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Michael Gbinije

6-7, 205 Shooting Guard/Small Forward
Syracuse Senior
Birthday
06/05/92 (31.8 yrs)
Hometown
Richmond, VA
High School
Benedictine
Team Site Profile
Statistics
Athleticism
8
Size
8
Defense
8
Strength
7
Quickness
7
Leadership
7
Jump Shot
8
NBA Ready
9
Ball Handling
7
Potential
8
Passing
8
Intangibles
7

NBA Comparison: Reece Gaines

Strengths: Good, but not great, athleticism with three-and-D potential at the next level  … Physical player with great size at 6-foot-7, 205 pounds … Garnered valuable experience playing the point as Syracuse’s primary ball-handler last season (although he’ll play more off the ball professionally) … Also has experience playing the shooting guard and small forward positions … Dynamic playmaker … Fundamentally sound … Has fluidity to his game … Steadily contributes in numerous aspects of a game … Is versatile in his ability pass and handle the ball … Overall, he’s an effective shooter … Displays good shot selection … Has shown growth in his three-point shooting and is able to keep defenses honest … Shot 39 percent from beyond the arc last season … Solid shooter off the dribble and off the catch … Showed great progress in being able to finish at the rim … Shoots close to 60 percent from inside … Has a solid pull-up jumper … At times, he’ll show that he can make athletic plays around the rim … Capable of finishing at the basket with force … Takes advantage of mismatches off the dribble … Is able to attack closeouts and turn corners effectively thanks to his solid first step … Is aggressive in attacking the basket in transition … Improved his ball-handling, especially against pressure … Can get to his spots on the floor and is capable of changing speed off the bounce … Solid basketball IQ … He’ll often make the right play by moving the ball well and making the extra pass on the perimeter … Shows good court vision and a strong feel for the game … Sets up his teammates consistently … Knows when to feed the post, deliver lob passes and make drop off passes on his drives to the basket … Can make the simple play in screen and roll situations … Plays with an unselfish approach … Decision-making has improved tremendously since the beginning of his collegiate career … Takes what the defense gives him instead of forcing the issue … Capable one-on-one on-ball defender … Has good anticipation playing the passing lanes … His size is an advantage on the defensive end … Moves well laterally … Has experience playing on big stage …

Weaknesses: Does a lot of things well but isn’t exceptional in one particularly area of his game … Wingspan is short compared to his height (6’7.5" wingpsan, 6’5.5" barefoot)… Although he’s athletic, he’s not overly explosive or quick … Can improve on his free-throw shooting (shot just 66 percent last season) … His age might affect his draft stock as he will turn 24 in June … Needs to work on consistency with his ball-handling, especially with his left hand … Was a bit turnover prone last season … Didn’t prove to be too consistent at creating shots for his teammates off the dribble … Sometimes get caught leaving his feet without knowing if he wants to pass or shoot … Doesn’t attack the rim with much quickness or aggression … Finishing through contact and exploding to the rim are two things he needs to work on … The mechanics on his shot still need some work … Not much fluidity in his shooting mechanics as it’s rather stiff … As a result, when he misses, he misses badly … Tends to play as if he has a green light to shoot at times…Solid on the defensive end, but needs to work on his positioning as a help defender … Doesn’t shoot the ball well from the corners…His length and strength limitations may keep him from being an elite defender…Lack strength when defending down low … Lack of quickness allows him to get beat off the dribble … Questions of whether he can adjust to playing man-to-man full-time after playing at the top of Syracuse’s 2-3 zone …

Overall: After transferring from Duke to Syracuse in 2012, Gbinije, a Nigerian native, was able to put together a solid collegiate career with the Orange … He began to consistently contribute to the Orange’s success as a redshirt junior in 2014-15 when he averaged double-figure scoring for the first time with 12.7 points to go along with 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.9 steals. This past season, Syracuse  head coach Jim Boeheim asked Gbinije to step up as the team’s starting point guard and leading playmaker after losing key contributors such as Rakeem Christmas and Chris McCullough, both of whom were selected in last year’s draft. Gbinije, a fifth-year senior, responded nicely to his new role and finished the season averaging 17.5 points, 4.3 assists, and 4.1 rebounds. He was one of the most productive players in the ACC as he helped lead the Orange to a Final Four appearance, and ended up earning All-ACC Second Team honors. Gbinije proved himself to be one of the top guard prospects in the senior class by season’s end, but he’s helped his draft stock tremendously thanks to impressive showings at this year’s NBA combine. There’s certainly a future for him overseas but his size, shooting ability, versatility, and coming opportunities to impress teams during workouts could be enough to get him selected in the second round of this year’s NBA draft.

Tajh Jenkins 5/22/16

Strengths: Athletic and versatile 6-foot-7, 200-pound guard-forward … Can effectively play positions 1-3 on offense but may most likely be asked to play either the 2 or 3 at the next level … Wing-sized player with guard-like skills … Extremely effective as a primary or secondary ball-handler at the point guard position … Sees the floor well and has a good feel for the game … High basketball IQ … Has a smooth and fluid style to his game … Can get to his spots on the floor … Good court vision … Makes good decisions w/ the ball … Continues to get better as a facilitator, playmaker, and distributor when running the offense … Doesn’t look to settle on offense, and instead, tries to get to the rim or create for others … Creative and unselfish passer … Knows when to use bounce passes or lobs when distributing the ball off the pick-and-roll or off the dribble drive … Effective drive and dish/kick … Makes pinpoint passes to his teammates who cut to the basket and fill the lanes in transition … Makes the extra pass to an open teammate for a better shot … Changes speed well for a player his size when he’s in attack mode … Has become more assertive in scoring the ball … Scores from anywhere on the court at an efficient rate … Has always been an effective spot-up shooter from the perimeter … A consistent 3-point shooter who can reliable spread the floor … He’s shown flashes of a one-two dribble pull-up from inside the arc … Improving free throw shooter … His size and ball-handling give him an advantage over smaller defenders … Can see the floor over them and makes it easier to get into the lane … Wreaks havoc in the paint with his penetration ability … Can finish with both hands … Converts a high percentage of his shots in the paint … He’s a high riser on the fast break … Hard to stop when driving to the rim in transition (takes good angles) … Fills the lanes correctly … Defensively,  active … Has good awareness … Shows good potential as a man-to-man defender … Has good lateral quickness … Plays the passing lanes well (good instincts and anticipation skills) … Gets his hands on a lot of balls, deflects passes and forces steals … Strong weak side help defender … Can defend positions 1-4 at the collegiate level … Can potentially defend positions 1-3 at the next level … Does a good of tracking down offensive rebounds off his or his teammates misses … Embraces the role of a leader … Capable of accepting added responsibility when the time calls for it …
 
Weaknesses: Although Gbinije is an experienced player, he’ll be 24-years-old by the time the draft comes … His "advanced age" may scare some teams off from drafting him with a high pick … Physically, Gbinije lacks both strength and length … His wingspan isn’t that ideal for his 6-foot-7 size, having been measured shorter than his height on two occasions … He’s not overly quick or explosive … Handles the ball well but needs to show he can do more with his left hand … Usually has good ball control but is currently still getting used to being a primary ball-handler (averaging almost three TO’s per game) … Given the amount of time he’s in the paint per game, he should be shooting more free throws … Consistency shooting off the dribble is an area for improvement … Solid defender but needs to work on recovering when he gets beat off the dribble … Lacks toughness and physicality on occasion … Also, needs to show more intensity on both ends of the floor at times … He’ll sometimes be overmatched when he gets posted up … Had built up a reputation of disappearing during games but has become more a more reliable and consistent threat so far this season (needs to keep that up) … Needs to continue to fill out his frame (add some strength) … For a player who’s 6-foot-7, he can have a bigger impact on the boards …
 
Overall: Gbinije has shown major strides in his game since his underwhelming freshman days at Duke in 2011-2012. He transferred in the spring of 2012 and sat out the 2012-2013 season due to NCAA transfer rules. As a redshirt sophomore in 2013-2014, he continued having difficulty adapting to the college game, resulting in a minimal bench role while averaging just fifteen minutes per game … He took a huge leap forward last season as a redshirt junior, averaging 12.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.6 assists … After Chris McCullough went down with an ACL injury and Syracuse placed a self-imposed postseason ban, Gbinije gave the Orange a much-needed boost on both ends of the court … He displayed his potential as an NBA player in the process … This season, he has seemingly only gotten better and is out to prove that last year wasn’t a fluke … He’s currently averaging 19.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists at the Orange’s leading man at point guard … Gbinije’s combination of size, athleticism and versatile skill set on both ends of the court makes him an intriguing NBA prospect … He has the potential to be a three-and-D player at the next level but can also see minutes as a secondary ball-handler when needed …

Tajh Jenkins 12/1/15

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