Diamond Stone Scouting Report: January 2016

Few freshman entered the 2015-16 college basketball season under more pressure than Maryland center Diamond Stone. Already saddled with the expectations that inevitably come with being a top recruit, Stone immediately found himself cast as the lone teenaged rotation player on a veteran-laden Terrapins team with national championship designs.

As is to be expected with most 18-year-old big men, the early part of the season has been a bit of a mixed bag for Stone. While the crown jewel of coach Mark Turgeon’s recruiting class has shone radiantly at times — most notably, setting the Maryland single-game freshman scoring record with 39 points in a comeback victory over Penn State — Stone’s flaws have also been on full display, leading Turgeon to limit his minutes by bringing him off the bench. And though it appears that Stone may make his triumphant return to Maryland’s starting lineup sooner rather than later, a number of questions still linger that he will have to answer in order to solidify himself as a presumptive lottery pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Offense

True to his name, Stone’s offensive game revolves primarily around his toughness. He is a bully when he wants to be, and his blend of brute strength and agility can make him difficult to contain once he gains any sort of inside position on his defender. Stone won’t leap out of the gym, but he does have a very quick second jump. He also has great hands for a player his size, which is especially important given that he does the majority of his work below the rim.

Combine those two attributes with his junkyard dog ferocity in the low post, and it’s little wonder why defenders can sometimes appear overmatched. It’s not uncommon to see Stone get two or three put-back attempts in a row because nobody can rip the ball away from him; the possession is either going to end in an easy bucket, free throws or both.

Of course, the flip side is Stone could stand to improve at finishing through contact. Longer defenders tend to give Stone trouble, given his below-the-rim nature, and opponents who are able to push back against his strength are able to keep him out of the areas in which he is most dangerous.

However, Stone is hardly a one-dimensional scorer. The Terps have only more recently begun to exploit the freshman center’s prowess as a pick-and-pop threat, but he has flashed the ability to bury mid-range jumpers with some regularity. Stone already possesses a fairly smooth stroke, and the fact that he is shooting a remarkable 80.2 percent from the free throw line projects well with regards to the likelihood that he will continue to expand his range.

Continuing to add dynamic elements to his game is important for Stone’s development because as it stands now, he has a disconcerting habit of fading in and out of the offense. When he’s not directly involved in the action, Stone has a tendency to drift, letting smaller defenders take him out of the play entirely without much resistance. Even when he is involved, he can sometimes appear lethargic. Often, his attempts at setting screens could more accurately be described as tangentially standing in the same general direction as his teammate is headed.

And though Stone leads the Big Ten in offensive rebounding rate, that’s actually a bit of a misnomer. A whopping 48.9 percent of Stone’s offensive boards have come off his own missed shots, often on multiple put-back attempt plays as seen in the video above. Among the other nine players in the Top 10 in the conference in ORB%, only one had a percentage even half as high as Stone’s. Outside of corralling his own misses, Stone wasn’t all that effective on the offensive glass.

Defense

Stone’s rebounding issues are not limited to the offensive end, either. On rate alone, Stone’s defensive rebounding numbers are lower than one would expect for a player his size. In fairness, Maryland is a good rebounding team in general, so it’s full well possible that Stone’s rebounding numbers are being cannibalized to an extent by his teammates. However, in looking at the tape, it’s clear that there are some glaring issues nonetheless.

For a player with such tenacity inside the opponent’s paint, it’s downright weird to see Stone sleepwalk through rebounding opportunities on the defensive glass. Sometimes, he exhibits a complete disinterest in boxing out; other times, he seems to just kind of give up when he’s placed at a disadvantage.

Now, this is not always the case. When he’s dialed in, Stone uses that same bruising strength to claim ownership of the boards. But again, he’s 6-11 and 255 lbs. The fact that he’s posted five or more defensive rebounds in a game only three times this season would seem to be a red flag. On the positive side, his best rebounding performances have come since the new year, so there is some hope moving forward. But the effort needs to be far more consistent.

The same can be said about Stone’s work as a defensive anchor, though he has certainly made strides in recent weeks. He’s at the point where it’s easy to envision him developing into a strong one-on-one post defender. Stone generally does a solid job of standing his ground on the block, though larger, more developed players like North Carolina’s Kennedy Meeks have been able to push him around a bit. But as Stone continues to add muscle, he should develop into a rock on the low block. And the stronger he gets, the more he’ll be able to smother opposing post-ups with his 7-3 wingspan. His discipline in man-to-man defense has gotten to where it needs to be; now, it’s up to his body to catch up.

As far as team defense is concerned, it’s probably more likely than not that Stone will never develop into a reliable defensive anchor. He has the requisite length, and from time to time, he’ll flash the anticipation skills needed for the role. However, those moments are few and far between. More frequently, Stone plays a little too far off the ball-handler, conceding the open jumper. He also has a tendency to fail to seal off angles of attack, particularly along the baseline. Even without being a true rim protector, though, he has the tools to be an effective deterrent in pick-and-roll defense. His length and agility already give him a puncher’s chance against most perimeter players, and the more knowledge and experience he is able to soak up, the better he should get.

That, coupled with some strong post defense, should still make Stone an asset in his own end.

Outlook

Stone is an 18-year-old center prospect with great hands, good length and above-average agility for the position. While he tends to rely on his strength to play ‘bully ball’ in the post, he is an excellent free throw shooter for his position and has the potential to be a reliable threat in pick-and-pop actions. Defensively, he projects more as a strong man-to-man defender than a true rim protector, though he has the physical tools necessary to be effective at slowing the pick-and-roll. The biggest question mark at this point is his motor, which has a tendency to run cold for long stretches of time.

Whether or not he is able to put forth consistent effort on a play-to-play basis will be the biggest determinant of Stone’s success at the next level.