NBA Comparison: Kemba Walker/Brandon Jennings
Strengths: A shifty bucket-getter that scores in bunches … Excellent body control when driving through the paint – is able to slip between defenders and get into position to get shots up despite traffic and congestion in the paint. Is extremely creative at creating shots at all three levels … Excellent at using deceptive moves to beat defenders, especially head fakes and footwork while dribbling … Tends to bounce when trying to break down defenders, luring them into a false sense of security only to then quickly change direction and create a driving lane … Elite at putting spin on the ball and using multiple release angles to finish around the rim. Despite his lack of size, finishes very well around the rim and is not afraid of contact … Shot release is very quick. Excellent footwork while spotting up / moving around the perimeter keeps him shot ready and allows him to get shots up quickly after catching … Doesn’t need much room to get off a shot, due to the fact players struggle to crowd him because of his ability to drive … Streaky shooter who only needs to see one shot go in to become a microwave scorer … Shoots 44% from three on over 4 attempts per game … Despite a reputation in Overtime Elite for being a high volume shooter, is second on Kentucky in assists … Very good at playing a two man pick and roll game – puts defenders in difficult positions and punishes them for their poor positioning by either scoring himself or setting his teammates up … Trusts his teammates and makes a concerted effort to get them the ball in position for them to score. Uses his excellent finishing ability to set up lob attempts for his bigs when help defense comes over to stop him. Is willing to kick out to the perimeter for open threes when his drives are shut down … Despite not being a strong defender, has a high effort level on that end of the court. Showed maturity in accepting a bench role at Kentucky despite being one of their top producers …
Weaknesses: Slight frame limits his ability on defense to some degree long term … He showed the ability to put weight and muscle on this past year, but his frame will likely always be slight. Needs to have the ball in his hands to be effective … Can force things at time … Will attempt to dribble into traffic and can lose the ball against players with active hands … Plays with the ball a little bit too much at times … Leads Kentucky in turnovers per game and turnovers per minute (among rotation players) … Can sometimes catch teammates off guard with passes when he gets caught in awkward positions and has to force a pass to avoid a turnover. Is susceptible to taking bad shots at times to try to get himself going … Not necessarily a bad thing, but he jumps on his free throw release a little bit. Is the type of player that can always shoot a team out of a game – but sometimes that team is his own … When dribbling to his right, he tends to look to get down hill and to the rim, but when going left is more likely to look for a jumper or a floater … Can create space for his jumper, but will need to further develop that skill to keep higher level / bigger and more physical defenders off balance at the next level …
Outlook: Dillingham doesn’t have prototypical size for the next level, but his offensive skill set and ability to score in bunches makes him an intriguing prospect … He will be a microwave type scorer at the NBA level who can also play the role of a distributor … He can beat defenders off the bounce with his shifty moves, create shots for himself and others, and can also be an excellent spot up shooter … This will allow him to play within many different systems and alongside many different types of players … There will be many people that focus on his lack of size and defensive ability, but his propensity for scoring the basketball at a high level and ability to initiate scoring bursts in a variety of ways should allow him to have an immediate impact at the next level and find himself as a high lottery pick in a draft with a lot of question marks at the top …
Notes: Measured: 6′ 1.00” barefoot, 164.2 lbs, 6′ 3.00” wingspan, 7′ 11.00” standing reach at the 2024 NBA Draft Combine …
Eric Yearian 3/8/24
Strengths: 6’2 combo guard … Very quick … Natural shot creator and has an innate scoring arsenal that isn’t taught. Effortless and high-level shot maker with deep range. Advanced footwork, quick to square up/get balanced to go into his shot, as well as his release … Needs only a little bit of space to get shot off and his ability to draw fouls on jump shots is as good as you will find at this level. Shoots well off the catch or dribble as well as off step backs or pull-ups. Heats up quickly … Draws fouls at a good rate. Shot 6.6 free throws per game over the Grind Session in 2021-22 and 5.1 per game over the Nike EYBL in 2022. Reliable free throw shooter. Shot 81.1% FT% over the Nike EYBL in 2022 … His jump shot keeps the defense tense and opens driving opportunities. Quick with the ball and fits into tight spaces with solid creativity. Breaks down the defense with his dribble. Shifty with natural ability changing speed and can stop on a dime. Creative finisher in the paint and good body control in the air … Shows nice passing ability and finds opportunities to throw lobs. Assist/turnover stats: 6.2 APG/1.3 TOPG U16 Americas Championship 2021, 5th best 5.6 APG/2.6 TOPG Grind Session 2021-22, 3 APG/0.5 TOPG NBPA Top 100 2022, 4 APG/2 TOPG EYBL 2022 … Quick hands, feet, and lateral movement as a defender. Gets skinny fighting through screens. Averaged 3.2 steals per game at the U16 Americas Championship in 2021 and 1.5 steals per game over the Grind Session in 2021-22 … Highly confident …
Weaknesses: Doesn’t have great size and length. Slight frame and lacks strength. His lack of physicality hinders his projection as a defender at the next levels … Good athlete but isn’t real explosive and doesn’t display it much in the half-court … Can improve scoring efficiency as he’s reliant on hitting tough shots at a high-volume that’s not ideal at higher levels. Settles for deep and contested shots at times, can look to get to the rim more often. Scoring stats: 15.7 PPG 45.3% FG% U16 Americas Championship 2021, 20 PPG 41.6% FG% Grind Session 2021-22, 10 PPG 38.1% FG% NBPA Top 100 2022, 18.2 PPG 44.9% FG% EYBL 2022 … Can also improve 3PT shooting consistency: 31.3% 3PT% 5.3 3PTA U16 Americas Championship, 30.4% 3PT% 7 3PTA Grind Session 2021-22, 20% 3PT% 2.5 3PTA NBPA Top 100 2022, 29.1% 3PT% 5.6 3PTA Nike EYBL 2022 … Favors his right hand as a finisher no matter which side he’s driving … Despite having a good assist/turnover count, his role and natural read on the game comes as a scorer, rather than true point, which he lacks ideal size for and his lead guard skills aren’t enough to override a bad shooting night at his shot volume …
Outlook: Kentucky commit … Transferred to Donda Academy after his sophomore year of high school … Earned MVP and won Gold at the U16 Americas Championship in 2021 …
Evan Tomes 10/8/22
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