NBA Comparison: Brandan Wright/Samuel Dalembert

Strengths: Henson is a long, long 6’10 PF who uses his incredible 7’4 wingspan to cause problems … Has a 9’3.5" standiong reach which is 3.5 inches greater than Anthony Davis … Solid athleticism as well, being pretty explosive as a leaper, and he’s really reactive and quick … Can impact the game defensively in a major way when he’s on the court … Most outstanding trait as a player is his shot-blocking ability, and he swatted about 3 shots a night as a Jr … Has the intriguing ability to block shots with either hand, and shows outstanding reactive leaping skills … Slashers must spot him, or their shot will be in the seats … A factor getting on-ball blocks … Only averaged 1.6 fouls a game as a Jr., and that is truly remarkable for a shot-blocking presence with the freedom he had … Understands how to go up straight in the air for blocks, and doesn’t fall for pump fakes very often … As an overall defender, Henson is also a weapon due to his ability to cover wide ranges on the court … Has more than enough athleticism and length to be a real weapon hedging and even defending smaller players in pick and roll defense … Was able to roam the court for UNC to protect the rim, and was trusted (and usually succeeded) when asked to not allow easy shots around the basket area … Uses his length to deny post entry feeds … Runs the floor very well … Good finishing garbage plays at the hoop … Gets a nice number of dunks and high percentage looks … Is a good alley-oop target, and finishes with explosiveness … Soft hands and doesn’t bobble passes much … Developed a weird-looking, yet effective jump hook that he can get off with both hands, even if his footwork to go with it isn’t consistently there … Understands how to extend himself offensively, and he gets off a good number of his moves despite his narrow frame by being a long strider and seemingly stretching his arms out like a condor … Usually has a quickness advantage on his low post matchups … Shows an improving turnaround jumper over his right shoulder that he likes to use on the extended block from as far out as 12 ft … His counter moves showed promise over the past 2 years as well, showing the ability to use up-and-unders or even pump fakes to get shots around the hoop or get to the foul line … Steadily improving his jumper, and has a growing level of comfort shooting as far out as 18 ft … Quality rebounder, and is an especially effective rebounder offensively … Could be a big pick and roll threat for a PG, as he has the size and athleticism to get a number of quality looks in that style … Plays with a pretty live motor … A hard worker, has put on nearly 40 lbs since his Fr. season, and has rounded his game out very well, especially offensively … Has gotten more aggressive and tough over time … Still getting better, was a 6’2 guard in HS before a huge growth spurt hit just prior to his Jr. year …

Weaknesses: Henson is thin, with a narrow build that has gotten better but still is weak for an NBA PF … Still has the shoulders of the 6’2 player he was before the growth spurt, and that will be troubling for him as he packs on muscle without losing flexibility and athleticism … NBA PF’s will probably bully him on the block and be able to seal pretty easily on him in post-up situations … His lack of strength would be less pronounced if he played with a lower center of gravity, but he usually is a bit too upright so guys can get in his body … Avoids contact, would much rather use finesse than get physical … Although Henson is a good athlete, he is quirky with his lateral movements due to his long legs and unorthodox footwork … Offensively, Henson has made good strides over the last 3 seasons but he still lacks great polish … Since he will have a tougher time establishing position against NBA bigs, he will need to refine his jumper a bit more … Can stretch and hit shots from mid-range, but he needs consistency and repetition … Doesn’t factor much as a ball-handler, even though his long strides and quickness would make him a slashing threat against most bigger PF’s … Struggles to finish shots with contact … More likely to get in foul trouble in a physical game…Should improve his fundamentals and awareness on the glass more, as he usually just banks on being athletic and long to get rebounds…Really struggles from the foul line, was a sub-50% FT shooter for his career, showing his still developing shooting touch

Overall: After 2 seasons being an impact player for UNC with his length and athleticism, Henson declared after improving steadily each season he was in college…He is a great shot-blocker and rebounder, who can get you easy buckets off garbage plays too…His strength will always be a question, and his unorthodox style of play offensively surely needs polish…But a team looking for a shot-blocking presence who provides energy and doesn’t get in the way offensively will look at Henson…Still has upside despite spending 3 seasons in college…Probable top 20 pick …

Jorrye Nixon 6/18/12

Strengths: Athletic specimen at 6’10 with octopus-like 7’4 wingspan … Goes beyond the conventional defensive presence– he wrecks games with his length … Extraordinary shot blocker (3.2 blk) featuring a combination of length, quick vertical leap and ability to swat with either hand … His court coverage is freakish, consistently leaving a defensive imprint even when out of position … Rebounds above the rim (10.1 rpg) where his physical tools provide him an innate advantage … Particularly effective on the offensive glass (3.2 off) … A long strider with good straight-line speed, he runs up and down the floor with ease … Frequently beats his man in transition and a target for easy deuces … Face up game shows potential with comfortable ball handling skills, quick first step and length to reach the rim in two dribbles … Adroit finishing with either hand around the basket … Learning to utilize his size advantage in the post and less averse to throwing his “weight” around … Favors a quick spin move to the baseline to avoid contact … Produces most of his scoring output (11.7 ppg) without the basketball: o-boards, in transition (alley-oops) and finding open creases in the defense … Rarely looks to shoot outside a few feet (50% fg) … Finishes over defenders, not through them … Solid development (some body maturity) is clearly evident from freshman to sophomore campaigns. He’s turned the aggression meter up several notches.

Weaknesses: Despite putting on approximately 30 pounds since arriving on campus (180 to 210), Henson is still thin as a rail. He doesn’t possess the frame to add substantial bulk with exceptionally narrow shoulders … Core strength is lacking, easily bumped off balance on drives to the basket and can’t maintain post position offensively or defensively … His movements, while effective for the most part, are not graceful by any means … His legs are pronated and appears duck-footed: clumsy when forced to move laterally … Must put in the hard yards to improve his footwork … Projects as a tweener at the next level, with inadequate muscle to bang inside with 4’s or perimeter skills to play the 3 … His jump shot needs a lot of work as the ball comes off with a sidespin … He shot 48% from the FT line in what has undoubtedly become a mental battle … Range has all but disappeared … Outside of his shot blocking prowess, he does not project an aura of confidence on the floor- more of anxious energy … Sometimes overly fascinated by his length, going above and beyond to impact shots better left alone e.g. last shot versus Washington … Does not box out, fully reliant on his length and leaping ability … A full 40 minutes of focus seems like a tough ask … Highly physical games inhibit his effectiveness, preferring finesse opponents where he can roam freely …

Adam Ganeles 4/5/11

Strengths: Freakishly long and athletic forward who has a tremendous amount of potential … Has wiry strength and is not afraid to mix it up inside with players much bigger than him … He has the necessary speed, mobility as well as some moves off the dribble to make plays on the perimeter … His low post repertoire is still developing, but most importantly his touch around the hoop is very soft allowing him to convert on difficult shots … Because of his extremely long arms and nice leaping ability, he is able to grab rebounds above the box and out of reach of his opponents … He is very active on the O glass, putting himself in good position to get easy points … Defensively he is a menace, because he is quick enough to stay infront of smaller players and he is also a tremendous shotblocker at this level …

Weaknesses: Has a lot of work to do on his body … His slight frame and narrow shoulders might make it difficult for him to put on any substantial bulk … Since he is so light, opposing big men have little trouble moving him out of position on the blocks, forcing him to shoot further out than he would like … Even though he is capable of playing both 3 and 4 positions, he is still a tweener on the offensive end because he is not a consistent threat at either spot … As a scorer he depends heavily on his ability to get garbage points as he has not yet developed a go to aspect to his game … His jumpshot is decent, but if he wants to become a more dangerous wingplayer, he needs to gain more consistency and extend his range …

Borko Popic – 9/9/2008

Borko Popic is a lead scout/contributor to NBADraft.net. Please check out his premium website / scouting service hooprospects.com, an essential tool for college coaches, and European and NBA scouts.