NBA Comparison: Talen Horton-Tucker/Jordan Nwora

Strengths: Bigtime college player who despite not passing the eye test initially, has a bright future at the next level … Utilizes his great length with a 7’1 wingspan to his advantage in order to play more athletic and overcome his lack of speed … Highly skilled player with great basketball IQ and a nose for scoring … Has proven to be extremely clutch, knocking down game winning shots (for instance his game winning half court buzzer beater against Purdue) and stepping up his level of play at the end of highly contested games … Great feel for the game … Uses his large frame well to create space and is a sneaky athlete who regularly converts dunks and exciting plays despite looking un-athletic … Shows a solid ability to create shots for himself both on pull up jumpers on the perimeter, as well as attacking the basket … Explosive finishing plays at the rim off two feet in the half court … Very good at converting baskets after contact, utilizing his strength advantage over the opposition … Has solid vision and passing ability … Excellent shooting form on catch and shoot jumpers, gets his feet set quickly and has a clean shooting motion … Three point shooting showed steady improvement to the point of hitting over 2 per game as a senior … Also shows the ability to utilize the step back and connect on three pointers … High level dexterity. Very good hand eye coordination, body control … Competitive player with a lot of determination to lead his team to wins … Smart decision maker and protects the ball well 19-1.6 A/TO ratio … Has worked extremely hard to become a high level shooter, 80% FT and 40% from 3 … Has excellent hands. which allows him to catch the ball and rebound the ball more easily … Plays with a lot of confidence … Jumps the passing lanes well surprising opponents with his 7-plus foot wingspan … Length and strength should allow him to guard players at both forward positions … Good rebounder for a wing at 5.9 over the past three seasons …

Weaknesses: Clearly slow and unathletic from an NBA perspective … While he has solid leaping ability, he appears a step slow and struggles to stay with NBA athletes defensively … Big, thick frame makes it difficult to generate momentum … Body type lacks definition. Needs to tone his body more, lose the gut and in the process gain better mobility … Lack of foot speed will make it a challenge to get by opponents and create separation off the dribble … Could stand to lose 15-20 lbs and gain better conditioning … Not a high flyer and struggles to get off the floor on the break off one foot … Turned 22 in April, making him one of the older prospects available for this year’s draft, and thus limiting his perceived upside … More athletic in the half court and takes a little time to gather his feet in order to explode and finish on the break … has a huge wingspan, but for a player with speed limitations to play on the wing, measuring 6;4 barefoot was a tough blow …

Outlook: A likely second round pick who will probably drop some due to his lack of an NBA body and overall speed, however he stands an excellent chance to being one of the drafts huge sleepers if he falls very far … Figures to be one of the more NBA ready players provided he can adapt to the speed and quickness of NBA athletes, particularly on the defensive end …

Notes: Measured: 6’4.0” barefoot, 6’5.5” in shoes, 8’9.5” standing reach, 240.4 lbs, 7’1.25” wingspan at the 2022 NBA Draft Combine … Has NBA bloodlines and a extremely advanced skill set. His father Ron Harper played alongside Michael Jordan during their second threepeat … Brother Dylan Harper is one of the top prep prospects in the country … Native of Franklin Lakes, NJ and stayed close to home to play at Rutgers …

Aran Smith 6/14/22