[Dale WorthingtonParticipant]

Gotta be Semaj Christon.

His skillset, between his playmaking skills and his athleticism, is fairly comparable to those of John Wall. Coach Mack wanted to add some explosiveness off of the wing so Christon was mostly playing off the ball at Xavier. I think that has to be the reason for his decreased draft stock (he was supposed to be a lottery pick heading into last season, and he wasn’t afforded the ability to showcase his PG skills as much as he should have). Why scouts would hold this against him is beyond me.

He doesn’t do anything in 2013-2014 to hurt his stock yet he goes from a potential top 10 pick to a mid-2nd rounder? Very bizarre.

The real only criticism on Semaj is his lack of shooting ability, but then again that’s a criticism on most draft prospects. Furthermore, Christon has improved his shot, especially from outside.

I find it very absurd to see Smart and Payton projected to go in the top 10 yet Christon projected to go in the mid-40s.

Does anyone have an explanation?

 

[Mad MaxParticipant]

 I’ve literally never seen him play, so really can’t say much. But Xaiver was really not good last year when they’ve been a quantity program for a while and if Christon is supposed to be the leader and 1st rd prospect, you’d expect Xaiver would be a better team. Jordan Crawford led them to a sweet 16 a while back and he’s a bench player. That’s all I can really think of. Either way, never seen him so won’t pretend to know if he’s good or not.

[Mad MaxParticipant]

 I’ve literally never seen him play, so really can’t say much. But Xaiver was really not good last year when they’ve been a quantity program for a while and if Christon is supposed to be the leader and 1st rd prospect, you’d expect Xaiver would be a better team. Jordan Crawford led them to a sweet 16 a while back and he’s a bench player. That’s all I can really think of. Either way, never seen him so won’t pretend to know if he’s good or not.

[fito91Participant]

 His shooting ability is the obvious knock on him. I agree though, Smart and Payton both have that same question mark, but other than that not a lot of differences. I think Smart is above them because his jumper seems like it just lacks consistency. He has shown some range while Payton and Christon aren’t likely to worry anyone from the arc. Regardless, I think Christon will be a player that rises on draft day and could go to a team in the late first round. Maybe an OKC

[fito91Participant]

 His shooting ability is the obvious knock on him. I agree though, Smart and Payton both have that same question mark, but other than that not a lot of differences. I think Smart is above them because his jumper seems like it just lacks consistency. He has shown some range while Payton and Christon aren’t likely to worry anyone from the arc. Regardless, I think Christon will be a player that rises on draft day and could go to a team in the late first round. Maybe an OKC

[thparadoxParticipant]

Great points made. To add on:

Christon has a similar profile but doesn’t dominate certain categories the way that Smart and Payton do.

Payton excels in getting to the basket off the dribble, rebounding, passing, getting to the FT line, and defense.

Christon is fairly good at most of these skills, but Payton is superior in every one.

[thparadoxParticipant]

Great points made. To add on:

Christon has a similar profile but doesn’t dominate certain categories the way that Smart and Payton do.

Payton excels in getting to the basket off the dribble, rebounding, passing, getting to the FT line, and defense.

Christon is fairly good at most of these skills, but Payton is superior in every one.

[Dale WorthingtonParticipant]

Where do you get those stats? Interesting.

[Dale WorthingtonParticipant]

Where do you get those stats? Interesting.

[JoeWolf1]

 Christon is a great value pick where he’s projected, but he’s not in the same class as Smart or Payton.

Getting to the rim is something all three are praised for, and Semaj is by far the least efficient of the three.

At the rim Payton shoots 70.4%

Smart shoots 64.9%

Christon shoots 57.7%

He sports the lowest assist to TO ratio (1.61) compared to Smart’s 1.84 and Payton’s 1.64

He gets to the line at a lower rate…Smart took 8.1 FT per game, Payton 8.6 and Christon 6.9

I bring up those numbers because all three are sub par jump shooters who make their living getting to the rim and to the line. Smart and Payton are way more efficient at the rim, both finishing and getting to the free throw line, and turn the ball over less compared to their assist rate.

I agree. Semaj could be a real steal, and should be considered in the late first, but that is just about 5 minutes of response as to why he’s not in the same class as Smart or Payton, I could go on for an hour….easily.

[JoeWolf1]

 Christon is a great value pick where he’s projected, but he’s not in the same class as Smart or Payton.

Getting to the rim is something all three are praised for, and Semaj is by far the least efficient of the three.

At the rim Payton shoots 70.4%

Smart shoots 64.9%

Christon shoots 57.7%

He sports the lowest assist to TO ratio (1.61) compared to Smart’s 1.84 and Payton’s 1.64

He gets to the line at a lower rate…Smart took 8.1 FT per game, Payton 8.6 and Christon 6.9

I bring up those numbers because all three are sub par jump shooters who make their living getting to the rim and to the line. Smart and Payton are way more efficient at the rim, both finishing and getting to the free throw line, and turn the ball over less compared to their assist rate.

I agree. Semaj could be a real steal, and should be considered in the late first, but that is just about 5 minutes of response as to why he’s not in the same class as Smart or Payton, I could go on for an hour….easily.

[providencefriars1Participant]

Also Smart and Payton played PG in college while Christon played the two. He had the ball in his hands some but Dee Davis was the primary PG

[providencefriars1Participant]

Also Smart and Payton played PG in college while Christon played the two. He had the ball in his hands some but Dee Davis was the primary PG

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