2021 NBA Draft Profile: Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham

NBA Draft Profile: Cade Cunningham’s weaknesses

This is something that can probably be coached out of him quickly, but his handle is a bit too loose thanks to a high dribble. It slows him down off the drive and it makes him somewhat turnover prone. Once an NBA coaching staff gets its hands on him, though, this could hopefully prove to be a quick fix.

Perhaps as a result of being accustomed to elite teammates in Montverde, he can be a bit too aggressive with his passing decisions. It’s hard to say whether playing with lesser teammates in Oklahoma may have had a negative affect on him in this case, but it’s possible that his decision-making (which is already strong) can be improved upon once NBA coaches get him in-house and he gets to work with NBA teammates as opposed to the flotsam he dealt with at Oklahoma State.

His final major weakness is a lack of quickness, which is somewhat exacerbated by that high and loose dribble. Of course, plenty of sub-superathletes are turning out to be spectacular stars in the NBA these days, like Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic, so even if he doesn’t have that incredible burst and first step, he’ll probably turn out just fine. Still, it’s something that can be improved upon and hopefully will be.