Prospect Examination: Doug McDermott

"I think he's as complete a player, and I do not use that term loosely, as complete a player with size as I've ever seen," said Villanova coach Jay Wright. "6-foot-8, 6-foot-9, there's nothing he can't do. He can take you off the dribble, he's tough as hell guarding, he rebounds, he moves without the ball, he seals. He's the best post player we've played against, and he's the best perimeter player and maybe one of the best passers."

When Creighton moved from the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) to the Big East it was a bigger platform for Doug McDermott to put his skills on display against better competition, more scouts and more notoriety. Over the past four years, McDermott has become one of the best college players of All-Time for his outstanding accomplishments at a small school in Omaha, Nebraska with less than 8,000 students enrolled.  Twenty years from now when his pro playing days are over he will be inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

McDermott has won numerous awards including Naismith Award (2014), John R. Wooden Award (2014), 3× Consensus first team All-American (2012–2014), 2× Lute Olson Award (2012, 2014), Big East Player of the Year (2014), 2× MVC Player of the Year (2012–2013), First team All-Big East (2014), 3× first team All-MVC (2011–2013), MVC Freshman of the Year (2011), 2× MVC Tournament MVP (2012–2013), 2× MVC Tournament champion (2012–2013) and NCAA scoring champion (2014).

Last season McDermott considered forgoing his senior year for the 2013 NBA Draft but like Oklahoma State guard Marcus Smart he would go on to stay in school for another season with hopes of increasing his draft stock and he did just that from a second-round pick to a probable lottery pick. Creighton alum and Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver had discussions with McDermott last season and gave him advice on entering the draft in which McDermott took to heart and helped him decide to stay.

"I'm not buying into the fact that I had to go this year because the draft was considered weaker," McDermott said. He (Korver) told me that I'm going to have to beat out guys whether I'm a first-rounder or I wind up going in the second round." 

"[The 2014 draft] looks stronger at the top 15 to 18 picks, but after that it's about the same," McDermott said. "But that's probably not going to be my range this year or next year, anyway. That helped me."

Year	PPG	RPG	APG	FG%	3P%	FT%
'10-11	14.2	7.2	1.2	52.5%	40.5%	74.6%
'11-12	22.9	8.2	1.1	60.1%	48.6%	79.6%
'12-13	23.2	7.7	1.6	54.8%	49.0%	87.5%
'13-14	26.7	7.0	1.6	52.6%	44.9%	86.4%

"Dougie McBuckets" is 6'8" 225 and played power forward in college and it's pretty clear that he will be playing small forward in the NBA. McDermott is professional scorer as he increased his scoring each season and a change in conference showed that he could still score against any school. His career at Creighton was filled with school records as he is the schools All-Time leading scorer with 3,150 points, 3rd in rebounds and one of few players to earn First team All-American honors three times.

"We know he can shoot, but I think he can post up in the NBA as well," said an NBA assistant general manager. "He uses that Dirk [Nowitzki] one-foot fadeaway and has good length to get it off."

"Shooters can be successful in our league," A assistant GM said. "And this kid can really shoot. He's probably the safest pick out there."

McDermott could be experimented as a "tweener" but that experiment most likely won't last long as he is just a scorer with nothing more valuable to a NBA organization; he isn't burly enough to play power forward and isn't quick enough to play small forward. Defensively he will be a huge liability with his lack of speed and very low defensive numbers for a guy that averaged 31.6 minutes per game for his career with averages of 0.2 steals and 0.1 blocks. McDermott is just a offensive minded player and defense is foreign to him as he had defensive rating (DRtg) of 103.4 as a career average but had a career-high 106 average in the Big East.

The strengths for McDermott are two skills which translate very well to the NBA and this is his shooting ability (spot-up, catch-and-shoot) along with his rebounding and that's about it.  He does lack a desired level of athleticism and his lack of defensive skills will hinder him and negate General Managers from drafting him, as scouts are also worried about him. In order for McDermott to get away with being a horrible defender he'll need to be part of a team with a great defensive scheme that helps players with defensive incapability's. 

"He might wind up in the lottery but is more around early-to-mid 20s for me," one scout said. "He has more of a floor game than [Kyle] Korver and is better on D but isn't worth lottery money in my eyes"

"Size-wise, you would think he would have to be an [NBA] three-man," Stan Van Gundy said. I don't know who he is going to be able to guard in the NBA. I don't know if he can guard three's or fours. He'll certainly be an NBA player and a good one, but his ceiling could be a back-up type guy."

McDermott has great weaknesses with likable strengths and he is more likely to be selected in the middle of the lottery but it wouldn't be a surliest if he slipped out of it and became a player selected in the 20s. He will most likely struggle in the early stages of his career like other great scorers from college basketball to the NBA i.e Jimmer Fredette & J.J. Redick and be a role player and averages between 10-15 points per game. Don't expect GMs to also pay much attention to McDermott at the combine in May as he will most likely be judged on his college career than what he does in a few drills.

You have to be a real good player to receive some acknowledgment from NBA players and Doug McDermott had done just that as he was one of two college basketball players in attendance for the Team USA mini-camp during the summer of 2013.

"He was obviously a very skilled player,” Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes said. “And his growth at Creighton really shows the type of development he will continue to have. There's always a place for a shooter, he can make shots with the best of them."

"He's a confident player. He's a confident shooter, a confident scorer,” New Orleans Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson said. “I think a college guy can come in here and be intimidated, but he wasn't. He accepted the challenge. I'm excited to see what happens to him and where he goes."

"He can shoot the sh*t out of the basketball,” Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond said in 2013 with Team USA. “It's incredible. I was surprised he didn't come out for the draft this year, but he's going to make a lot of money the way he shoots."

"He's going to be a great shooter in this league," Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson said.

NBA Comparisons: Mike Dunleavy, Jr., Kyle Korver, Pero Antic, Jimmer Fredette & J.J. Reddick

Best Fits: Cleveland Cavaliers, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns & Minnesota Timberwolves

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Prospect Examination: Kyle Anderson

He entered UCLA  with many High School awards—The Star-Ledger New Jersey Player of the Year (2012), 2× New Jersey Tournament of Champions (2011–2012), 2× New Jersey Non-Public B state title (2011–2012), Parade All-American (2012), McDonald's All-American (2012), Jordan Brand Classic (2012), The Star-Ledger All-Sophomore/Freshman third team (2009 and IS8/Nike Spring H.S. Classic Freshman of the Tournament (2009). All those were the achievements for UCLA sophomore Kyle Anderson, many were against him going pro believing he should've stayed another or all four but he decided to go against.

"Kyle is totally prepared mentally to come out,” Kyle Anderson Sr. said. "He knows he’ll have to get adjusted to the rigors and physicality of the NBA but mentally he’s always been a little more mature than the average age he’s at. His approach to the game right now is that of a person who knows this is going to be my job, this is going to be my livelihood."

Some may or may not know this but the reason why Anderson committed to UCLA over Georgetown, Seton Hall, Florida and St. John's is because of then Bruins head coach Ben Howland.  Howland had gained a respectable reputation for producing successful Point Guards in the NBA (i.e. Russell Westbrook, Jordan Farmar, Darren Collison and Jrue Holiday) but under Howland, Andersen played Power Forward.  UCLA would eventually fire Howland due to lack of wins and disciplinary action against Reeves Nelson and replaced him with Steve Alford.  The coaching changed led to Anderson being switched to a position that he was more accustomed to playing.....the position of point guard.

Anderson struggled his freshmen year since he also played with the lone senior on the team Larry Drew II, who transferred to UCLA after being with North Carolina for the previous three seasons. Despite his struggles as a freshmen he was able to win All-Pac-12 second team (2013) and Pac-12 All-Freshman team (2013).

Kyle Anderson's father Klye Anderson Sr., a longtime basketball coach in New Jersey felt "offended" when Howland played his son as a front court player since he wanted his son to be a Point Guard since he was the years old. It's not the first time his father has been upset with the position his son played, back in High School he was played as a Shooting Guard and was upset by that.

When Alford took over the coaching reigns he must've been jubilant with joy as his son had the opportunity to play the position he was groomed to play since his childhood. Alford said, "He's very unique. A 6-9 point guard that facilitates the way he can. He's a nightmare to match up with."

Looking at his stats:

Freshmen year - 9.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 0.9 blocks and 1.8 steals while shooting 41.6% (FG%), 21.1% (3P%) and 73.5% (FT%) in 29.9 minutes of action.

Sophomore year - 14.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 0.8 blocks, 1.8 steals with his shooting being 48.0% (FG%), 48.3% (3P%) and 73.7% (FT%) in 33.2 minutes.

The improvement is evident from season-to-season with Anderson and in his sophomore campaign he was a finalist for the Oscar Robertson Trophy, Naismith College Player of the Year, John R. Wooden Award, and Bob Cousy Award which is awarded annually to the best Point Guard in the nation. He didn't win that award but was named to the Associated Press third team All-American (2014), Sporting News third team All-American (2014), All-Pac-12 first team (2014), NABC first-team All-District 20 (2014), USBWA first team All-District IX (2014), Pac-12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player (2014) and Las Vegas Invitational Most Valuable Player (2014).

On November 22, 2013, Anderson had 13 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists which was the first triple-double by a UCLA Bruin since Toby Bailey in 1995. He was suspended on January 27th due to violating team rules and also became the only PAC-12 and Division 1 player in history to have 500+ points, 300+ rebounds and 200+ assists in a season. 

Anderson has gained the nickname "Slow-Mo" due to his lack of speed with his 6'9" 230-pound frame. If he wants to play Point Guard in the NBA then he will need to slim down this summer, having that nickname is a very bad thing because most players in the association are fast enough at their respective positions and there are huge question marks as to what position Anderson will play and whichever team drafts him will experiment with his talent and body during the Summer League. Anderson obviously also lacks later quickness (should've put more effort into defensive sides) and will become a defensive liability against his opponent as he is also missing athleticism and strength. His offensive stats make him look lottery material but watching him play on the other-side of the court make him a late or 2nd round pick; to be fair he did have a defensive rating of 95.4 which was ninth in the conference and win shares of 206 which is good enough for sixth in the PAC-12.

"His strengths outweigh his negatives," An NBA scout said. "Very skilled, perimeter shooting has improved and can rebound. Lack of defense and pace of game can be hidden by a good team with defensive concepts. Could end up being a Top 15 pick."

In the NBA he will struggle with creating his own shot as he lacks the explosiveness and athletic ability to do so. His jumpshot is decent for now but isn't a reliable weapon which will lead teams to sag off of him and treat him like Rajon Rondo, daring him to shoot. But since the Point Guard spot is a position he might play then he will mainly be judged on his leadership skills as we will be picked apart as to how well he can run a team as the floor general. The 20-year old needs more guidance to play the one position as he averaged 3.1 turnovers per game.

Kyle Anderson is one of the most intriguing players in the draft this year as he is great two-way player, but the thing with him is that he has height of Small Forward/Power Forward, weight of a Small Forward but the skills of a Point Guard. It's quite clear that he doesn't have clear cut position but is a basketball player and will be utilized someway somehow. When you think about it, Anderson will become one of few "Point Forwards" in the NBA joining LeBron James, Gordon Hayward, Blake Griffin and Kevin Durant. I'm not saying he'll be as good as though players because he doesn't have anything close to the talent they posses.

"He’s a big guy and I’m not for sure what position he would be in the league, I’m not sure he could play the point," New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler said. "But just like the kid out of Syracuse is showing, Michael Carter-Williams, showing that big guys can still play the point and still have a place in this league….It just depends on how [Anderson] continues to develop."

The pre-draft workouts will be crucial to Anderson's draft stock as many scouts are confused on him as a player and worried about his negatives more than his positives. The best thing for him is to get drafted low in the draft to a team with a identity and is accustomed to winning because going to a losing team would hurt his career before it even began. Sorry Dick Vitale but he isn't the next Magic Johnson, Royce White is the most realistic comparison for Anderson.

"I honestly don’t see him lasting more than a few years in the league," an NBA scout said. "though I’ve talked to other scouts that really like him. I just think his offense will take a step back once he gets to the NBA, and his inability to defend is really going to hurt him."      

NBA Comparison: Royce White

Best fits: Oklahoma City Thunder, Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors

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What we've learned from the 1st-round of the NBA Playoffs

The NBA regular season is entertaining due to seeing all 30 teams put out their best effort day-in and day-out. With that being said during the 2014 NBA Playoffs we've begun to learn that the regular season isn't as important as we first thought. In hindsight, teams aren't as formidable and players are gaining respect on a national level. Class is in session and we've learned a lot about multiple teams and players through week one of the postseason.

Predicable?

For years we've heard people call the NBA playoffs predictable because traditionally the higher seed would decimate the lower seed and it's always easy to have an idea of which franchise will be holding the Larry O'Brien Trophy late into June. The thoughts of predictability led viewers to prefer the NCAA Tournament, NHL Playoffs and NFL Playoffs as they aren't predictable.

Surprisingly, the 2014 NBA Playoffs have been far from predictable with multiple games ending in over times, 4-point plays that make you rub your eyes asking yourself “Did he just do that?”, star performances and more. What no one predicted or saw coming was road teams winning 9 of the first 16 games with two sweeping the first two games on the road (Washington & Portland). Also it's the first time in NBA history road teams are 9-7 through the first two games of the postseason.

Superstar players like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Chris Paul are expected to put up insane stats but it has yet to happen however Portland Trail Blazers All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge is averaging 44.5 PPG and 13.0 RPG on the road. No one expected him of all people to breakout this early in the playoffs — his 89 points through two games the most since Allen Iverson's 90 points through two games in the '01 Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. It took eight years but Aldridge has finally received a invitation to join the "elite players" group which wasn't expected. 

Regular Season Impact: 

San Antonio Spurs Head coach Gregg Popovich won the Coach of the Year Award after leading his team to a regular season best 62-20 record.  It's Popovich's third time winning the award joining Pat Riley and Don Nelson as the only coaches to receive the prestigious award that amount of times.

Now it's great for Popovich to win the award, it shows that more coaches can regularly rest their players during the regular season as he did in San Antonio with not one player playing 30 minutes per game. Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra did pick-up Popovich's method and rested his "Big-3" throughout certain points of the season. Popovich winning C.O.Y is going to promote more teams to rest their key players throughout the regular season and looking at it from a fans perspective, it's going to suck seeing million dollar sitting on the bench healthy, especially if your a season ticket holder.

The consistent winning of the road team is a NBA record and raises the question, Why compete during the regular season? The 2014-2015 NBA Season could be in jeopardy because teams like the Indiana Pacers put in max effort for 82-games to secure homecourt throughout the East section of the playoffs just to lose in Game 1 to the only playoff team with a losing record which was the Atlanta Hawks.

Early Collapse?

Ever hear the song "Started from the Bottom" by Drake? Yea well a few teams have started at the bottom and are staying because their whole team isn't there. The Oklahoma City Thunder, Chicago Bulls, Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers have been exposed for their weaknesses which could lead to their demise.

The Chicago Bulls entering the playoffs were thought of as "The team you don't want to face" but right now with the way they are playing against Washington Wizards, that assumption by many has become invalid. Chicago is known for their great defense and were thought by many to be able to put the clamps on the Wiz's offense. Bill Russell said is best, "It's all about getting buckets" and the Bulls can't do that. It doesn't matter how good your defense is, if you can't put the ball in the hole then expect to be bathing in the sun early. No disrespect to D.J. Augustin and Kirk Hinrich, but they should not be your leading scorers through two games in the NBA Playoffs. Along with their lack of offense, Chicago has been exposed for their lack of depth as their starters are over played; most notably Jimmy Butler who played all 53 minutes in Game 2 and has only had a 4:54 minute break through two games.

You've heard the cliche "If it ain't broke don't fix it", but apparently Kevin Pritchard and Larry Bird saw a mistake in something perfectly good. When long-time Pacer Danny Granger was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers it made us say two of the Ws "what and why" because it was a shock as Evan Turner came to town. Andrew Bynum came to town also and fast forward to today and the championship hopes in Indiana are becoming as slim as the Charlotte Bobcats' chances to eliminate the Miami Heat. The panic button for the Pacers should've been hit repeatedly because now they have problems with Evan Turner and Lance Stephenson reportedly getting into a scuffle, Roy Hibbert doing his best Kwame Brown impersonation, Andrew Bynum having knees worse then a 80-year old and Paul George's off the court issues.

The Houston Rockets were chosen by many as championship contenders with the pairing of Dwight Howard and James Harden as they were thought of the second coming of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. While they might achieve something close to Shaq and Kobe, both Howard and Harden have issues they need to resolve. Harden is struggling through two games as his shooting woes have led him to 29.8% shooting and 26.3% from the 3-point line but as for his sidekick Dwight Howard, well he's been dominate averaging 29.5 points, 14.5 rebounds and 4.0 rebounds through two games. You'd think with Howard making a mockery of his opposition that Houston would lead or at least tie the series, but Harden's insufficient shooting is the reason why the Rockets have a huge problem being down 0-2. Houston should not be running their offense inside-out because it's hindering the success of others. Also worth noting is that Harden's temper is as thin as Mohawk when he verbally attacked a reporter after Game 2.

Since 2011 we've talked about Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Their relationship reminds me of a married couple that has so many flaws but for someone they stay together. Both are great players at their respective positions but they will not a championship by living outside the paint. Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal have said it the best, "You don't live by the jumper you die by the jumper" and right Westbrook is digging OKC's grave next to other teams that thought they could win a ring by consistent shooting. In Game 2 Westbrook and Durant combined for 56 shot attempts (28 a piece). Now Durant can take 28-shots but Westbrook can't and that might seem like a double-standard but it's true. Durant is a 4x scoring champ and likely MVP for a reason and Westbrook is just a sidekick with great athletic ability. OKC may go far but they won't win it all unless Westbrook learns that his hand isn't always hot.

Show some respect:

Respect is earned not given and Al Jefferson has earned it rightfully from us all. A few minutes into the Charlotte Bobcats' playoff game, Al Jefferson heard a pop in his foot and was diagnosed with plantar fascia. Plantar fascia is a painful injury according to those who have had it and "Big Al" Jefferson is a 7-foot burly man who is currently playing through it. Jefferson hopped his way up and down the court against Miami because he's determined to get Charlotte their first ever playoff win. The injury was so bad that Jefferson needed to take a injection to even walk but had the heart of a champion to keep fighting. 

Jefferson entered AmericanAirlines Arena the same way he left which was in a boot for Game 2. Before tip-off he needed to take another shot to play and did and just like in Game 1 he was hobbling up and down 94-feet. Jefferson has earned the respect from anyone following the series because he could easily be shutdown for the season with that injury but refuses to go down without a fight.

Wrap-up:    

In general we've seen a great start to the NBA playoffs with nothing turning out as many expected it to with teams becoming exposed for their weaknesses and collapsing at the wrong time. As we get deeper into the 1st-round their are just so many questions; Will the Chicago Bulls get swept by a young Wizards team? Will the Indiana Pacers have the biggest collapse in NBA history? And can Russell Westbrook realize that OKC won't a ring with him shooting 20+ shots? These are all feasible questions to think about as we progress to crowning a champion.

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