NBA Comparison: Tyrus Thomas/Antonio McDyess

Strengths: A freakish athlete, arguably the most explosive frontcourt player in the draft and one of the best overall … Runs the court like a deer and explodes without having to put effort into organizing his feet … A highlight waiting to happen … Very nice shooting stroke and touch … Can knock down midrange shots and even shows the ability to extend out to college 3 point (hit 35% making 21 of 60 attempts on the year) … Improved in his ability to create shots for himself … Shows good ability to face up and use the dribble to get to the rim … Plays with good intensity and energy … Shows a lot of potential as a defender with his length, frame and quick feet … Has a quick first step, which he used to burn bigs when they were forced to defend him away from the basket … His sheer speed makes him difficult to contain on the block. Does a good job of creating separation from defenders and then exploding past them in the post … Utilizes a developing righty hook, as well as a turnaround jumper when posting up … Needs to add some strength and toughness but actually has very good size and muscle for a player his age. Appears that he should be able to carry additional weight without any problem … 39.9% on 2 point jumpers is very solid, all things considered … Utilized his length well to register 1.6 blocks per game and shows some solid timing, when he is patient … Will turn 19 in July, so his age suggests he has a lot of potential left to develop …

Weaknesses: His low rebounding output is the first thing that scouts mention when dissecting his game. Considering his physical gifts, 5.4 rebounds per game should be higher, even at 25 minutes per game … He needs to work on becoming a better rebounder, both his fundamentals and effort level … He tends to just use his athleticism and doesn’t seem to have basic fundamentals in boxing his man out and holding position (something that works okay against college guys but won’t work against pros) … Feel for the game is still raw … Plays a little out of control on both ends of the floor … Low basketball IQ, especially defensively at this point and doesn’t anticipate well … Lacks focus and discipline defensively, too often bites on pump fakes, leading to foul trouble … Averaged 4.1 fouls per game, and fouled out of an astounding 15 games this year, including six in a row during Conference play. It’s no wonder why he played under 25 minutes per game, he was in foul trouble in virtually every game … Often tries too hard for the steal or block and doesn’t stay in a defensive stance … He’s then forced to chase down his man and over-extend, resulting in fouls on reaches or block attempts … Plays a little too upright, on both ends, but particularly on the defensive end … Too often finds himself out of position for help defense and on rebounds … Has good lateral speed but no one in their right mind would confuse him for a small forward … Maturity level was questioned as a freshman as he could be taken out of his game by bad calls or poor performance and it would show in his body language and interactions with refs … If he’s not dunking the ball, he struggles some in finishing on the move … Some may question his level of competition and the fact that he wasn’t more highly regarded out of high school … Should be able to improve upon his 68% FT shooting … Should also look to attack the basket and draw fouls more often than he did … Needs to cut down on his turnovers, 2.0 is a lot considering his minutes …

Outlook: A true student athlete from a strong family background, Chriss has a lot of interests outside of basketball … Described as a book worm by some … For a team looking to roll the dice on upside, Chriss offers one of the draft’s biggest boom or bust picks … A physical specimen. Is he Tyrus Thomas or Antonio McDyess? His success will likely be dependent upon how well a team is able to develop him … He has immense potential, but he’s still a long ways from realizing it … A late bloomer, Chriss came into Washington as a top 60 recruit, and had a huge freshman year … He will likely play in the D-League for a year or two while his skills mature …  With his combination of shooting and athleticism he is a highly sought after prospect with considerable upside … Considered a near lock to be a top 10 pick for this year’s NBA draft …

Notes: Measured: 6′ 8.75” barefoot, 6′ 10” in shoes, 233.0 lbs, 7′ 0.25” wingspan, 8′ 9” standing reach at the NBA Draft Combine … Measured 6’8.75, 210.2 lbs, with a 7’1 wingspan and 8’9.5 reach at the 2014 USA U18 tryouts … Entering college he ranked 60th on ESPN and 56th on Rivals Class of 2015 Senior Rankings … Chriss was studying at Washington to be an Engineer … Had his share of jawdropping plays (including his cock back dunk off a feed from Dejounte Murray on the break vs San Diego State and his two handed pin the ball against the rim block against Long Beach State) … Averaged 13.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 53% FG, 68% FT, 35% 3P as FR on 24.9 MPG.

Aran Smith 6/1/16

June 5, 2013