2020 NBA draft profile: International prospect R.J. Hampton
R.J. Hampton’s strengths: Playmaking
The system that coach Shamir ran was very “European”. Running the break, off-ball action, and an emphasis on ball movement. When plays broke down it often fell into Hampton’s hands to run pick and rolls — which allowed an otherwise restricted Hampton showed how dangerous he can be as a facilitator.
Hampton ranked 21st in assist percentage and 24th in per-36 assists per game in the 2019-20 NBL season. Every NBA offense features the pick and roll and Hampton as a teenager was able to sparingly, functionally run a professional team’s offense, that’s something many NBA rookie guards can’t even do.
The pick and roll isn’t just about passing (unless you ask Joe Ingles) it’s also about being able to finish. Hampton’s electric speed allows him to get to the ring before a flat-footed big or set up dimes for his teammates.
Even in situations where he is taking it to the ring the way he’s creating space for himself often leaves room for cutters to sneak in along the baseline, or makes space for open shooters.
Hampton, whose explosive drives drew attention from the defense allowed the team to open up the court — leading to these assists and is also very commonplace in the NBA.
Hampton was very willing to be one of the cogs in the Breakers offense and was partly the reason why his season averages are unimpressive — compared to let’s say to the other draft prospect like LaMelo Ball.
The threat of him driving scares teams into collapsing their defense and it opened up large passing lanes for the Breakers — Hampton is really good at finding shooters pockets and it resulted in a lot of semi-contested shots for good shooters or giving them enough time to swing the ball around for more open shots.
It’s unlikely Hampton ever gets to double-digits assists with the current progression he’s on but it’s not out of the question that he may be a Kemba Walker-level facilitator. Walker averaged 5.1 assists per game in the 2019-2020 NBA Playoffs, while still being close to a 20 point per game scorer, the balance Hampton could grow into during his NBA career.
Hampton will grow into a better playmaker but can he improve on the things he’s currently lacking? His shooting and defense are the things we’ll look at next.