The new guard

LONG CONSIDERED one of the NBA’s best backup point guards, Eric Bledsoe is now the guy in Phoenix, with the chance to finally prove he’s worth that whole “Mini LeBron” moniker. But is the former Clipper up for the challenge? We asked a scout to break down the 6’1″ guard’s game, then had our Insiders and Bledsoe respond.

The scout
Bledsoe has world-class speed and athleticism, but he still plays out of control too often. 1 He needs to slow down, make positive plays and limit the poor shot selection. 2 He’s not a natural playmaker, and he’s almost as likely to get an assist as he is to throw it into the stands. 3 He has an impressive body, but with his height, he needs to develop an in-between game 4 and tighten his handle. He’s too casual with his approach with the ball. 5 He dramatically improved his shooting last season, 6 and he’s got tremendous defensive potential, but his effort on that side of the ball is inconsistent. 7 Overall, his score-first mentality and athleticism are better suited for a sixth-man role. He’s not a traditional floor general. 8

1. Eric Bledsoe
That’s true. I do get out of control sometimes, but I’m always just trying to make a play.

2. Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN Insider
For certain players, the margin between strength and weakness is very thin. Speed is such a critical element of his game, so it’s difficult to ask him to slow down without compromising what makes him such a disruptive, catalyzing force at both ends of the floor.

3. Arnovitz
Look, nobody is going to confuse Eric Bledsoe with Andre Miller, but his court vision and judgment improved dramatically last season. His TO/36 minutes dropped by 11 percent last season, and he made smarter plays in transition.

4. Amin Elhassan, ESPN Insider and former NBA scout
He has incredible strength and a great body, but yes, he’s small. It’s important for him to develop floaters and runners, because it’s tough for him to finish among the trees.

5. Kevin Pelton, ESPN Insider
He struggles here, definitely, but he’s made strides in taking care of the ball. He’s cut his turnover rate each year of his career — from 26.3 percent his rookie year to 24.4 percent in 2011-12 to 17.9 percent last season.

6. Bledsoe
People might say it’s a fluke [39.7 percent from three in ’12-13; 20 percent in ’11-12], but it’s not. I didn’t get to shoot much in LA. Now people will see how much I’ve improved.

7. Elhassan
When he wants to be, he’s a first-team-all-defense type of player, but he definitely takes plays off.

8. Elhassan
I disagree. It’s so hard to find “true” point guards like Steve Nash or CP3, so to build a successful rotation, you need to build around roles. If Bledsoe is my scorer, then I just need someone else to be the facilitator.

LONG CONSIDERED one of the NBA’s best backup point guards, Eric Bledsoe is now the guy in Phoenix, with the chance to finally prove he’s worth that whole “Mini LeBron” moniker. But is the former Clipper up for the challenge? We asked a scout to break down the 6’1″ guard’s game, then had our Insiders and Bledsoe respond.

The scout
Bledsoe has world-class speed and athleticism, but he still plays out of control too often. 1 He needs to slow down, make positive plays and limit the poor shot selection. 2 He’s not a natural playmaker, and he’s almost as likely to get an assist as he is to throw it into the stands. 3 He has an impressive body, but with his height, he needs to develop an in-between game 4 and tighten his handle. He’s too casual with his approach with the ball. 5 He dramatically improved his shooting last season, 6 and he’s got tremendous defensive potential, but his effort on that side of the ball is inconsistent. 7 Overall, his score-first mentality and athleticism are better suited for a sixth-man role. He’s not a traditional floor general. 8

1. Eric Bledsoe
That’s true. I do get out of control sometimes, but I’m always just trying to make a play.

2. Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN Insider
For certain players, the margin between strength and weakness is very thin. Speed is such a critical element of his game, so it’s difficult to ask him to slow down without compromising what makes him such a disruptive, catalyzing force at both ends of the floor.

3. Arnovitz
Look, nobody is going to confuse Eric Bledsoe with Andre Miller, but his court vision and judgment improved dramatically last season. His TO/36 minutes dropped by 11 percent last season, and he made smarter plays in transition.

4. Amin Elhassan, ESPN Insider and former NBA scout
He has incredible strength and a great body, but yes, he’s small. It’s important for him to develop floaters and runners, because it’s tough for him to finish among the trees.

5. Kevin Pelton, ESPN Insider
He struggles here, definitely, but he’s made strides in taking care of the ball. He’s cut his turnover rate each year of his career — from 26.3 percent his rookie year to 24.4 percent in 2011-12 to 17.9 percent last season.

6. Bledsoe
People might say it’s a fluke [39.7 percent from three in ’12-13; 20 percent in ’11-12], but it’s not. I didn’t get to shoot much in LA. Now people will see how much I’ve improved.

7. Elhassan
When he wants to be, he’s a first-team-all-defense type of player, but he definitely takes plays off.

8. Elhassan
I disagree. It’s so hard to find “true” point guards like Steve Nash or CP3, so to build a successful rotation, you need to build around roles. If Bledsoe is my scorer, then I just need someone else to be the facilitator.

Fastfurious, Do u finally agree Bledsoe has a higher ceiling than Wall? I told yah last yr brah, EB would shine once he had his own team. Learning from CP3 & Billups did wonders for his game. The kid is a boss plain n simple dude just made Holiday his h0 and showed who Eric was better between him and Egor.

Fastfurious, Do u finally agree Bledsoe has a higher ceiling than Wall? I told yah last yr brah, EB would shine once he had his own team. Learning from CP3 & Billups did wonders for his game. The kid is a boss plain n simple dude just made Holiday his h0 and showed who Eric was better between him and Egor.