NBA Draft 2019: 5 best undrafted players

CHICAGO, IL - MAY 17: Shamorie Ponds of St John's works out during the 2019 NBA Combine at Quest MultiSport Complex on May 17, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.(Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

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NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 13: Shamorie Ponds #2 of the St. John’s Red Storm dribbles the ball up court during the Big East Men’s Basketball Tournament first round game against the DePaul Blue Demons at Madison Square Garden on March 13, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

4. Shamorie Ponds, Guard, St. John’s

Shamorie Ponds won’t last long on the free agent market and was reportedly already talking with the Houston Rockets. While Ponds is small — he barely crests 6-feet tall in shoes — he’s a highly capable scorer and passer. While he’s struggled with his efficiency at times, like during his sophomore campaign, his overloaded role at St. John’s made that significantly more understandable, and the improvements this season after attaining more help in both true shooting percentage and turnover rate are appealing in themselves.

The most remarkable thing about Ponds, though, is that he has a skill that is outright rare in this league, and those who do have it tend to be very, very good players: he understands how to manipulate his defender’s momentum against them. This is something guys like Kemba Walker, James Harden, and Luka Doncic are all very good at. They basically understand how the defender is going to move in order to handle what they did, and they understand how they can move to punish it. And that gives you some pretty solid precedent around Ponds because those guys are neither the tallest nor the most athletic in the league, but they’re very, very effective in spite of it. As a result, the Rockets will make strong use of Ponds.

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