Scouting Report: Durand Scott

Durand Scott has always been a polarizing prospect. Possessing solid athleticism and size to go along with a good skillset, Scott certainly looks the part of a pro. In high school, he beat out Lance Stephenson for the NYC high school player of the year - and it just so happens that Stephenson is one of the most comparable current NBA players to the senior guard.

Scott proved ready for college by averaging double digits his first season at Miami and getting named to the All-ACC Freshman team. Unlike Stephenson, Scott chose to stay in school and work on his game. And here we are, three years after his freshman season ended, with much of the same things to be said about Scott that could have been said then. He's in between positions on both offense and defense and hasn't shown much improvement. He's a good player, but does he make his teammates better? Can he play PG? Will he ever learn how to shoot?

One thing to take note of this year, that is different from prior years, is that he is playing for a winning team. In his freshman year, the Hurricanes went 4-12 in ACC play. Since then, they have won at least two more conference games than the year before - culminating in the ACC regular season title this season. So while Scott hasn't turned into a superstar that has led this team from the bottom - he has seen an increase in the talent around him. Among the notable players was Shane Larkin, who has officially become the face of Miami's basketball team and primary ball handler.

Larkin leads the team in both points and assists. Scott actually is third on the team in scoring, despite leading the team in the category last year and placing second the year before. One positive thing you can say about this situation is the way that Scott has handle it. There has been no sign of jealousy or discontent from the senior as he watches Larkin get all the attention. Not only has Scott lost the leading role on the team, but he has also had his point guard duties stripped from him - giving little chance at a last ditch effort to prove to NBA teams that he is a point guard.

By now though, nobody expects Scott to be an effective NBA point guard. What this season may prove to teams though is, 1) Scott is a team player who puts winning first and 2) Scott is able to play without the ball in his hands.

And furthermore, the Hurricanes have the potential to advance deep in the NCAA Tournament and even win the title, which would be great for Scott's draft stock. Even for a senior, exposure and ending your career on a high note will help your stock and leave a good final impression on decision makers minds.

In terms of Scott's playing style, he is very much a combo guard on offense that is wired to score. He has a solid frame and stands about 6'4'' tall with good length and a solid build. Scott is able to get into the lane with long strides, solid hesitation moves, and an expanding feel of how to change speeds.

His playmaking ability hasn't really advanced much since when he was labeled as a combo guard coming out of high school. He still has a tendency to dribble with his head down and pound the ball into the floor while wasting seconds on the shotclock. Scott has ability to breakdown the defense as a drive and kick guy, and does find teammates through this way from time to time, but he more often gets himself in trouble when facing help defense.

Scott is only an average finisher for a guy with this creativity and athleticism around the rim. According to hoop-math.com, he shot just 57% on shots around the rim - the lowest among all Miami regulars. This has a lot to do with his ability to deal with help defenders. For one, he has tunnel vision driving to the lane and doesn't kick it out enough when defenders begin to close in - creating a tough shot for himself. In addition, Scott shies away from contact and prefers to use acrobatics to avoid defenders and convert spectacular, yet low percentage, finishes. Scott can be a very flashy finisher in the lane, but he needs to focus more on getting to the line and finishing through contact. His frame can handle some added bulk.

Scott also would do himself good to improve his free throw shooting, which perhaps is one reason he does try to avoid contact. Scott is shooting just 72% this year at the line. Both his FT% and FTA have fallen each of the past two years as he has been asked to do less playmaking due to the presence of Shane Larkin.

In terms of any revelations of playing without the ball, Scott has done an adequate job spacing the floor and making hustle plays. But he still doesn't have much skill in moving without the basketball and his shooting ability from 3-pt range leaves a lot to be desired. Scott will hit some of the toughest jumpers possible, but fails to hit any kind of jumper with regularity. On a positive note, his mid-range game has potential to be a strength of his and he's had good success both creating and making jumpers from inside the arc.

Overall, Scott is a guy who can carry an offense at times, but is far too inconsistent to be a primary scorer. He doesn't have the size or shooting ability as a shooting guard and lacks the feel for the game to play point guard. He's a guy in between positions on offense, but does have potential to provide scoring off the bench.

Defense will have to be his ticket into the NBA, though. Scott was named to the ACC-All Defensive team today and it was much deserved. He did a fine job defending guards such as Seth Curry, Rasheed Sulaimon, Michael Snaer, and Erick Green during ACC play and showed great intensity doing so. Scott has a reasonable amount of strength and lateral quickness and has the wingspan to keep shooters within reach. He also has been a more opportunistic defender than in years past, averaging 1.6 steals a game.

I believe in Scott's ability to be a good defender, but he still is in between positions on the defensive end too. His effect on defense will be dependent on matchups as he won't be able to lockdown bigger wings or quicker point guards.

Whether Scott has an NBA or future or not will be easier to dissect once his official measurements come out. He's listed anywhere from 6'3 to 6'5 and if he has a wingspan over 6'8, that would give some merit to his defensive abilities. A strong vertical would be a good sign as well. Iman Shumpert flew up draft boards after his combine and Scott projects to be a similar player stylistically. I wouldn't dare call Scott as great of an athlete or physical speciman as Shumpert, but they share plenty of similarities (poor shooters, lack of PG skills, strong defenders, good size and athleticism, struggled on poor ACC teams when they led offense) that could make Scott a poor man's version of him.

Durand Scott is a potential 2nd round pick who will have a chance to either boost or hurt his stock in both the NCAA tournament and NBA combine. He's a mix of Lance Stephenson and Iman Shumpert. He is somewhere in the middle between them as athletes while having Stephenson's flair and Shumpert's defensive mentality. He lacks the strength of Stephenson or the athleticism of Shumpert and is in the same area overall as a point guard and shooter.

Johnny Dawkins Has Found Himself A Guard

After spending 10 years coaching at Duke from 1998-2008, Johnny Dawkins has spent his last few years on the west coast trying to emulate some of the success at his alma mater. It has been a rough process as Stanford has had marginal success in his four years, finally posting a respectable 69 RPI last season after a strong finish that resulted in the NIT Championship.

Part of the strong finish had to do with freshman guard Chassan Randle, who scored 15 points on 6-11 shooting in the championship game against Minnesota, a good defensive team. Randle is a different guard than what Stanford is used too - maybe the most dynamic since Brevin Knight - a guard who can score with ease and also play some point guard.

He is the kind of player that Dawkins has been after since coming from Duke. A top 100 recruit from outside of Stanford's recruiting grounds in Chicago. A change of pace from the laid back California guards who act as floor generals and floor spacers.

Ever since Dawkins witnessed Randle first handle dropping 34 points in high school in the sectional finals for the win (Randle's Rock Island HS was a major underdog), Dawkins knew this could be a kid who could instill in the rest of the players what he wants his team to be about.

Randle displayed that killer instinct, swagger, and competitiveness that Dawkins had been missing since his days at Duke. At Duke, Dawkins had witnessed plenty of those types of guards run through his system - from Chris Duhon up to Nolan Smith - and Randle is a guy who could definitely play under Coach K.

Its funny, because the first player I thought of while watching Randle was Daniel Ewing. Both are scorers who can man the point. They both play like slashers, but also have a great shooting touch. Both have similar body types and that winning attitude.

Looking back and comparing their numbers - they are nearly identical.

Take Ewing's junior season and compare it to Randle's season last year. Ewing took 6.3 2-pt shots that year and 6.2 shots from behind the arc. Randle took 6.5 2-pt shots and 6.6 3-pt shots. That incredible balance and all around ability is what makes them both great scorers. They also both went to the foul line about 4 times (4.0 and 4.3 to be exact), while hitting at a solid clip (74% and 76%), but not as much as their 3-pt % would suggest (41.1 and 43.8).

The similarities are stunning to be honest. Rebounds, turnovers, and assists are also all nearly identical.

Randle mimics Ewing's game as well. Randle is like a Duke guard in that he can run the point, but has a lot of free will to score from his position. After playing mostly shooting guard last year for Stanford, Randle has been the point guard officially a lot more this year, but as a guard in the system, he is still free to do the same things. Just like how Nolan Smith and Ewing did in their days at Duke.

Randle is also a solid athlete with good size for the point guard position. His athleticism won't blow you away in the freakish sense, but he has plenty of quickness to get into the lane when he wants too. Randle isn't a true point but plays very smart and is saavy in the pick and roll game. He can turn the corner with long strides and has a great handle in the lane. Once he gets to full speed, he is a tough guy to get in front of.

Finishing the ball, Randle's long arms come into play. He is a good finisher because of his arms, but also because he can finish creatively with either hand. He can even put up a floater from both sides.

Defensively, he is a competitor and brings intensity. His length, lateral quickness, and smarts give him the potential to be an above average defender in the NBA.

Randle looks like a four year player and his potential isn't super high, but he could be a late first or early second rounder when he chooses to come out. And I like his chances to have a better NBA career than Daniel Ewing. But like a lot of scoring guards, it depends on the kind of situation he finds himself in.

(all stats used are from Draftexpress.com and based on 40 minutes of play adjusted for pace)

Video Highlights from BJ Young's 2nd Game Back

After missing Arkansas' first game due to suspension, BJ Young came back against Longwood and to score 23 points in a 112-63 route against what looks to be once of the worst teams in D1. His second game was against Florida A&M last night, another blowout, which had Arkansas winning 89-60.

Mike Anderson's style of play is hitting stride in his second year, thanks to the depth provided by the 9 new faces on Arkansas' roster. Anderson has been rotating a lot of bodies and Young has only played a combined 45 minutes so far. They have been running at every chance they get and Young has gotten plenty of easy looks on the break. In the halfcourt, Young has looked to facilitate this year even though he technically starts the game at the SF spot.

So far, Young has looked solid in the small sample size. Arkansas runs a lot of pick and roll sets in halfcourt and Young has a good feel on how to attack it. He will never be a point guard, but showing combo guard skills is necessary for his NBA future. Some see Young as a lottery pick this year, while I am less bullish. He has the potential, but has a lot more learning to do.

Check the video below for highlights from last night - he had 12 points on 4-12 shooting while dishing out 3 assists. He only took one 3-pt which he missed, as he got most of his opportunities near the rim. He struggled to convert in the paint last night.

Scouting Report: Isaiah Canaan

Height: 6'1''
Weight: 199lbs
Wingspan: 6'4''
BDay: 5/2/1991

Team: Murray State
Class of 2013

Isaiah Canaan has been busy all summer, going from skill camp to skill camp and ending his summer tour at the Adidas Nations. While he received some negative reviews from scouts, just the fact that Canaan is in the position he is should be considered a Cinderella story.

Canaan dealth with hurricane Katrina first hand and ended up lightly recruited, choosing to head north and play for OVC member Murray State. At under 6 feet tall and not exceptionally athletic, Canaan is the type of player who can easily slip through the cracks of the big time schools. Falling to Murray State has turned out to be much more of a blessing than a curse for Canaan however.

For one, Canaan has been able to put the Racers on the map. They were already a competitive school, but with Canaan at the helm they have become a force to be reckon with - outlasting the entire NCAA in consecutive wins to start the season. Canaan's ultra-competitiveness, heart, and determination to prove everyone wrong has been the driving force behind the Racer's success.

Canaan is a point guard, but mainly in terms of bringing the ball up. When the ball is in hands though, make no mistake that he is looking to score. Canaan is an attacker. The defense always has to be aware of him as he can pull up from anywhere on the court or barrel his way into the lane.

The biggest and most translatable attribute of his game is definitely his shooting. He has a super quick shot and more than half of his shot attempts were from behind the arc. His range is unlimited and he is comfortable with shooting off the dribble or in spot up situations.

He does very well in pick and roll situations, something that he will also have a chance to do in the NBA. His confidence and aggressiveness forces you to be ready for a 3-pt attempt around picks, but Canaan also drives to the rim without hesitation. He is very good with both hands and has a good crossover to boot. His strong frame allows him to get into the lane and handle contact, although he still struggles finishing amongst the bigs.

His struggle to finish is a major concern that goes back to his small vertical stature. At only 6 feet and lacking vertical explosion, Canaan needs to find ways to aid his scoring around the rim. Right now he just isn't shifty or crafty enough. He takes too much contact since he can't move his body well enough and sees his shot blocked too many times.

While Canaan thrives in the pick and roll game, it is strictly due to his scoring prowess. The combination of his shooting, driving, and confidence is lethal at this level, but he rarely creates for teammates out of the set. Canaan has acknowledged this summer that he needs to do a better job changing speeds, as he was told by Deron Williams and Chris Paul, and that is certainly part of the problem. More so, though, is his mentality. Canaan has been a scorer all his life and has never been a pass first guy. Even at the Adidas Nations, where he was surrounded by talent, Canaan looked awful in the role of playmaker. He had 3 assists to 19 turnovers and from what I heard, the numbers didn't lie.

Having one of the worst camps out of all college players have put a damper on his first round buzz. It is looking more and more like Canaan is an undersized scorer who will have a real big jump to make if he wants to play point guard. There could be a role for a terrific shooter like Canaan who fights and plays with great confidence. Shooting is valued and when guys like Andrew Goudelock can make it, Canaan can as well.

Athletically, we know he is short. What he does offer is great strength - he has big calves and a strong upper body. He also has a decent wingspan that does help compensate for his height a bit. In terms of speed and quickness, Canaan is nothing special, but with his good ball handling skills, he is able to make quick and speedy moves. His crossover helps him change directions very quick and he doesn't get out of control as much as you would except. Canaan is an average leaper and his lateral quickness is average as well. Defensively, I do think he plays with good intensity and awareness. He can be a best when he wants to, but the lateral quickness does limit his effectiveness. He hasn't faced many big named point guards in college and the fact that he has struggled against good summer competition (many younger than him) is worrisome.

One more thing I should mention is his mid-range game, which has shown signs of being good. His pure scoring instincts are present here, but the lack of changing speeds presents him from consistently getting good looks from this range. At this point, Canaan really doesn't need a great mid-range game, but it will be important in the NBA.

Canaan can find a spot in the NBA. This summer has hurt him, but watching tape, I saw one of the best shooters in the country and a guy with a chip on his shoulder. He is a competitor, a winner, and someone who will continue to work hard for your team. He doesn't possess much upside, even if he miraculously gained point guard skills (which would put him in the Jameer Nelson range), but he could be a nice combination of an Andrew Goudelock and Charles Jenkins. Thats a high second round pick type, not a first rounder.