NBA Comparison: Nick Young

Strengths: Shooting guard with a great deal of potential due to his outside shooting stroke and overall offensive repertoire … Possesses good length for the shooting guard position, standing  6-7 with a 6-10 wingspan … Fluid athlete that has good body control and a solid handle … Jump shot mechanics are solid – projects to be a better shooter than the 30% he showed at Kentucky with NBA range … Can handle the basketball and is able to get into the paint off the bounce … Can create offense off the bounce for himself or others but can also spot up … Is comfortable shooting from deep or from mid-range and off the bounce or off the catch … Is better shooting off the catch than after creating his own look … While he can be hesitant to pass off the drive occasionally, has shown flashes of excellent court vision and is able to find the open man when the defense collapses on him … Shows a lot of potential as an offensive player if he can develop his strength and confidence … Rebounds the ball well for his position. Had six games of 7 rebounds or more with a high of 10 … Plays passing lanes well – had 6 games with 3 or more steals … Projects to be a good defender on the perimeter as he has a good blend of quickness, active hands, and length …

Weaknesses: Was a big disappointment in relation to the expectations he had entering Kentucky. Some viewed him as a high lottery pick at the beginning of the season … Has a very thin frame and lacks the strength to finish through contact … May struggle to add the ideal muscle mass to deal with more physical opponents … Should benefit greatly from getting with an NBA strength and conditioning coach and working on core strength to develop his ability to explode around the rim and absorb contact … As a result of not being able to finish through defenders, he often tries to take awkward scoop and double clutch layups that often get blocked … Makes poor decisions with the ball, often trying to force the action on that end of the court … Struggles with angles when driving or passing, for example, with creating passing lanes for post entry passes … This can lead to difficult shot attempts or turnovers … Battles with inconsistency and inefficiency. Shot 35% from the field and 38.4% from two at Kentucky … Struggled to play to his ability and confidence and consistency were major hurdles for him as a freshman … Can sometimes struggle to adjust to how defenders are guarding him and can be lured into settling for tough shots … Doesn’t value possessions, will sometimes launch long jumpers when he feels he hasn’t shot enough recently … Played very poorly for much of his college career. Completely disappeared in his final collegiate game, finishing scoreless on 4 shots in 23 minutes … The talent is obvious, but the question of how hard he’s willing to work to realize his talent is the main question that must be answered …

Outlook: Boston has the tools and potential to be a successful wing at the next level, but it will largely be contingent upon bulking up and adjusting how he approaches the game … He will need to add strength to allow him to absorb contact on his drives to the rim and get to the free throw line instead of settling for tough looks while trying to avoid contact … Will likely benefit from the added space of the NBA game, as he was constantly battling with a clogged paint area while at Kentucky … Projects as a scorer and secondary ball handler, but has enough adjustments to make to his game that he’s not without risk for the team that drafts him … He has potential to be a good player, but struggled mightily and was incredibly inefficient during his time in college … He’s a player that could thrive if he lands in the right situation at the next level and learns the right work habits and gains the necessary core strength … Right now he’s being projected as a late first to second round pick … Many feel that Boston would have benefited with more time in college, however he made the decision to sign with an agent and forego his college eligibility …

Notes: Measured:  6’5.75” barefoot, 6’7.0” in shoes, 8’8.0” standing reach,188.0 lbs, 6’10.75” wingspan at the 2021 NBA Draft Combine … Boston measured 6’4.5 barefoot, 6’5.5 in shoes, 175 lbs, with a 6’10 wingspan, and a 8’6 standing reach in mid 2018 … Five star national recruit who ranked 5th by 247Sports.com and 7th overall by ESPN entering college …

Eric Yearian 4/16/21

NBA Comparison: Kevin Martin

Strengths: 6’5 wing … Good length with a 6’10.25 wingspan and 8’6 standing reach … Good ball handler, crafty and shifty with the ball. Creates and penetrates well off the dribble, effective half-court player. Creative finisher at the rim and uses either hand when driving, and finishes at different angles … Good athlete. Quick and can finish above the rim … Good scorer and takes what the defense gives him. Doesn’t predetermine his game, reads and reacts well. Averaged 16.5 points per game over the Nike EYBL in 2018 and 22.8 points per game at 52.1% FG% in 2019. Finished 9th in scoring with 13.6 points per game at 49.3% FG% at the NBPA Top 100 in 2019 … Quick release and shoots off the catch or dribble … Draws fouls at high rate. Shot a 7th most 7.5 free throws per game over the Nike EYBL in 2019 … Good free throw shooter. Shot 79.1% FT% over the Nike EYBL in 2018. Shot 86.2% FT% at the NBPA Top 100 in 2019 … Plays well in transition as a leader and finisher … Good rebounder on both ends. Averaged 8.1 rebounds (2.3 offensive) per game over the Nike EYBL in 2019 … Good length and moves well with quick feet as a versatile defender, can defend any perimeter position. Averaged 1.3 steals per game over the Nike EYBL in 2018 and finished 10th in 2019 with two steals per game. Averaged 1.4 steals per game at the NBPA Top 100 in 2019 … Blocks shots well for a wing …

Weaknesses: Skinny and can add a lot of strength, still has some physical maturing to do. Can improve playing through contact … Smooth athlete but isn’t incredibly explosive … There’s no doubt that Boston is effective as a shooter, showing midrange and extends out to the NBA 3PT line but his release is a bit low and results have been inconsistent. Shot 40.7% 3PT% at 3.9 attempts per game over the Nike EYBL in 2018 but shot an underwhelming 24.2% 3PT% at 3.4 attempts per game in 2019. Shot 23.5% 3PT% at the NBPA Top 100 in 2019 … Can play loose with the ball. Sees the floor and passes well but still developing as a playmaker. Averaged 1.2 assists to 1.5 turnovers per game over the Nike EYBL in 2018. Averaged 2.5 turnovers per game over the Nike EYBL in 2019 …

Notes: Boston measured 6’4.5 barefoot, 6’5.5 in shoes, 175 lbs, with a 6’10 wingspan, and a 8’6 standing reach in mid 2018 … Kentucky commit … Transferring to Sierra Canyon for his senior year … 2019 All-EYBL: Second Team … Scored 24 points and earned MVP of the 2018 Underclassman All-American Game …

Evan Tomes 9/13/19