The NBA Draft Combine went into full swing Wednesday in Chicago. Each player in attendance had his physical measurements done. This might sound dull to some, but this is part of the process of gathering information which informs NBA organizations and enables us to get a better sense of how the draft board will shape up in late June.
I blindly picked two to three players currently in the NBA to compare to the new crop. I tried to show a couple of different options on roles, positions, and skill sets — these are rookies who face many variables about the directions in which they can go. Some players have roles that are easier to identify than others.
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Kentucky center Willie Cauley-Stein is a defensive anchor with the ability to guard any position on the court because of his unique foot speed.
This is what former NFL scout and current ESPN analyst Louis Riddick had to say after watching WCS in the Final Four:
Willie Cauley-Stein one of the best athletes I have seen. Any sport.
— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) March 29, 2015
On offense I would expect his role to be a rim diver in a heavy PnR scheme, which he didn’t get to do much of at Kentucky. Let’s compare his measurements to Tyson Chandler, DeAndre Jordan, and Mason Plumlee.
WCS:
Height without shoes: 6 feet, 11.25 inches
Standing Reach: 9’3″
Wingspan: 7’3”
Weight: 242.4
Tyson Chandler
Height without shoes: 6’11.5”
Standing Reach: 9’2”
Wingspan: 7’3”
Weight: 224
DeAndre Jordan
Height without shoes: 6’9.75”
Standing Reach: 9’5.5”
Wingspan 7’6”
Weight: 250
Mason Plumlee
Height without shoes: 6’11.5”
Standing Reach: 9’0”
Wingspan: 6’11”
Weight: 238
Conclusion:
Cauley-Stein fits beautifully into this prototype. He doesn’t have the crazy length of DeAndre Jordan, but that’s fine. The NBA player I’ve brought up as a comparison for him all year was Tyson Chandler, and I love that his measurements match up well in that regard. It’s good to remember that Chandler owned these measurements straight out high school and WCS is 21. That partially explains the difference in weight.
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Staying with Kentucky, let’s talk about shooting guard Devin Booker. He is a pure shooter who still needs to work on developing his off-the-bounce skills and playmaking. Let’s compare his measurements with Klay Thompson, John Jenkins and Tim Hardaway Jr.
Devin Booker
Height without shoes: 6’4.5”
Standing Reach: 8’6.5”
Wingspan: 6’8.25”
Weight 205.8
Klay Thompson
Height without shoes: 6’5.75”
Standing Reach: 8’7.5”
Wingspan: 6’9”
Weight: 206
John Jenkins
Height without shoes: 6’3.25”
Standing Reach: 8’2”
Wingspan: 6’8.5”
Weight: 212
Tim Hardaway Jr:
Height without shoes: 6’4.5”
Standing Reach: 8’5”
Wingspan: 6’7”
Weight: 199 lbs
Conclusion:
Of course this isn’t a be-all and end-all, but it’s a matter of preference. I personally prefer my wings to have more length than Booker has. Jenkins and Hardaway Jr. are two guys who struggled in transitioning to the NBA game despite being quality shooters. Thompson is taller and longer, bringing more worth on the defensive end. It’s also easier for someone like Klay to get shots off in traffic and make passes over the top of a defense.
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Notre Dame point guard Jerian Grant showed a well-rounded game last season despite a drop-off in three-point shooting. Notre Dame let him run a ton of PnR in an NBA-like spread offense. I’ve compared his style of play to Reggie Jackson, but Jackson is unofficially much longer with a 7’0” wingspan. There are no listings for him. The other two guys we’ll use are Jeff Teague and Damian Lillard.
Jerian Grant
Height without shoes: 6’2.25”
Standing Reach: 8’4”
Wingspan: 6’7.5”
Weight: 198
Jeff Teague
Height without shoes: 6’0.25”
Standing Reach: 8’2.5”
Wingspan: 6’7.5”
Weight: 175
Damian Lillard
Height without shoes: 6’1.75”
Standing Reach: 7’11.5”
Wingspan: 6’7.75”
Weight: 189
Conclusion:
Grant doesn’t have freakish size, but he has more than enough to play guard; in certain matchups, he could probably guard twos. With how many teams are set at the point, I’m interested to see where he ends up getting drafted.
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Arizona wing Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is an intriguing prospect for teams sitting in the middle of the first round. Has significant flaws on offense, but is terrific at the other end. The 20-year old has lots of tools to work with. Lets use Tony Allen, James Johnson, and Al-Farouq Aminu
RHJ
Height without shoes: 6’5.5”
Standing Reach:8’8”
Wingspan: 7”2”
Standing Reach: 8’8”
Weight: 210
Tony Allen
Height: 6’3.5”
Standing Reach: 6’6”
Wingspan: 6’9”
Weight: 214 lbs
James Johnson
Height without shoes: 6’7”
Standing Reach: 8’9.5”
Wingspan: 7’0.75”
Weight: 257
Al-Farouq Aminu
Height without shoes: 6’7.25”
Standing Reach 9’0.5”
Wingspan: 7’3.25”
Weight 216
Conclusion:
He’s a couple inches shorter than your excellent defending wing who swings up to the four, but the wingspan and standing reach match up well. Aminu had the longest wingspan listed in the DX database at the combine for small forwards. With the way the league is trending, I still think he can go back and forth between the two by putting on a little extra weight. Despite being a similar weight as Tony Allen, I think you would rather play him up because of the lack of shooting ability.
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Wisconsin big man Frank Kaminsky was a verstatile offensive weapon able to attack defenses inside and out. In the NBA he probably trends a little bit more towards a stretch four/five rather than the focal point of the offense. He’s not going to be a star, but he can have a long, successful career. I’m going to use Channing Frye, Spencer Hawes, and Meyers Leonard as points of comparison.
Frank Kaminsky
Height without shoes: 6’11.75”
Standing Reach: 9’1.5”
Wingspan: 6’11”
Weight:231.5
Channing Frye
Height without shoes: 6’9.5”
Standing Reach: 9’2.5”
Wingspan: 7’2.5”
Weight: 244
Spencer Hawes
Height without shoes:6’10.5”
Standing Reach: 9’2”
Wingspan: 7’0.5”
Weight: 244
Meyers Leonard
Height without shoes: 6’11.75”
Standing Reach: 9’0”
Wingspan: 7’3”
Weight: 250
Conclusion:
Kaminsky is smaller than these are other players with somewhat similar skill sets. His wingspan and weight are both significantly lower. I’m never a fan when a player’s wingspan is smaller than his height. One positive is that his standing reach was fine. Overall, though, Wednesday wasn’t a good day for the former Badger.
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Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell came away with some solid measurements. He’s big enough to play the two, and if he can capably play the one, he would put himself at an even greater advantage. I’m going to go with these comparisons: Jrue Holiday, Bradley Beal, and Victor Oladipo.
D’Angelo Russell
Height without shoes: 6’3.25”
Standing Reach: 8’6”
Wingspan: 6’9.75”
Weight: 193.4
Jrue Holiday
Hieght without shoes: 6’3.25”
Standing Reach: 8’4.5”
Wingspan: 6’7”
Weight: 199
Bradley Beal
Height without shoes: 6’3.25”
Standing Reach: 8’4”
Wingspan: 6’8”
Weight: 202
Victor Oladipo
Height without shoes: 6’3.25”
Standing Reach: 8’4.5”
Wingspan: 6’9.25”
Weight: 213
Conclusion:
Russell is a bigger dude than I thought he was. He has the longest wingspan and standing reach of all three players I picked. In that aspect he’s surprisingly similar to Klay Thompson, whom we looked at earlier. I can not wait to see Russell play in the NBA instead of college.
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Justise Winslow from Duke is our second straight lefty. He’s definitely a three and could possibly pull off some four in the right matchups. Winslow is probably the most well-rounded wing in the class when you account for offense and defense. Let’s compare him to Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, and Andre Iguodala.
Justise Winslow
Height without shoes: 6’4.5”
Standing Reach:8’8.5”
Wingspan: 6’10.25”
Weight: 221.8
Kawhi Leonard
Height without shoes: 6’6”
Standing Reach: 8’10”
Wingspan: 7’3”
Weight: 227
Jimmy Butler
Height without shoes: 6’6”
Standing Reach: 8’5.5”
Wingspan: 6’7.6”
Weight: 222
Andre Iguodala
Height without shoes: 6’5.75”
Standing Reach: 8’9.5”
Wingspan 6’11”
Weight 217
Conclusion:
Winslow was most similar to Iguodala from a physical standpoint. They’re different players offensively, but defensively it’s interesting to think about. Both have similar levels of versatility, which enable them to guard multiple positions. Winslow isn’t even close to Leonard and he’s a good deal longer than Butler, even though he’s shorter in terms of height.
Other Notes and Thoughts:
– Two shooting guards I need to watch are Norman Powell and Michael Qualls. Qualls is 6’4” without shoes and has a 7’0.25” wingspan. Powell comes in at 6’3” and 6’10.75.”
– Kelly Oubre was longer than I was expecting. His 7’2.25” wingspan is massive.
– It was a solid day for Bobby Portis. He checked in at just under 6’10” with a 9’0.5” standing reach and 7’2” wingspan.
– Trey Lyles had a 12.10% body fat reading, Kevin Looney 11.90%, and Montrezl Harrell 11.90%. Hit the weights and diet, young fellas.
