Scouting Report: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope spent two years at Georgia, after electing to stay with his hometown school despite being named a McDonald's All-American. The decision has kept it from the spotlight, but it didn't make scouts forget about his natural ability to shoot the basketball. Caldwell-Pope earned SEC Player of the Years honors this season - his sophomore year - and scored in double digits every game of the season. In one of the most dysfunctional offenses in a Big 6 conference, KCP still found ways to score every single game.

Its hard to get a read on how good of a feel Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has for things on the offensive end. There weren't many talented players on Georgia's offense and the Bulldogs lacked any kind of rhythm on that end of the court. Their most effective offense play was to get their star player coming off of a screen near the arc in order to set up a long jumper off of either one or two dribbles. It was very ugly basketball, but with a shooter like KCP, he was able to bail them out quite a few times.

While KCP's shot selection has been questioned, it was more a product of the players around him. He did take some bad contested shots in transition, but it was because he knew that was the best look he'd get at the rim the entire possession. Georgia didn't ever create easy looks for themselves and Caldwell-Pope constantly had a man in his face in the halfcourt. The only play Georgia really had to get him open was the aforementioned screen play at the top of the arc and that was extremely predictable.

Smart defenders were able to give KCP a hard time on those plays because KCP generally took one or two horizontal dribbles to his left before shooting a long range jumper. There wasn't much creativeness in his game. Just a constant display of how talented KCP is in making extremely tough shots. Surely Georgia could have done a lot better job getting him open, but KCP could have also done a better job himself moving without the ball. He was forced to post up outside the 3-pt line a lot of the ball or catch the ball 5 feet beyond the arc to even get a touch. Watching Crabbe yesterday to do his scouting report, there is a stark contrast in their feel for the game and ability to move off the ball.

Again, part of this has to do with coaching and teammates. And its up to teams to figure out how much Kentavious Caldwell-Pope can improve with good coaching. But if you look at Caldwell-Pope on the defensive end, it doesn't seem like he has a great feel for the game on that end either. Thats not a positive indicator.

Caldwell-Pope is a faceguarder on defense and gets caught up on overplaying his man. He loses track of the ball very easily and doesn't understand help defense. While Kentavious Caldwell-Pope can be a tenacious defender and take a guy out of the game, he doesn't understand the team concept of defending. He doesn't have a huge wingspan to be a lockdown type in the NBA, so he's really going to have to improve his court awareness.

Compared to Crabbe, he gives a lot more effort but doesn't have the same awareness. Crabbe is kind of the opposite - he can get too caught up in ball watching and lose his man. Crabbe has a perfect frame as a defender, but doesn't have the mentality to be a big time defender. To me, their defense is kind of a wash. You aren't drafting either of these guys because of their defensive abilities.

In terms of offensive skills, Caldwell-Pope struggles to handle the ball. When teams aggressively trap when he's coming off of a screen, he often either makes a bad pass or is forced to pick up his dribble. If he doesn't get to his spot in two dribbles, he has a habit of just picking up the ball. He also doesn't feel comfortable attacking the pick and roll inside the arc, choosing instead to just pull up for jumper after jumper. His dribbles often doesn't get him anywhere vertical - they are more horizontal to the basket.

He does have a good first step and a nice jab step to set up his jumpshot. And he is very good shooting off of one or two dribbles, even when he doesn't get the greatest separation. He especially loves to shoot moving towards his left. KCP isn't a guy that will isolate and use a crossover to create separation however.

His jumpshot is extremely balanced and he gets it off very quickly. He is able to pull up in transition and has the range to pull up from beyond NBA territory. His balance is something you generally don't see from players of his age.

But his balance on his jumpers also has a downside. He doesn't seem to have the ability to shoot in a fluid motion coming off of a screen. He doesn't ever fade from the basket which is something all the great shooters are able to do to get off their shot. KCP is always straight up and down with his shot. With the screens Georgia had to use to get KCP open, its a wonder if a NBA team can/will be willing to put in that much of an effort to create a shot for him. Or if he will be able to improve his game to be able to do it for himself.

Creativity is certainly something he lacks and he appears to be very stiff in the hips. He plays the game very upright and combined with his short arms, it seems to limit his ball handling ability. Caldwell-Pope has good enough hands to get into the lanes - but a lot of that is because of his first step. He is a straight line driver with not much in between game besides his balanced pull up jumpers. Lots of his shots going towards the rim end up being low percentage shots because he doesn't do a good job of gathering himself and slowly plays down. He is, however, able to be an effective finisher in college because of his explosive athleticism.

Passing wise, he makes a lot of lazy passes and doesn't have great vision. He looks to be very one-dimensional as a playmaker. On transition opportunities, he seems just as content to pull up for a quick transition 3 ball versus trying to get all the way to the rim.

There is a lot of intrigue with Caldwell-Pope and in a draft like this, teams are desperate to find guys with enough talent to be taken in the lottery. KCP can be one of those guys that at least looks the part and has the shooting ability. He is athletic, a great shooter, can hit off the dribble, and has the ability to be a good finisher at the rim. He also gives good effort and there is a mystery to him about how much better he can get with improved coaching/teammates. He is viewed to have more potential than other shooting guards ranked below him because he has the best combination of shooting ability and athleticism.

Thats the basis of the hype around him. A more likely scenario for Caldwell-Pope is him turning into a guy like Nick Young. Someone who lacks a high basketball IQ and takes a lot of ill-advised jumpers. These kind of guys are very one dimensional and only add scoring, but don't even always do so in an efficient matter.

The more I look at these shooting guard prospects, the more I am convinced that Allen Crabbe is a better pick than Caldwell-Pope. Crabbe isn't as easy of a sell as a lottery pick, but he is the better overall player. And if you can get Crabbe 20th versus Caldwell-Pope in the lottery, you are getting a LOT better value.

To read my previous scouting report on Caldwell-Pope from last summer, click here.

A Quick Rundown of Caldwell-Pope's First Half

The ESPNU announcer for the Georgia/Youngstown State game has been analyzing every move from Caldwell-Pope and criticizing everything he does like the worst kind of sports parent. Georgia certainly deserves criticism as they are trailing 25-14 at half, but Caldwell-Pope has teammates and they aren't doing their job.

If it wasn't for Caldwell-Pope they wouldn't even have a FIELD GOAL in the first half. He had all three of their fields goals and at the 2:37 marker had 7 of their 8 total points. Here are his scoring plays:

1) Caldwell-Pope hits a 3 off the dribble, starting shaded to the right side of the arc and then heading left to the top of the key

2) KCP starts at the same place and moves left but this time takes advantage of a pick and shows nice burst - taking it all the way to the rim to finish with his left hand

3) After missing another 3 and then failing to convert a right handed lay-up attempt that was setup by a nice spin move cut at the top of the arc, Caldwell-Pope receives a set play where he curls around to the left baseline and hits a long 2 off the screen. Picture perfect play as he didnt waste any motions

4) Caldwell-Pope didn't make any more field goals, but did get fouled when Youngstown State was in the penalty and sunk both free throws. He missed an early in the shot clock three and also blew a open lay-up in the break after he came up with a steal and then was taken out with under a minute left after he fouled a jump shooter.

That was the second time Caldwell-Pope was pulled early from the game, as he was also the first starter to sub out. I wasn't liking his body language and apparently the coach wasn't either. Second half time!

Scouting Report: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Height: 6'6''
Weight: 185lbs
Wingspan: 6'5.5''
Bday: 2/18/1993

Team: Georgia
Class of 2015

Caldwell-Pope had high expectations on his shoulders being the first McDonald's All-American to head to Athens since Carlos Strong in 1992, and while he was unable to will them to a winning season, he did show enough to get him into the NBA draft discussion. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's freshman season overall was a successful one, as he met the expectations of a top 20 recruit. He was one of their best players and lead the team in minutes played and steals, while finishing second on the team in point and rebounding.

The first thing I want to touch on is his shooting since it is a large part of his offense. Caldwell-Pope shot less than 40% from the field which is definitely a concerning number. When you look closer, you can see that 56% of Caldwell-Pope's shots were 3 point attempts, which makes him more 3-pt centered than Kim English, Marcus Denmon, CJ Wilcox, Seth Curry, Ashton Gibbs, Bradley Beal, and Darius Miller just to name a few.

So his high 3-pt attempts are a big part of why his overall FG% is so low. The fact that he only made 30% of his threes offers an even better explanation. Caldwell-Pope never stopped firing threes all season long even though hi 3-pt% was never above 34%. To finish the season, Caldwell-Pope went on a 8-44 drought.

Caldwell-Pope has always been known as a shooter and looks the part. He does a great job of setting his feet and squaring up to the hoop. His quick release aids his chucking ways, allowing him to get shots off with even the slightest bit of space. Pope took a lot of early threes last year, pulling up in transition and whenever he had room. Despite him missing tons of them, Caldwell-Pope's confidence never wavered. While his unconscious shooting can be seen as a bad thing, he does have the ideal shooter's mentality. Caldwell-Pope is a good shooter - that part of his game will come around.

I did see a more than a couple of times where Caldwell-Pope offered up air balls from 3-pt range. Right now, he has plenty of range but he needs to adjust to the college 3-pt line. Inside the arc, Caldwell-Pope's jumper was just as pure and even more reliable. Caldwell-Pope struggles to create space for his own shot, but if you overplay him, he does have a good first step and the ability to shoot off the dribble. He doesn't get to the rim very often, but he does a great job of getting squared up on the fly and hitting mid-range jumpers. He can move laterally out of the defenses' way or drive to the foul line area and pull up with a slight fade to create enough room for his jumper. He isn't the kind of guy who is going to cross you up and dribble the ball excessively, but he can use the dribble to get to spots on the floor he feels comfortable at.

His 2-pt% is actually solid for a guy who rarely gets to the rim. He shot over 50% inside the arc, making him slightly above average for a shooting guard. Considering all the long 2s he took, it is a testament to his pure shooting ability. Pope isn't a trained 3-pt shooter, he is a guy who can hit from all over. 

One problem Caldwell-Pope will have to overcome is his short arms. His wingspan measured about equal length to his height at around 6'6'' this summer. With his quick release and good elevation, Caldwell-Pope has already eliminated his short arm problem when it comes to affecting his shooting. He also has shown a turnaround jumper when posting up and fades back on his mid-range jumpers. When he finishes, Caldwell-Pope is explosive and finishes strong, often with dunks. He also does a good job of gathering himself and staying under control. He does everything he can on offense to prevent his lack of length get in the way.

Defensively, his lack of length doesn't appear to bother him either but it does limit who he can guard. With only a 6'6'' wingspan, it makes him strictly a shooting guard at the next level. Thats unfortunate because he is a very good defender who could be used as a teams primary wing defender in the future. The fact that he doesn't have the length to cover a lot of small forwards is disappointing. He may be able to make up for it with his toughness and tenacity on defense. Caldwell-Pope guards his man like his life depends on it at all times. He plays physical, possesses great lateral quickness, and had excellent awareness and energy for a guy who was only 18 for much of the season. He also did a great job helping off his man to stop penetration and his rebounding was phenomenal for a guard. He was second on the team in rebounding and ranked 10th out of all shooting guards in rebounds per 40 minutes. The only freshman who ranked above him was Bradley Beal, who played in a four guard offense while Caldwell-Pope played on a more traditional team.

As a shooter, it is a great sign for Caldwell-Pope's stock that he is willing to contribute to the team in other areas. There are plenty of guys who can shoot so everything you can do to stick out helps your case. Shooters success often depends on the situation the are placed in and that is why they generally don't go in the lottery. Caldwell-Pope has an uphill battle to prove that he is more valuable than other shooters and warrants a top 20 selection in the draft.

I also observed some other little things about his game that the numbers don't show. He has low assists numbers (but does have a positive A/TO ratio) since he can't create shots for himself much less anyone else, but he is a good passer. He is able to thread passes in between defenders while rarely making mistakes. Off the ball, Caldwell-Pope works hard to get open off screens and as I said before, is very quick to square his shoulders to the basket. He also can use on-ball screens to move laterally around for cleaner looks on his jumper. He likely will never be a guy to split defenders on picks, but he is able to use them to his advantage. He also does a good job of cutting to the hoop when the opportunity presents itself. In transition, Caldwell-Poope does show that he has adequate handle and is actually very fast with the ball.

He seems like a good character guy and student. He has the right attitude to be a complimentary wing player either off the bench or next to a high volume scorer. Caldwell-Pope isn't a franchise changer at the NBA level or even really at the college level, as you saw with Georgia's record, but he can turn into an important role player down the line on a good team. He brings a lot of things besides his shooting to the table. It would be nice to see him shoot a higher % from 3 this season because two straight seasons of bad shooting numbers would force anyone to revisit their assumption that he is a good shooter. I, of course, expect that his 3-pt percentage will be improved. Some draft sites have his stock as high as the lottery, but I think a more realistic projection would be the late teens to the mid-20s. Caldwell-Pope will be an interesting player to follow this season and is always a fun player to watch.