[JNixonParticipant]

 28: Jeff Taylor, 6’7 225, SF, Vanderbilt, Sr.

Another one of those prospects who seemed like he was in college forever, we have Jeff Taylor from Vandy. A player who was an impact player for some strong Vandy teams that never made it to the 2^nd weekend of the tourney (despite having the talent to do so), Taylor has been on the scouting radar since his Fr. season. Was an immediate impact player as soon as he put on a Vandy uniform. Originally from Sweden. 1^st Team All SEC as a Sr., 2^nd Team All SEC in his Soph. and Jr. seasons, and 1^st All Freshman Team. Started every game except 1 in his Vandy career. Physically, Taylor looks like an NBA SF. He has good height at 6’7 and has a 225 lb frame that could reach 230-235 in time without the loss of athleticism. Pretty strong. Does have a 6’6 wingspan, which is not good for his size and could make him play a hair smaller than he is. Seems to have small hands. Athletically, Taylor is very good as well, arguably elite. He is very fast for his size, has great explosiveness, and is pretty quick. Is a quick leaper, who likes to take off off of 2 feet. Isnt super agile though.

Offensively, Taylor improved his skill set (slowly but surely) over his 4 years at Vandy. He is at his best the closer he is to the rim, and usually is most effective utilizing cuts to the rim and off ball movement to score. Also is dynamic in transition, even though Vandy didn’t play at a pace where he got out in transition a lot. Runs the floor really well, and will play above the rim with his leaping skills and explosiveness. Not a fancy dunker, usually finishes strong with both hands. Will make a big man pay if they aren’t awareness of their weakside responsibilities. Likes to take off from the baseline. As a slasher though, Taylor is limited as to what he can do. He has the 1^st step and strength to be semi-effective in straight-line drives, but he has below average ball-handling skills and isn’t someone you want creating their own shot often at all. Struggles with change of direction dribbles, and is very right-hand dependent. Only blows by when defenders close out too hard, which isn’t terribly often because he’s not a truly highly effective shooter. Finishes nicely around the hoop due to his athletic ability and strength, even though he doesn’t have the greatest touch. Shooting the ball, Taylor came to college with no 3-point range, but he became pretty comfortable with his 3-ball in his last 2 seasons. Has improved his mechanics a lot, elevates and has fluidity now, even though he does shoot on his way down a bit now. He doesn’t show much NBA 3-point range, but the confidence and range he developed his last 3 years makes me think he may be able to develop that in time in the league. Will have to prove he can make 3’s before teams respects it though. OK mid-range, but fairly mechanical when he utilizes it. Actually shows some ability to post up, and was asked to play some time at PF at Vandy. Has the quickness and size to be a mismatch if he has a smaller wing on him, but probably wont be asked to post a lot in the NBA. Pretty solid passer. Not going to get to the foul line a whole lot, and is not very good when he gets there (just below 70% for his career). Definite factor on the offensive glass. Wont be more than a 4^th option ideally. Doesn’t play outside of the flow of the offense. Has had chronicled confidence issues, and is known to disappear from games he shouldn’t disappear in. Also picks bad times to disappear. Would fit better in an offense that plays fast paced, or with a team who has a pass 1^st PG where a lot of cuts are ample. Wont be asked to handle the ball much at all in the NBA.

Defensively, Taylor is promising. Defended everything except C’s when he was at Vandy. Has very good lateral quickness, and moves his feet real well. Can get beat by sudden change of directions, but is an outstanding 1-on-1 defender. Has the size to defend bigger wings too, which is great. Not going to get a bunch of steals, but usually picks the right times to gamble for them. Not afraid of the physical aspects of the game. Could develop into a real weapon with his size and athleticism on this end, especially with his fundamentals. Contests shots well, and even is a solid rebounder on the wing. Was arguably the best perimeter defender in the SEC his last season, despite Kidd-Gilchrist getting most of the headlines.

Overall, Taylor is still a work in progress offensively and probably will never develop into a high level scorer. But he is physically gifted, a great athlete, and he understands his limitations as a player and is real efficient. His ability to play in transition and score without having the ball a lot will help him as a role player, especially with the right PG and scheme, and he is as good a perimeter defender in the class potentially. He had a decorated career and a bunch of experience, so he could get on the floor some as a rookie. He reminds of Thabo Sefolosha or a Matt Barnes type, and could find a niche for a team. Legit chance to be a 1^st round pick, but could drop to the 2^nd and be a nice value pick for a team who needs size, athleticism and defense on the perimeter.

 

27: Will Barton, 6’6 170, SG, Memphis, Soph.

Barton came to college with eligibility concerns and controversy, but he grew up a bit for a Memphis team with a fair share of headcases on the roster under young Coach Josh Pastner. Known as a player who played selfish and “AAU” type basketball when he 1^st got to Memphis, Barton calmed it down (a little) in his Soph. season. Was benched for some games his Fr. season for selfish play and not listening to coaching. Seems to be a bit of a knucklehead at times, but it could be youth, as some around the program say he has a charismatic and nice personality. Was 1^st Team All C-USA as a Soph., 3^rd Team as a Fr., also member of the C-USA All-Freshman team. Physically, Barton has good and bad. He stands tall for a SG at 6’6 and has a nice 6’9 wingspan in addition. But past that, Barton is VERY thin at 170 lbs and he has narrow shoulders. He put on about 10 lbs since HS when he was 160, but he lacks strength and wont be ready to compete all that efficiently or consistently in the NBA at his size currently. Athletically, Barton is pretty good. He’s more of a smooth athlete than he is explosive, but he does have above average explosiveness, and he’s pretty quick and fast, and slippery agile.

On offense, Barton’s claim to fame are his natural instincts for scoring. His a bit unorthodox with his scoring, but he can put the ball in the hoop in chunks at a time. Played for a Memphis team that pushed the tempo to a high level this past season and Barton really benefitted a lot from it, using his speed and ability to get to the rim to his advantage. A factor on backdoor alley-oops and can finish above the rim with a running start. Even though he’s thin and will have to get bigger and stronger, Barton has a knack for finishing around the rim that makes him intriguing. Played against middling competition in the C-USA, but made some high-level plays at the rim nonetheless. Doesn’t have the tightest handle you’ll find, but has a real good 1^st step, creative enough moves, and the rangy strides to get to the rim a lot. LOVES to attack the rim and has a natural ability creating for himself. Unorthodox style of play and aggressive mindset with the ball in his hands makes him a tougher matchup, especially when he has single coverage. Can drive at either side of the floor, but favors his left even as a right-handed player. Will make “wow” plays at times that show his ability as a shot creator. A bit too ball-dominant and reliant, and will have to adjust to having the ball less than usual. When in traffic, Barton will struggle some now, and he struggles to deal with contact as it is right now with his thin build. Has an effective floater when in the paint he goes to when the paint is clogged. His length and athleticism allows him to be better than he should be at the rim, but it will be exposed in the NBA and he probably wont be super efficient around the rim until he adds strength. At times gets too fancy when driving and dishing and when finishing. As a shooter, Barton is mediocre. Has raw NBA range, but not going to be much of factor from deep at the moment. Likes to shoot mid-range shots off the bounce, and isn’t particularly efficient doing so. Best when he has his feet set. Needs a lesson in shot selection, and he is prone to taking terrible shots. Takes a few every game, although he did sort of turn it down a notch this past season. Is at his best the less jump shots he takes, coincidentally took less jumpers as a Soph than as a Fr. Even though he has been selfish a bit over his career, he actually will look to pass sometimes (nearly 3 apg both years at Memphis) and wasn’t terribly TO prone for the most part. Will be interesting to see if he settles for jumpers after being hit with a few NBA “grown man” fouls. Gets to the foul line a lot due to his style of play, but is a mediocre foul shooter at best. Can possibly play some minutes at the PG spot, but will need a bit more polish before he’s ready for that. Will go outside of the scheme to get shots at times, and can make coaches upset when he does. Nice offensive rebounder for his size and position.

Defensively, Barton has the length and athleticism to defend both guard spots. He works harder on D than most expect, and gets his hands on a fair amount of passes and even is a factor blocking shots with his length. Struggles getting through screens and with physical wings, as you’d expect at his size. Will fall asleep at times and gets beat off the dribble quite a bit. Should be better at defending thin, quick guards than he currently is. Gets caught reaching a bit too much. Will need to improve his fundamentals and strength before he becomes the versatile defender he can be. Did an outstanding job on the glass this past season (averaged 6 rpg on the defensive end), and had to be among the best rebounding wings in college hoops last year.

Overall, Barton is a raw prospect, but not one without a niche. Obviously his niche is his ability to put the ball in the basket and he has some interesting tools when going about scoring. He’s very quick, has a tricky game that makes him to match up with, and he is aggressive. He’s very thin and pretty weak right now, and he’ll have to address that sooner rather than later though. Teams will exploit him on his weakness, especially since he likes to slash and play aggressive at his size. He needs a shot selection lecture, especially as a mediocre shooter, and he should be a bit too weak for many of the NBA’s wings, but he has a lot of upside offensively and seems to be fearless. He has a Latrell Sprewell style game, and that’s his best case. His worst case is similar is as a Manny Harris-type prospect who needs the ball a bit too much to be effective for his raw skill set. It will be interesting to see who scoops him up.

[river09Participant]

Well said. Big fan of Will Barton’s here. CDR clone who has a bit better of an ouside shot..

 

[del90Participant]

Will Barton is super underrated. He’s going to stick around in the NBA given he has so much promising capabilities on the defensive side of the ball.

http://rand0mlyhiph0p.bandcamp.com/

[del90Participant]

Not too sure of the Vandy kid. He reminds me too much of Matt Harpring. SMH.

[MalcolmxParticipant]

 Where do these scouting reports come from? They are good

[JNixonParticipant]

 LOL @ Matt Harpring. Harpring was good when he played for the Sixers! haha

 

I write them on microsoft word, and then copy and paste then on here @ NyBalla718. lol

[del90Participant]

That’s some good evaluation bro. Keep up the great work. With Harpring, he’s just the polar opposite of a polished player.

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

http://82games.com/nbadraftpicks.htm

People seem to look at role players in the NBA and think they were bad value picks in the mid-late first round area. That can’t be further from the truth. I mean, Matt Harpring averaged 17.9, 8 and 2.3 as a four year player at Georgia Tech. He was picked 15th in the 1998 draft. He played the 15th most NBA games of anyone in that draft, plus more than 8 players taken in front of him. Only 8 players averaged more than Harpring’s 11.5 ppg average in 665 games from that very draft.

Jeff Taylor is a solid player, averaged 16.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg and 1.8 apg as a senior this year at Vandy (compared to Harpring’s 21.6, 9.4 and 2.6 as a senior at G-Tech). Taylor is a versatile defender, has good strength and displayed solid athleticism during his time at Vandy. Regardless, he will be LUCKY to be Matt Harpring. Look at the expectations for a 15th pick. Harpring averaged more points than the average ppg/rpg/apg of 20 players drafted at 15.

If a GM was told, "hey, we have the 28th pick. Trust me, I rode my Delorean into the future and saw that this guy is going to give us Matt Harpring type production", he would be ecstatic. He’d probably be ecstatic at the 15th pick, also. To say Jeff Taylor is "like Matt Harpring" in a negative connotation just is a pretty unrealistic way of thinking when the guy is listed as 28th on a draft big board.

[kobyzParticipant]

you just said that Will Barton has a chance to be top 10 second guard of all time??? cause that what Latrell Sprewell, so good for him… personally i think he’s very much like Marshon Brooks.

Jeff Taylor mold is similar to Mickael Pietrus imo, though i hope for him he could develop more smart and toughness than Pietrus so he could be better pro.

[Malik-UniversalParticipant]

 i dont really like taylors game that much…. good player for vandy…. just not sure how its gnna translate

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