Player Evaluations, McDonald’s All-American Game (East Team) April 4, 2009
Jim Hlavac, DraftExpress
It was good to be able to see Derrick Favors (#1 Scout, #4 Rivals, #2 ESPN¬) in a setting like this, going up against players with similar size and athleticism. Favors didn’t have a shockingly impressive showing over the course of the week relative to his status as the potential #1 overall recruit in the nation, but he clearly displayed his credentials as a terrific long-term prospect once again.
Favors mostly established himself as a finisher this week—not a surprise considering the all-star nature setting. His terrific hands and ability to finish well above the rim on very catch made him a very popular target in the post to drop the ball off to. His footwork looked somewhat limited and he struggled trying to do all that much outside of the paint, but he surely made up for that with his ability to gobble up rebounds on both ends of the floor. Defensively he contested everything around his area, even though he struggled a bit to step out and guard the likes of Renardo Sidney at times, looking somewhat flat-footed in the process, mostly due to his poor technique. This is clearly a part of his game that the coaches at Georgia Tech will work with him on. Favors would surely be a lottery prospect if it weren’t for the one and done rule, but it’s probably a good thing that he’s forced to go to college and develop his all-around game.
[Read Full Article] HoopHall Classic Scouting Reports, Part One January 20, 2009 One of the most anticipated games of the showcase occurred yesterday between South Atlanta (GA) High School and Oak Hill (VA) Academy - and it did not disappoint. There was a buzz in the gym unlike any other game as there were no empty seats in the bleachers and limited standing room as well. The preverbal buzz however was present less because of the matchup between two top ten teams, but more so because the presence of recent Georgia Tech commit, South Atlanta’s star, Derrick Favors (#1 Scout, #4 Rivals, #2 ESPN).
Favors has a frame and a build that is unlike any other player at the high school level. He’s tall at 6’10”, well defined with broad shoulders, and looks like a prototypical power forward with an excellent wingspan. He is an outstanding athlete – showing it in his ability to elevate for a lob pass and when running the floor in transition to finish on the break as well. He had a couple rebounds and dunks throughout the game that drew many ooh’s and aah’s.
His rebounding in the 1st half is what propelled South Atlanta to their early lead. He snapped, what seemed like every rebound early on and grabbed every one above the rim. His timing was great as well, judging perfectly where a ball would bounce on deep 3’s that were attempted. More importantly, his ability to outlet the ball to lead the break was critical. He immediately looked to half court to find a streaking guard leaking out. Even with this great praise and Favors collecting 10 first half rebounds, there were some flaws in this area.
For one, he never boxes out. This is understandable considering that he doesn’t have to at this level, but in the ACC that will have to change. Additionally, there were instances when he threw great outlets and other times where he rushed it and turned the ball over. Lastly, after an unbelievable first half on the boards, Favors disappeared a bit in the 3rd quarter, largely due to fatigue. He did reawake on the boards in the 4th – but not nearly at the same pace. When he can learn how to maintain his energy level for a full game, his rebounding statistics as well as other statistics will be off the charts.
His offensive game right now is still raw, but he’s definitely improving as he showed a willingness to try new moves. He attempted a few spins in the post, or face-up drives off an inside pivot, but seemed uncomfortable as he was stripped or tied up on several occasions. Other times he showed a nice looking face-up 15 foot jump shot with good mechanics, although right now it’s a bit flat, or quick drop steps for jump hooks over his left shoulder. His biggest problem was how fast he was going. He would catch and try to beat the double team so quickly that he would force the action, leading to bad misses or turnovers. When he can learn to be patient and use ball fakes his success rate will increase. Furthermore, he will need to develop more advanced moves, drop steps and up and unders together with better footwork will serve him well.
His decision making, something that troubles just about every high school player, must improve. He’ll hold the ball a split second too long or dribble one extra time, which throws off the play. Other times, he’ll try to show-off his guard skills by leading the break after a rebound or driving from the top of the key – two things Favors can’t quite do at this stage in his development, although it is nice to see his desire to expand his repertoire.
Although South Atlanta played zone for the whole game with Favors stationed on the left block, he still showed some promising signs on the defensive end. Any interior play by Oak Hill was disrupted by the mere presence of Favors. He forced the Oak Hill players into some tough shots inside and even altered a couple perimeter shots by sprinting out to contest them. As the game progressed however, his value deteriorated, as Favors looked tired and resorted to reaching in on penetrating guards and looked content in giving up open shots in his area. Fatigue was certainly a factor as Favors was seen holding his shorts on several possessions in the 2nd half. The substantial travel he’s been doing together with his team recently likely had a big role in that.
Something that was a bit concerning at times was Favors’ absence in scrums around the basket. There were occasions where there loose balls to be had, and Favors was nowhere to be found trying to get into the mix, instead letting his teammates fend for themselves and often giving up offensive possessions in the process. In a game that his team ultimately lose by 5 points, Favors probably could have done a little bit more in the second half to help South Atlanta come away with the victory. Still, it’s hard not to be impressed by the incredible talent that Favors possesses, and pretty much analyst we spoke with here in Springfield currently has him pegged as the #1 player in the 2009 high school class. [Read Full Article]
Battle In Birmingham: DeMarcus Cousins vs Derrick Favors January 16, 2009 Favors (#4 Rivals, #1 Scout, #2 ESPN) has already been covered quite in depth by DraftExpress over the years, so there is no reason to be redundant about the strengths that he already has. It's not hard to tell that you're looking at a very intriguing prospect when you see a player standing 6'9 with great length, terrific leaping ability, a promising frame, and a desire to defend. Rather than spend time on what we have already established about Favors, we opt to track the progress that he has made since we last evaluated him over the summer.
The most glaring change in Favors' game since we last saw him was certainly his ability to shoot the basketball from the perimeter. Always known as a player who strictly played within 8 feet of the basket, he has been working on expanding his game drastically over the last few months. Against Cousins and LeFlore, Favors showed off a gorgeous perimeter jumper that extended all the way out to the three point line. By our count, he drilled 6 jumpers from 15 feet and beyond, including one deep 3-pointer.
Favors also appears to have improved his ball-handling skills and even his footwork on the blocks. He displayed a nice right handed jump hook with a few counter moves, though it was still very clear that he preferred to go to his right instead of his left. The future Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket still has a considerable amount of work to do on his passing skills however, given the double teams that he will likely face at the collegiate level.
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Favors was a force on the defensive end, rebounding the ball with great tenacity and blocking quite a few shots (certainly more than he was credited for) while staying out of foul trouble. He must improve upon his lateral foot-speed if he hopes to guard power forwards who like to face the basket, but there is unquestionably a significant amount of potential for the senior on this side of the ball.
Much of Favors’ role at Georgia Tech will depend upon whether star sophomore Gani Lawal declares for this year's NBA Draft. If Lawal sticks around, the Yellow Jackets will have a loaded frontline with Favors, Lawal, and the promising Alade Aminu. However if Lawal bolts to the NBA, there will be an immediate amount of playing time for Favors, including a significant role in the GT offense. Paul Hewitt has been known not to be shy about throwing his heralded freshman into the fire, starting with Chris Bosh and Jarrett Jack, as well as Javaris Crittenton, Thaddeus Young, and current freshman Iman Shumpert. Hewitt also has a reputation for developing players for the next level, which will bode well for Favors who appears to have a very solid work ethic. While it's a bit premature to say that Favors is a sure fire one and done player, he definitely has as good of a chance as any player in the class to bolt after his freshman campaign as long as he continues to develop at this rate. [Read Full Article] Initial Scouting Reports, High School Class of 2009 (Top 10 recruits) July 28, 2008 Billed as the clear-cut top big man prospect in this class according to virtually all recruiting services, Derrick Favors (#3 Scout, #1 Rivals, #1 ESPN) is not a difficult guy to pick out of a layup line. He has the type of frame and wingspan you expect from a top recruit, although it wouldn’t hurt him to grow another inch or two as he’s not the biggest tallest player you’ll find at just 6-9. Favors is cat-quick in the post getting around players for offensive rebounds, finishing around the rim as well as getting off his feet to block shots. He runs the floor and elevates off the ground with the greatest of ease, looking extremely smooth in the process, particularly finishing with a powerful dunk.
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Favors’ biggest asset at the moment revolves around his shot-blocking ability. His length and explosiveness allows him to change everything around the rim, either on the ball or rotating from the weak-side, and gives his team an incredible advantage at this level. He’s also a very capable offensive rebounder for this exact reason.
Offensively, Favors is fairly limited still, which is not a shock considering the stage of development he’s currently at. He has good hands and is very capable at making simple catches and finishes in the post, or at most, beating a guy off a short dribble or two in the paint and elevating over the top of him. Anything more than that usually gets him into to trouble, as he has fairly average footwork, little to no ability to finish with his left hand, and a very clear tendency to spin right into his defender and throw up some very bad shots. At this point he has nothing resembling a mid-range jumper or even a consistent stroke from the free throw line—things that will only come with a lot of hard work. He will also have to work on his ability to pass out of double teams, something he struggled with at times in Vegas in the three times we saw him.
The impression you have of Favors largely depends upon the game you happen to catch of his. At times he can look very dominating, blocking tons of shots, grabbing every rebound, and finishing every pass ferociously inside. In others he’ll look somewhat low energy, not particularly active, and a bit frustrated by an opponent that bodies him up physically and denies him the close proximity to the basket that he needs to be a factor offensively. Players who don’t have the highest skill level around (particularly big men) don’t have the luxury of taking plays off—Favors will have to learn to put forth maximum effort no matter who is going up against.
Although it’s quite obvious why Favors is getting the hype he is (there just aren’t that many big men around anywhere with his physical tools) it’s also incredibly obvious that he has a great deal of work to do before he can be considered ready to think about the NBA. At his size (6-9), Favors is a clear-cut power forward, but is nowhere close to possessing the offensive game you expect from a player at that position. He will have to work significantly on his polish facing the basket and in the low post if he’s going to be able to escape the “role player” tag, but also shouldn’t be in a huge rush at this point, as he still has a year of high school left before entering college. [Read Full Article]
adidas Nations Basketball Experience: 2009 High School Prospects August 15, 2007 The most highly touted of any of the players on this team was 6-9 big man Derrick Favors, from Atlanta, Georgia. The #1 overall recruit in the nation according to scout.com (#3 on rivals), Favors did very little to back up the hype he had coming into this event. Maybe he was tired from the long summer of AAU tournaments he just went though, maybe this setting isn’t very conducive to a player of his skill-set, or maybe he’s a tad overrated? We aren’t quite sure at this point. What’s definite is that Favors looked entirely content running up and down the court in disinterested fashion and blending in amongst the crowd. He showed average footwork in the post, very little skills facing the basket, and fairly poor fundamentals. He didn’t call for the ball at all much either on the offense end. Drills and things of that nature are almost completely foreign to him at this point, and he doesn’t appear to be the best coached guy in the world.
With that said, it wasn’t too difficult to see where the intrigue is coming from. Favors is an extremely long and lanky big man with a great frame, excellent athleticism and a very smooth demeanor to him. He plays very good defense and gets up and down the court well, looking very cool and calm at all times, even to a fault.
We were warned in advance that Favors is the type of player who gravitates radically from outstanding to almost invisible depending on what night you catch him on. He’s not always as intense as you might hope if not involved in a big-time match up, so it’s easier to understand why he showed so little in the few times we evaluated him in New Orleans. He got knocked out of the camp late after taking a big time shot to the nose, so we didn’t get to see as much of him as we may have hoped. He’s also only 16 years old, so maybe our expectations were a little too high at the end of the day. It’s obvious from watching him early on that he’s going to have to rack up the intensity if he wants to reach his full potential. [Read Full Article]
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