Michigan State‘s Draymond Green was deservingly named the Big Ten Conference Player of the Year and also has a great chance of being selected as a First Team All-American. He is a finalist for the Naismith Award and Wooden Award as his outstanding play helped put the Spartans earn a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament where Green posted a triple-double in MSU’s opening round game against Long Island. That shouldn’t be surprising since he finished in the top ten in the Big Ten in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals, AND blocks. That’s ridiculous.
With Green’s college career winding down, the question will quickly turn to how the do-it-all forward’s game will translate to the next level and where he might be selected in the 2012 NBA Draft.
Here is my scouting report on Green:
Strengths:
-Physicality
-Strength
-Strong rebounder
-Passing ability
-Mid-range game
-Three point range
-Inside/outside game
-Footwork in the post
-Can back down defenders
-Doesn’t need to score to impact game
-Plays extremely hard
-Basketball IQ
-Terrific teammate/leader
Weaknesses:
-Under-sized to guard an NBA power forward but not quick enough guard a small forward
-Defending on the perimeter
-Lacks ideal NBA athleticism
-Breaking down defenders in one-on-one iso situations
-Slow release on his jump shot
-Will probably have to cut some weight to gain athleticism and quickness
In terms of comparing Green to a current NBA player, he is a mix between DeJuan Blair and Boris Diaw. Like Green, Blair is a 6-7 big body who knows how to use his size and strength inside and on the boards. Mix in a little bit of Diaw who is a jack of all trades type of player who can impact in a game in many ways and is a more versatile player than Blair; and Green falls somewhere in the middle.
Right now in my 2012 NBA Mock Draft, I have Green as the final pick in the first round. I think NBA teams will be concerned as to how his game will translate to the NBA since he doesn’t have a true position at the next level. He will probably need to cut some weight to improve his quickness so that he is more capable of guarding NBA small forwards while still keeping his strength which serves well on the glass. He can be potentially be a solid role player in the association due to his intangibles if he lands with the right team.
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft on the web.
You can follow him on Twitter at DavidKay_TSB.