NBA Comparison: Nikola Vucevic

Strengths: Highly skilled bigman with great length and intangibles … Shows excellent offensive skills and has really put in the work on that end, adding a reliable three point shot and polished face the basket and post moves … His go to move is to get the ball on the wing and square up and use a jab step to clear space for his polished pull up jumpshot … Also shows the ability to create shots for himself on the block and in the mid range … Has perhaps the best post moves of any prospect in this year’s draft (Timme excluded) … Does a good job of not forcing up bad shots, and passing out of double teams …  Shows excellent touch around the rim … Above average ISO game for a center … Really impressive bag of offensive moves, showing an excellent fadaway jumpshot as well as the ability to square up on other bigs and use the dribble for pulls ups as well as moves towards the basket  … Very solid form on his shot and has steadily improved his 3 point shot (34.6% as a junior, knocking down over one per game) … Solid though not outstanding rebounder (8.2 this year, 9.2 last year) who utilizes his strength and length as well as solid desire and … At times appears to be a bit of a plodder, but has solid fluidity running the floor when he gets his feet moving … High motor, competitive big … Uses his length well to make plays at the rim with ally oops and converting dunks … Extremely consistent player who has improved his production each season, becoming one of the most productive bigs in the nation as a junior, 19.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg … Has close to a 7’4 wingspan, at 6’11 in shoes, prototypical size for an NBA big … Unathletic big but has sneaky athleticism as he moves fairly well and makes plays despite an athletic looking body … Displays a nice mid range floater as well as the ability to hit hook shots … Despite being a below average NBA athlete, his defense is solid as he gives solid effort and has put in the work on learning the nuances of where to be and how to use positioning and space … Excellent passer. 2.8 assists per game, showing steady improvement each year in this area …

Weaknesses: Average athlete by NBA standards … Feet are a bit heavy as he has trouble exploding from a standstill both facing the basket and laterally on D … Lack of foot speed laterally will likely cause problems on switches in the new NBA where bigs need to be able to guard the perimeter on switches … Despite having excellent length with a 7-3.5 wingspan, he’s not much of a rim protector or shot blocker due to lack of verticality … Could struggle some as a rebounder due to his lack of athleticism … Not the most fluid bigman showing heavy feet and a lack of fluidity in his movements and gait running the floor … Shot 53% from inside the arc, under 50% from the floor overall (49.2%), an indication that he doesn’t have the athleticism to convert a great deal of easy looks at the rim, granted some of that was how he was utilized, as a creator and not a rim runner  … Level of competition in the Mountain West Conference creates concerns about his stats and efficiency going up against weak competition. Raising the concern about whether he could have similar success against a power 5 conference, night in and night out … Despite having a solid build, not the most physical player. Should look to get stronger and play more physical …

Outlook: Shaping up to be one of this years draft’s biggest sleepers … Despite a lack of national hype currently, Robinson is well liked by scouts and is considered a potential late first round pick for the 2022 NBA draft … He shows starter potential at the NBA level and will likely impress in workouts and interviews with his maturity and focus … Started all 90 games of his NCAA career … Cerebral, hard working individual who draws rave reviews for his off court demeanor and character  … Playing style is sort of like a poor man’s Karl Anthony Towns … Despite not being the most athletic big, uses skill and a high basketball IQ to beat opponents …

Notes: Measured 6’9.75” barefoot, 6’11.25” in shoes, 9’2.0” standing reach, 239.6 lbs, and 7’3.5” wingspan at the 2021 NBA G-League Elite Camp … Native of Las Vegas, NV …

Aran Smith 3/31/22

Notes: Measured: 6’9.75” barefoot, 6’11.0” in shoes, 9’3.0” standing reach, 244.4 lbs, 7’4.0” wingspan at the 2022 NBA Draft Combine …