Scouting Report – Rakeem Christmas

Name:   Rakeem Christmas        DOB:  12/1991 (23)   School: Syracuse

Height: 6’9         Weight: 250   Projected Position:  PF

2013-14 Stats (as of 2/2/15):

18.4 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.4 apg, 2.0 bpg, 0.9 spg (33.1 minutes per game)

59.0 FG%, 72.7 FT%, 62.5 TS%, 59.0 eFG%

25.9 USG%, 11.1 ORB%, 19.1 DREB%, 15.2 TRB%, 7.3 BLK%

SKILLS & ATHLETIC BREAKDOWN

Offense

Post Offense

Christmas has taken big steps as a post player, showing improved hands and footwork, as well as the ability to play with his back to the basket, or face up out of the low post. Christmas works hard to establish position on the blocks, though he could improve how he uses his lower body to establish position and seal the defender. He is comfortable going over either shoulder and can shoot short shots with either hand, including a nice mini-hook in the lane. Christmas can be patient when making his move, though he is capable of a quick move over either shoulder, including a nice baseline drop step. He does need to continue to work on his secondary post moves when his first move is stopped, but he has been developing a nice up-and-under move for those situations. Christmas has improve his touch on his shots, especially out to 6 to 8 feet from the basket, and his ability to extend well on his shots makes them tough to block. He does need to continue working on shooting with his left hand, as while he’s improved close to the basket, he can have some trouble when forced away from the basket. When facing up out of the post, Christmas has shown he can drive by defenders over short distances, depending on the match-up, and though he doesn’t do it often, he can hit the short jumper somewhat consistently. He uses his strength well to power through defenders around the basket, and by being active, he can often find openings for his shot. Christmas is a good screener, and he opens up to the ball well in pick-and-roll situations.

Ballhandling/Passing

Christmas isn’t a very good ballhandler, even for his size, but he does a good job limiting the amount of time he puts the ball on the floor. Over shot distances, he is capable of using either hand to get to the basket, though he needs to watch letting the ball get too far away from his body. Christmas can make a quick move to the basket when he gets the ball within 5-10 feet of the basket, though he will often prefer to back his man down instead. Christmas also needs to work on his ability to sense double teams out of the low post and get the ball out quickly to an open teammate. He does show patience when the double-team comes, but he will often hold on to the ball too long, and the defense is able to rotate well into position.

Perimeter Offense

Christmas doesn’t get many attempts at taking jumpers, as he works mostly in the low post for the Orange, but from his few attempts, there is no reason to believe that he won’t become at least an average mid-range shooter with time and repetitions. He does a good job getting square to the basket, has a fluid motion, and good follow-through. The key area for him to work on is his release, which can be a bit low and out in front of his face, causing him to shoot almost a line-drive at the rim.

Free Throw Shooting

Christmas showed very good improvement last season as a free throw shooter, and the improvements have seemed to stick this season. He has a very compact and consistent motion, good balance, and a smooth release. One area which could help him a bit more would be to get a little more arc on his shot, so it isn’t as much of a line-drive, and could give shots that are a bit off a chance of still going in. Christmas is very active in the post, and does a good job drawing, and finishing through, contact. He gets to the line more than one time for every two field goal attempts, which is a decent rate for a low post player, and has had double-digit free throw attempts in a game five times this season.

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Defense

Post Defense/Help Defense

Christmas has worked hard to improve as a post defender, and he has made strides in some key areas. He shows solid, balanced base with his legs and positions himself well between his man and the basket. His footwork needs to improve when defending against both back-to-the-basket and face-up post moves, but he has shown some improvement even in the past year, and his ability to extend and challenge shots still makes it tough on his man to get a good look. Christmas uses his length to try and deny post-entry passes, or uses his upper body to lean on them, though he can be caught off-balance if he isn’t successful. Christmas needs to work on using his lower body better to force his man away from the basket. Christmas’s defensive awareness has also improved, and he has shown he can be a good help defender around the basket. He anticipates and reacts well to penetration, and looks to get into position to make a play. Christmas is a good shot-blocker, especially for his size; he has good timing, though he needs to watch for head and shot fakes, and does a good job extending straight up to go after shots. Because he plays in the zone, Christmas doesn’t find himself in many pick-and-roll situations, especially up top, so he will need to show teams that he can defend these well at the next level.

Perimeter Defense (On/Off Ball)

This will be an area that Christmas will need to prove himself come pre-draft workouts, as his spot in the middle of the Syracuse zone leaves some unanswered questions. However, through his play in the zone, it is possible to pick up some hints of his capabilities. Christmas moves well, including laterally, covering a lot of space in the Syracuse zone. He has good awareness and his direction keeps his teammates aware of what is happening out there. When a ball is entered to the high post and he comes up to cover, Christmas keeps a balanced stance with his hands up, though he does need to watch for shot fakes. Still, he will need to show that he can guard out on the perimeter, both in isolation and in pick-and-roll situations.

Rebounding

Christmas does a very good job tracking missed shots and getting into position to grab rebounds.  He also does a good job using his body to box out opponents and once he has position, going strong after the ball, extending well. One thing Christmas needs to watch for is bringing the ball down after grabbing a rebound, especially in traffic.  On the offensive end, Christmas uses his length and strength well to get offensive rebounds, and he is very active looking to get into good position, so teams need to make sure to put a body on him. Once he secures an offensive rebound, he does a good job looking to get a second shot up, though as on the defensive end, he needs to watch bringing the ball down low after he grabs it.  Christmas has good defensive rebounding numbers, though they would probably be better if not in a zone defense, where a lot of long-range shots also cause a lot of lost chances on long rebounds.

Transition

Christmas runs the floor well for his size, and he can be a great finisher if he gets the ball around the basket. With some space, he can take the ball of the dribble, but he is much better when he is out in front of the ball, or coming in as a trailer on the secondary break.

Intangibles/Summary

The improvement in Christmas’ overall numbers are staggering, though a lot of it has to do with Syracuse making sure he gets more touches in the post. Though undersized for a center, Christmas has a nice repertoire of low post moves, and his ability to go over either shoulder and finish with either hand can make him tough for many college post players to defend. He works hard as rebounder on both ends of the floor, though he should learn to use his body and strength more to clear space. As the middle of Syracuse’s zone defense, Christmas has shown improved awareness, both in his ability to help in the lane, and in directing his teammates to the other team’s movements. While he has improved as a low post defender, Christmas will need to show a lot more when working out for NBA teams, especially his ability to guard on the perimeter and in pick-and-roll situations. Also, he will need to show that he can knock down mid-range jumpers consistently, as he will likely play the 4 at the next level. It is clear that Christmas has shown new enthusiasm with his role this year, and he has tried to step up whenever the Orange need scoring.        

Draft Value:  Mid 2^nd Round – #45-52

Christmas has improved a lot this season, but he is still an undersized center, and with the stretch 4 becoming more popular at the NBA level, he will need to show that he can guard his position. Offensively, I think there is more to his game than he has shown yet, and with practice, he should be able to become a decent inside/outside threat. There is still a lot of raw ability for a team to work with here, and if put in the right situation where he can learn to adjust his game, he could be a role player off the bench providing rebounding and defense.

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