophomore, as previously mentioned … Struggled when forced to create his own offense, especially against athletic and strong defenders … Shot selection brough his efficiency down some, but perhaps he was asked to do too much, and create shots, even when teams when focusing their defenses around him … At 170 lbs, lacks strength to finish through contact and can easily be outmuscled on defense and around the basket … Ability to drive and finish or make plays in the paint is severely hampered by his lack of strength … Lacks great leaping ability and explosiveness to finish through contact, though added core strength could improve his leaping … Not the greatest passer, lacks great court vision and generally looks to score when he gets the ball, not create baskets for teammates … Legs are too weak to finish off drives at times, especially when he runs into contact … May take some time to fill out his body and adjust to the NBA game …

Overall: A pure shooter which gives him solid intrigue in today’s NBA … Could challenge for a spot in the late first … Averaged a solid 16.9 ppg at Arkansas in his sophomore year, after a solid breakout frehman season in which he averaged 13.9 ppg  … 3.45 made threes per game over his career … Turned 21 in July, so obviously his body needs work but should be able to add 15-20 lbs over the next couple seasons and be stronger to finish plays and handle contact … Played through an injury that limited his effectiveness in sophomore year …

Notes: Measured: 6’3.00” barefoot, 6’4.50” in shoes, 8’5.00” standing reach, 170.4 lbs, 6’7.50” wingspan at the 2020 NBA Combine … Native of Fort Smith, Arkansas … Credits his Dad for his excellent shooting ability …

Aran Smith 11/14/20