doesn't sound too bad!
West Coast Workout Swing Part 3: Joe Abunassar's Impact Basketball
May 18, 2010
Joseph Treutlein
Quite possibly the most impressive player in attendance here, Avery Bradley put on an outstanding shooting display in both drills and scrimmages, showing off his picture perfect form while many times making those in attendance wonder if he can miss a shot. In drills, Bradley looked very smooth pulling up off a confident dribble, knocking down a variety of shots, while also showing off his excellent athleticism in transition, putting his 37.5 inch vertical leap to good use.
Where Bradley really impressed though was the scrimmages, where his team rarely lost and he made great use of the floor’s spacing, getting to open spots of the floor with ease, showing no troubles getting separation from his man. With his excellent body control, balance, and elevation, Bradley just needs a glimmer of space to get his shot off, and he showed that especially playing the pick-and-roll game. Bradley hit a variety of pull-up jumpers from the mid-range and from behind the arc, many with a hand in his face, which didn’t seem to do much. He incorporated in some hesitation dribbles and fakes to get separation when his first move didn’t work, but mostly didn’t need it, just being so proficient out of simple pick-and-rolls.
Bradley was able to dominate constantly looking for his shot out of pick-and-rolls, but he didn’t really excel finding his teammates, something that wasn’t problematic here but did lead to some troubles at Texas this past season, as he’s prone to showing tunnel vision looking for his own shot. While it’s tough to take much concrete from these scrimmages, nothing we saw here suggested Bradley is yet ready to be a full-time point guard in the NBA, in line with what we saw from him all season.
Bradley also didn’t show much in terms of finishing at the rim, though to be fair the way he was playing, he didn’t need to try. He is a bouncy athlete in space for sure, but he did have some troubles finishing at the rim in college this season, and it’d be nice to see him continue to work on his floater.
Defensively, Bradley likewise shined, using his full 6’7 wingspan to great use, never giving up on a play, and constantly trying to affect plays from behind when beat. He did a good job battling through pick-and-rolls and played physical, intense defense pretty much every possession, having some great battles with the other small guards here. Bradley also appeared to be a very good teammate, encouraging others and being pretty vocal in general.
Seeing Bradley run so many pick-and-rolls and play in an environment with much more spacing than he saw at Texas, it’s not hard to see many reasons why he has the potential to be a better NBA player than he was in college, especially if he can go to a system that emphasizes those two concepts. Bradley’s 6’7 wingspan also bodes well for his chances of defending shooting guards at the next level, at least reserves, many of which are 6’5 and under. While there are questions about his position, Bradley certainly brings quite a few NBA skills to the table, and could be capable of contributing immediately in the right situation, though situation should be critical to his early chances at success.
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NCAA Weekly Performers, 3/25/10
March 25, 2010
Joseph Treutlein
Avery Bradley has had an inconsistent freshman season, not unlike many of his teammates and the Texas Longhorns as a whole. Bradley’s shots and production fluctuated wildly from game to game, and he didn’t do much to improve on his weaknesses over the course of the season, though the one thing that remained consistent throughout was his intense, smothering defense. We covered Bradley extensively less than two months ago here, but with many indications suggesting he’ll be entering his name in the draft, it’s worth taking a more detailed look at this unconventional player whose stock is likely to be all over scout’s boards.
Bradley is a somewhat unique prospect in that there really isn’t anyone in the NBA with his skill set, and there are questions about how easily he’ll be able to find a niche. The majority of undersized pure 2’s in the NBA are versatile scorers that can consistently create their own shot, while Bradley on the other hand is a more selective shooter who isn’t adept at getting to the rim, though is also an outstanding defender.
Bradley’s lack of anything resembling playmaking skills or a point guard mentality may be his most concerning attribute projecting to the pros, as it’ll be very tough to play him at the 1-spot without great shot-creators around him. While Bradley is capable of making flow-of-the-offense passes to open shooters at times, when he puts the ball on the floor he goes into clear scorer mode, looking exclusively for his own shot, even out of pick-and-roll scenarios. Developing into a more versatile pick-and-roll threat could vastly open up his own offense, while also giving teams another reason to give him playing time. This might be the most important thing to follow as the freshman’s career progresses.
Bradley’s strongest offensive attribute is undoubtedly his jump shot, which he is very reliable with in catch-and-shoot situations and pulling up off one or two quick, compact dribbles. While lacking much in the line of advanced moves, Bradley still does an excellent job getting separation for his jumper by using shot fakes, jab steps, and rip moves in combination with good footwork and a good first step. The interesting thing about Bradley’s shot is that in spite of having very good form, boasting great elevation and a high and quick release, he’s still prone to many shots that completely miss the mark, and he’s shooting a surprisingly poor 55% from the free-throw line (albeit on a limited 66 attempts).
Speaking of free throws, another major problem area in Bradley’s game is his inability to get to the line, something that most combo guards in today’s NBA are expected to do. He ranks dead last in free throws attempted per-40 minutes pace adjusted amongst all players in our 2010 or 2011 mock drafts in fact, drawing just 66 attempts in 1000 minutes this season, or one for every 15 minutes he’s on the floor.
Another issues revolves around his inability to get high efficiency possessions around the basket in general. He’s scoring an incredibly poor 0.75 points per shot on shots around the basket according to Synergy, and in watching his game, it’s easy to see why. Bradley is often out of control on his drives to the basket and very rarely puts in much effort to create high percentage looks, rather trying to get close to the rim and then just throwing the ball in the general direction of it. On the bright side, Bradley does show an effective floater when he’s intently looking for it, and many of his problems attacking the basket are related to a careless mentality as opposed to lack of ability, though he will certainly have some limitations projecting to the pros given his lack of size and strength.
Defensively is where Bradley projects best to the pro level, but the problem here is he will need to find a proper niche to best put his strengths to use, as his physical makeup is much better suited to defending point guards and combo-guards than it is taller shooting guards. Bigger players will be able to simply shoot over him and overpower him on drives to the basket, things that happened when faced with those situations this year—for example against James Anderson.
To Bradley’s credit, one thing he does incredibly well is play outstanding prevent defense off the ball, sticking to his man like glue all over the floor and blocking off passing lanes to keep the ball away. On the ball, his lateral quickness is superb, as is his fundamental stance, and he puts in excellent effort all the time, getting right up into his man no matter where he is on the floor, using his length and hands very well, and always getting a hand up to contest a shot. For all of Bradley’s strengths on defense, however, he has struggled defending the pick-and-roll this season, due in part to his physical nature, as he’s prone to run full force into a well-set pick, getting stuck and not being able to recover, as he doesn’t have the strength to fight through them.
Looking forward, Bradley is an extremely interesting prospect, but where and who he gets drafted by will have a huge impact on his immediate success in the league. Playing alongside a big shot creator (such as Tyreke Evans or Dwayne Wade) who can defend 2’s, or coming off the bench to play off the ball and defend opposing point guards or combo guards are situations he could find himself excelling in.
He should also benefit from playing alongside more steady playmakers in the pros than the revolving door of shaky point guard play he saw at Texas. Continuing to work on his three-point range, being more focused on his shot attempts in the lane, and really working to develop his pick-and-roll game should be among his priorities, and all of those things could help him find more potential niches in the pros, something that could be challenging if he is drafted into a tough situation.
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From DraftExpress.com
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Avery-Bradley-5285/#ixzz0rpXJWGz4http://www.draftexpress.com
Topic: Celtics Fans, say hello to Avery Bradley! (Read 24160 times)