2023 NBA Draft scouting report: Brandon Miller

The best player on the best team in college basketball, Brandon Miller’s dominant regular season with Alabama elevated him into the top-2 conversation. 

Brandon Miller was the best freshman in college basketball by a comfortable margin, carrying a massive offensive burden for Alabama, the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. While the Crimson Tide’s storybook season came to an unceremonious end in the Sweet 16, Miller did more than enough to leave NBA scouts salivating over his potential.

On the other hand, Miller did struggle mightily down the stretch — including a dreadful 3-for-19 shooting performance in Alabama’s season-ending loss to San Diego State. With so much pre-tournament hype about Miller potentially supplanting Scoot Henderson as the projected No. 2 pick on draft night, how heavily will NBA decision-makers weigh his postseason flameout?

There are also some critical off-court considerations with Miller. His involvement with a murder charge in Tuscaloosa — tangental or not — raised plenty of red flags. And while NBA teams may be willing to look past those concerns with such a talented player, it bears mentioning. Front offices are going to dig around and grill Miller in interview sessions.

Brandon Miller NBA Draft bio

Height: 6-foot-9
Weight: 200 pounds
Birthdate: November 22, 2002
Position: Small Forward/Power Forward
Offensive Role: Wing slasher/secondary creator
Defensive Role: Switchable wing
Projected Draft Range: 2-6

NBA Draft highlights

Strengths

The NBA’s hunger for versatility and size is what’s driving Miller’s ascension into top-two territory. Even if you believe Scoot Henderson is the better overall talent, Miller’s ability to guard multiple positions, space the floor, and fit chameleon-like with different personnel groups is going to make some teams higher on him. Players like Henderson require a more specific set of circumstances to succeed. Miller should, in theory, thrive just about anywhere and with just about anyone.

Miller was one of the best 3-point shooters in college basketball, hitting just shy of 40 percent of his long-range attempts on the season despite his late cold spell. He moves fluidly with the ball, regularly attacking defenders off the catch and moving smoothly into pull-up jumpers or drives to the cup.

Because of his long frame and high release point, Miller can get to his shot from just about anywhere. He has also made remarkable progress as a playmaker, making good use of his unique vantage point to survey the defense and whip pinpoint passes to open shooters. He can pass with either hand and there’s real creator upside, which at 6-foot-9 is going to make a lot of NBA scouts drool.

On the defensive end, Miller hustles and displays potentially elite versatility. He can contain guards at the point of attack and he should be able to switch 1-4 in some matchups. Again, that’s the appeal with Miller — he can contribute in various ways offensively and he’s going to be an easy plug-and-play defender for any team.

Weaknesses

It’s worth emphasizing that Miller allegedly brought a gun to former teammate Darius Miles, who went on to commit a fatal shooting. Miller was neither charged with a crime nor suspended, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have been suspended. He may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time but there are different ways to read the situation based on the available information and NBA teams will have to do their due diligence on Miller as a person.

On the court, Miller’s elite flashes of shot-making and passing are sometimes counterbalanced by loose handles, a lack of strength, and laggy processing. He can get turnover-prone under pressure and he struggles to finish against size and strength in the paint.

Miller will probably start his NBA career as more of a floor-spacer and slasher than a go-to scorer. That’s not to say he can’t develop his handles over time, but he probably has less immediate superstar upside than some of his high-lottery contemporaries. That said, he boasts a higher floor too, so it will ultimately depend on team circumstances and preference.

His skinny frame also hinders Miller in some matchups defensively. He’s quick and switchable, but stronger NBA wings are going to go right at his chest and win that battle more often than not — at least early on in his career.

Final summary

In general, Miller’s struggles against physical defense leave me more lukewarm than the general consensus. But, he’s still a viable top-five pick in one of the best lotteries in recent memory. He’s the ideal wing for the modern NBA and there are multiple tanking teams who already employ several talented guards. Teams like Detroit, Charlotte, or Houston could be tempted to draft Miller as early as No. 2 for fit purposes.

Even if the higher-level creation upside doesn’t pan out, there’s reason to believe Miller will have a long and fruitful career because of his size and shooting combination. It’s borderline fail-proof as long as the 3-point percentage doesn’t plummet unexpectedly.