Sunday, April 7, 2013

Portsmouth Invitational Team Previews - Cherry Bekaert

Cherry Bekaert

PF Kyle Barone (Idaho) - Not a good athlete. Lacks strength and explosiveness. Good coordination. Has a variety of moves in the post. Uses pump fakes and hesitations. Good face up game. Can put the ball on the floor. Unselfish. Pick and pop potential. Takes himself out of position going for rebounds. Gets tip-ins off offensive rebounds. Unselfish. Skilled. Plays at his own pace. Can hit from 18 feet. Needs to finish stronger and play with more of an edge. Able to hit jump hooks with either hand, but he's better with his right.

PF Devin Booker (Clemson) - Booker is a tough player who held this years Clemson team together. Liked his brother Trevor who is in the NBA, Devin is undersized but very stronger and does a great job of using his body in the paint. He loves to bang inside, rebound, and he gets more than half of his offense from around the rim. He is able to knock down face up jumpers, but is not the shooter or skill player that Trevor Booker was. He's a poor free throw shooter and has limited range. Booker has improved every year.

CG Durand Scott (Miami) - Scott is an athletic combo guard with a slashers mentality. He doesn't have much trouble getting inside, but often struggles to finish because of the high degree of difficulty shots he takes. He has a tendency to overdribble and doesn't do a good job of finding teammates on his drives, which often gets him in trouble in the lane. He has never been a great shooter, but has improved recently and is able to hit tough shots off the dribble. Scott has potential to be a good defender and showed great intensity in the role of defensive stopper this year for Miami. He took a backseat to Shane Larkin without any complaining.

PG Jordan Hulls (Indiana) - Hulls is an Indiana kid who looks like he is straight out of Hoosiers. He has a reputation for being both extremely tough and a very good shooter. Hulls battled a shoulder injury late in the year that hampered his performance and struggled mightily against the length of Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament. He rarely gets in the lane and creates for teammates, but he is a steady ball handler who is able to lead a team.

PF Murphy Holloway (Ole Miss) - Holloway is a bruising undersized power forward who gets off doing the dirty work inside for guys like Marshall Henderson. He does a great job getting offensive rebounds and is an outstanding finisher among bigs. He lacks much in terms of polish or offensive skills and gets by more with his strength and explosiveness. Holloway has an outstanding motor and runs the court very hard in transition - where he throws down some thunderous dunks.

SF EJ Singler (Oregon) - Another player who has a brother in the NBA, Singler is the brother of Kyle Singler and plays with the same toughness and understanding of the game. He generally operates in the mid-range area, where he is able to create jumpers in post up or isolation situations. He does a good job using his body and is also a solid passer out of these situations. He is able to hit mid-range jumpers consistently, but has yet to become a deadly shooter from outside - although he is solid. Singler is an underwhelming athlete who gets by on defense thanks to his toughness and hoops IQ. He was part of a balanced Oregon Ducks team and contributed in just about every area. He's very much a poor man's version of his brother.

PG Anthony Marshall (UNLV) - Marshall has learned the point guard position on the fly at UNLV this year after being more of a scoring guard in previous seasons. He has good size at 6'3 for the position and is able to use it well to carve out space and be crafty with the ball. He shows good potential in the pick and roll game and is a good passer despite not being a natural point guard. Marshall loves to get inside and is a good finisher, but struggles from the FT line. He has improved his range, but still is far from a consistent shooter. Marshall isn't the quickest or most explosive player, but he does a great job handling the ball and getting to where he wants to on the court. He is able to play at different speeds and does a good job pushing the ball in transition.

G/F Elston Turner (Texas A&M) - Originally just a spot up shooter and defender, Turner transferred from Washington to Texas A&M where he became the focal point of the offense. Turner is still at his best coming around screens and shooting from deep, but he is now comfortable off the dribble as well - at least enough to keep defenses honest. He has added a odd looking floater that has helped him score on plays outside of his jumper, but he doesn't attack the hoop with intent of getting to the rim and rarely does actually get all the way there. He's a smart player offensively and is capable of getting hot and carry his team - as seen when he dropped 40 against Kentucky. The son of former NBA player and coach bearing the same name, Turner has  been well-schooled on the game and certainly has the background to potentially make it in the NBA.

Most likely to get drafted?

Either Durand Scott or Anthony Marshall, although neither are anywhere near locks. 50/50 shots at best. A good PIT will obviously help. Both will be looked at closely to see how they defend and if they can transition to full time point guards.

Summer League bodies?

Elston Turner has connections already in the league and should secure a spot to show what he can do. But he is also probably the most likely of the group (besides the aforementioned Scott and Marshall) to potentially find a role in the NBA. Murphy Holloway is also deserving of an extra look.

Overseas Players?

EJ Singler, Jordan Hulls, Devin Booker, and Kyle Barone are all highly unlikely to make it in the NBA. The good thing for all 4 is they have shown that they are tough, coachable, and have good character. There will be a spot for them in Europe or elsewhere for them to begin their pro careers. Singler's brother already showed a willingness to play in Europe and had great success so his reputation could help EJ secure a good home.

No comments:

Post a Comment