Joseph Treutlein
A soon to be 27-year-old rookie, Vernon Goodridge might not have much more upside as a prospect, but what he brings to the table currently is a great body, reactive and explosive athleticism, and a high motor, defense-oriented style of play that NBA coaches like from their end-of-the-bench players.
While Goodridge's age is certainly an issue, his propensity to foul is even more so, as indicated by his 4.4 personal fouls in just 24.7 minutes per game. While his physical and aggressive man and helpside defense are both strong traits of his game, figuring out how to tone it down so he doesn't get into foul trouble so easily should be Goodridge's first priority right now.
While clearly more of a defensive than offensive player, Goodridge does bring some decent traits to the table on that end of the floor. He has a nice right-handed hook shot and turnaround jumper with range out to 7-8 feet, while also being pretty physical in backing his man down and crashing the offensive glass. He doesn't show much in terms of a perimeter game, however, and his effort level falls off at times, with him being a rare player that is much more tuned in on defense than offense.
Looking forward, Goodridge likely is what he is at this stage, as it's very rare for a player to develop noteworthy new skills at this age. Cutting down on his fouls so he can stay on the floor more is the most important thing he can do, and if he can there's an outside chance he can make his way onto an NBA team's roster, as athletic, active, defensive-minded bigs don't grow on trees, and he's a good player to have as a practice body as well.
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