NBA Draft 2017: Pro comparisons for prospects

Dennis Smith Jr., PG – North Carolina State

Comparison: Derrick Rose (offensive explosiveness), Kyle Lowry (physical build, shooting)

Obviously comparing a player to the current version of Derrick Rose would be more of a negative than a positive. However, when you harken back to his glory days on the Bulls before his knee injury and when he was winning MVPs, people forget how dynamic and electric he was with the ball in his hands. In that same regard, Dennis Smith Jr. brings a similar level of burst and explosiveness to the table.

Though his motor wasn’t necessarily on the level of Rose’s while playing at NC State, Smith can be a just-get-out-of-his-way type of force for opposing defenses. Not only does he have a raw physicality to his attacking with the ball in his hands, but he has that same shiftiness that Rose had in the air that makes him so difficult to stop when he’s going at the rim. The primary difference, however, lies in the build of smith, which is much more reminiscent of Kyle Lowry than Rose.

While Smith may have a couple of inches on Lowry and bit more length, their body type is quite similar. That actually makes him more dangerous in some capacity because he has a more functional strength than Rose did early coming out of Memphis. Also like Lowry and unlike Rose, Smith has a reliable outside jump shot. It’s certainly not his best asset or his go-to weapon, but it’s a shot that coaches are fine with him taking at the point, which an asset that helps open up the rest of his game.