4 NBA Draft takeaways from State Farm Champions Classic
2. Tyrese Maxey’s arrival as a potential lottery prospect
Tyrese Maxey put on a show for Madison Square Garden last night and fully inserted himself into the NBA draft conversation.
The freshman guard put up 26 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, including 3-of-7 from 3.
He was electric and explosive when he had room to operate, slicing up the defense and pulling up for clutch jump shots when he had the chance.
https://twitter.com/jeffborzello/status/1191980586572877828
Sure, some of his jumper choices weren’t ideal, especially one transition 3 that led to coach John Calipari benching him to bring back Ashton Hagans (we’ll get to him in a later point).
But there were few shot-taking mistakes that Maxey made Tuesday night and scouts with questions about his scoring potential likely left the building satisfied in that regard.
However, Maxey’s ability to make plays for others and run sets out of the point guard spot is still highly in question.
One assist to one turnover makes sense in his final stat line. Maxey abandoned ball-handling duties early on in the game when it just looked like he seemed out of place trying to create for others.
He’s a go-to guy used to getting his own, so asking him to do more than that in his first collegiate game would be a little much.
I’m all for drafting someone I know can come off the bench and give me buckets when I need them. Drafting a microwave scorer in the lottery is a different story.
Malik Monk hasn’t had much success in the NBA since he left Kentucky, and he operated in similar ways as Maxey will this season. If he couldn’t make it, what’s going to lead me to believe that Maxey has more upside? Both are athletic combo guards with deep shooting range and little playmaking ability.
Just because I’m pausing on throwing Maxey up the draft board doesn’t mean he didn’t impress me. He’s a legit guard prospect with plenty of firepower to bring into the discussion.
Welcome to the NBA Draft hype train, Tyrese.