NBA Comparison: JJ Hickson

Strengths: Rapidly ascending power forward with excellent fluidity and athleticism ... Shows a lot of upside due to his length, explosiveness and aggressiveness ... Threw down numerous highlight dunks, in particular put backs in his freshman year ...Very aggressive attacking the basket in the post and flushes some monster two handed dunks if he gets an angle to the basket ... Has good ability to make adjustments at the rim and shows a solid understanding of playing in the post ... Quick leaping ability, reflexes, body control, and excellent hands allows him to convert a lot of plays around the basket ... Excellent rebounder. Crashes the glass hard and gets a lot of follow up dunks and tip ins on the offensive boards. Gathered nearly as many offensive rebounds as defensive last season (110O to 132D) ... A solid defender with good foot speed and shot blocking ability (1.6 bpg) ... Good leg strength which should only improve along with his body ... Has a big wingspan (in the neighborhood of 7-foot-1) which adds to his athleticism ... Shows solid form on his shot, giving intrigue about his offensive potential ... Very fluid running the floor and converts fast break plays with ease. A strong finisher ... Displays excellent hands, catching the ball from teammates and corralling boards ... Has some developing post moves with the use of drop steps and jump hooks ... Most effective on the left block going back to the basket to his right ... His ineffectiveness facing the basket is a weakness but also a strength as he puts more emphasis on being a post player ...

Weaknesses: Needs to improve his face up ability and add a consistent mid range shot. Should expand his range and improve from the line, although he's on his way (70% ft as a freshman) ... Could stand some improvement with his ball handling ability ... Demeanor appears lax at times ... Needs to show more dedication to his conditioning and physique (trim the baby fat) ... Added upper-body strength would truly make him a beast in the paint ... Appears to possibly be a little shorter than his listed 6-9, but his length and explosiveness helps his cause ... Can be careless passing the ball, which is usually a result of impatience ... Should work on expanding his repertoire in the post ... Needs to develop a left hand for the left block ... With added PT, he'll need to work hard to stay out of foul trouble. (5 games in which he fouled out as a freshman) ...

Notes: Appears primed for a breakout sophomore season ... Sources around the team say he comes from a strong family background and is a solid individual ...

Aran Smith 10/7/09