2019 NBA Mock Draft: Re-evaluating the top prospects
125. . F. Duke. Cam Reddish. 8. player
Intermittently over the course of the next three weeks until the NBA Draft, we will plug back into a high-profile game from the 2018-19 college basketball season to check back in with some of the top prospects. That homework is vital to evaluating prospects, as our aged perceptions of players can veer too far in one direction if we don’t remind ourselves of the full breadth of a player’s skill set.
Reddish is a great example of someone whose workouts and reputation will serve a vastly different impression than game tape. So we dove back into Duke vs. Auburn from the Maui Jim Maui Invitational back in November to evaluate Reddish and his Duke teammates against the eventual Final Four-bound Tigers.
A few quick takeaways from Reddish’s performance on a neutral court against Auburn:
- This was a different version of Reddish than we saw late in the year. He was involved, confident and chipping in with different additions on both ends.
- For instance, with RJ Barrett isolating at the top of the key, Reddish cut toward the free throw line and drew a foul with his long arms. Later, he drew another foul driving from the right baseline after a spin move got the defender off balance.
- Yet there will still many simple mistakes. Reddish played confused defense and showed the baby deer-like body control that plagued him all year. He drew his third foul with eight minutes left in the first half, one of which came on offense during an off-balance drive into several Auburn defenders, after which Coach K shook his head dismissively.
- Coach K, however, should not be so frustrated with his star wing. The coach too often put Reddish in cramped quarters coming off a pindown in the corner with no spacing. Asking a guy to create good offense out of a side pick-and-roll with no shooters around him is a recipe for turnovers and offensive fouls.
So it was for Reddish much of the year — when the game slowed down and he was able to work his core skills (spot-up shooting, shot creation on open drives, on-ball defense), he looked great. In most other situations, not so much.