NBA Comparison: CJ McCollum/Kevin Martin

Strengths: Shooting guard with excellent ball skills … One of the draft’s top shooters … Hit 40% from 3 (2.3 of 5.7 per game), 83% FT shooter … Has a very clean release, excellent form on his shot … Had a great synergy with teammate Ky Bowman and did most of his damage off the ball as a spot up shooter … Adept at creating shots off the dribble … Very crafty at setting up shots with the use of pump fakes and change of momentum to get defenders off balance and free himself for open looks … An excellent ball handler and very good at shooting off the dribble … Good catch and shoot player, gets set quickly, has a fast and effective release … Has a polished step back move that makes him hard to guard on the perimeter … Imaginative offensive player … Incorporates runners well when necessary, which is helpful considering his size and explosiveness is good but not to the point that he can challenge bigs at the rim … Had some impressive thunderous dunks in games as a junior, showing the ability to dazzle when he gets an open window to the rim … Has a good feel for the game. Understands how to facilitate the pick and roll … Aggressive on the break, attacking the rim and drawing fouls … Solid defender though strength will help at the next level … Deceptive leaper … Slick ball handler with deadly crossover to rock defenders off balance and set up drives or shots outside … Has a lot of wiggle and shake when attacking the rim with momentum … A/TO ratio was 3.3/2.7, solid for a 2-guard …

Weaknesses: Already a junior so a little older than your average first round prospect (Turned 21 in February) … Not especially explosive off the dribble … Not a great ISO player … First step isn’t elite making it harder for him to make quick defenders pay for crowding him … Ability to create is solid however much of his offense came within the flow of team’s offense. Iso skills were underutilized and must improve at next level … May struggle to create open looks with the same proficiency at next level due to his lack of length and blow by speed … 8’2” standing reach is below average for a 2-guard … Not a physically imposing player … Could stand to add some strength to withstand contact on drives and be more of a defensive presence … Can improve as a finisher around the rim … Not great at driving and dishing … Can be careless passing the ball at times … Rebounding and assist numbers actually decreased from sophomore year, possibly due to more of a focus on scoring …

Notes: Measured 6′ 4” barefoot, 6′ 5” in shoes, 188.4 lbs, 6′ 7.25” wingspan, 8′ 2” standing reach, 6.05% body fat, 9.00 inch hand length at the 2018 NBA Draft Combine … Had 46 points against Notre Dame on February 6th, 2018 on 15-23 shooting and 7-12 from three … Averaged 20.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg and 3.3 apg … From Raleigh, North Carolina …

Aran Smith 6/18/18