Julian Wright, 6-8, Sophomore, SF/PF, Kansas
Vs. Missouri: 33 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 turnovers, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 14-21 FG, 5-7 FT, 0-1 3P
Jonathan Givony
On an individual level, this hasn't quite been the breakout season many (including us) had predicted from Julian Wright so far. On a per minute basis, his scoring, assists and turnovers have remained the same, his field goal percentage is down, but his rebounding is notably better. According to the game logs and advanced stats we have at our disposal, Wright is getting over 50% more possessions per game to work with (ranked 2nd on his team), but has not shown substantial improvement in any one particular area while carrying the added load.
On face value, considering his production, his last game this weekend, scoring 33 points against Missouri, could be looked at as a huge step in the right direction. It certainly was as far as Bill Self's Jayhawks are concerned, but from a scouting perspective, it was hard to get too excited about when breaking down the tape. Wright almost singlehandedly destroyed a lumbering, undersized Missouri frontcourt that had no business being on the same court as him as far as the talent disparity is concerned, and did the overwhelming majority of his damage in this game within a few feet of the basket.
8 of the 12 rebounds that Wright pulled down came on the offensive end, many of them well out of his area. His outstanding hands, instincts, toughness and the quickness in which he gets off the floor were on full display, often going straight up immediately after catching an offensive rebound and finishing strong through contact at the hoop. 14 of his points, plus a few more from free throw attempts, came in this fashion.
Wright also did an outstanding job moving off the ball and cutting to the basket, being rewarded with at least 4 alleyoop lobs that he successfully converted. On other occasions he just caught a simple entry pass calmly and converted an easy layup, usually nearly uncontested. The highlight play of the game came in the first half when he took a pass in transition from Brandon Rush and leaped from about a foot outside the paint right over a Missouri defender for an incredible two-handed jam. If you watched Sportscenter that night, you almost certainly saw it. The lone times Wright scored on something other than a dunk or layup were with a short 8-foot jumper and a nice kiss off the glass from 14 feet coming off a screen. He missed his lone 3-point attempt and another mid-range jumper.
Besides his scoring and rebounding, though, Wright did a nice job with his unselfish passing, as well as keeping his man in front of him. His outstanding lateral quickness and length makes him a potential terror on this end when he fully applies himself, and it's not difficult to project him developing nicely into an extremely bothersome perimeter defender.
What we're slightly more concerned about though his been the relative lack of progress we're seeing as far as his perimeter offense goes. Wright is barely a threat to create offense for himself due to his lackluster ball-handling skills. The ball slows him down considerably and nullifies any chance he has of beating players off the dribble. His perimeter shooting really isn't alleviating any concerns, as even though he's strictly taking wide-open shots with his feet set from behind the arc, he's just 3-11 on the entire season. In terms of pulling up from mid-range, the picture doesn't get much rosier. We can project Wright out as an NBA small forward all we want, but so far-- offensively at least, he really hasn't backed it up.
To be fair, though, Wright is nowhere near a finished product at this point, and wasn't supposed to be anywhere close to there yet. He clearly has the type of intangibles you look for in order to put faith in him continuing to work on his game. Regardless, he's saying that he's on track to graduate on three years and therefore will definitely be staying another season at Kansas. We'd have all the respect in the world for him if he indeed decides to keep his word, but he has to know that he's playing with fire with a move like that. Right now he's being projected as a top-10 pick almost solely based on his upside, and without showing substantial improvement next season, NBA execs will cool on him quickly. That puts a huge burden on his shoulders in terms of the offseason work he'll have to put into every facet of his game. But if he thinks he's up for it, then by all means that's what he should do.
On face value, considering his production, his last game this weekend, scoring 33 points against Missouri, could be looked at as a huge step in the right direction. It certainly was as far as Bill Self's Jayhawks are concerned, but from a scouting perspective, it was hard to get too excited about when breaking down the tape. Wright almost singlehandedly destroyed a lumbering, undersized Missouri frontcourt that had no business being on the same court as him as far as the talent disparity is concerned, and did the overwhelming majority of his damage in this game within a few feet of the basket.
8 of the 12 rebounds that Wright pulled down came on the offensive end, many of them well out of his area. His outstanding hands, instincts, toughness and the quickness in which he gets off the floor were on full display, often going straight up immediately after catching an offensive rebound and finishing strong through contact at the hoop. 14 of his points, plus a few more from free throw attempts, came in this fashion.
Wright also did an outstanding job moving off the ball and cutting to the basket, being rewarded with at least 4 alleyoop lobs that he successfully converted. On other occasions he just caught a simple entry pass calmly and converted an easy layup, usually nearly uncontested. The highlight play of the game came in the first half when he took a pass in transition from Brandon Rush and leaped from about a foot outside the paint right over a Missouri defender for an incredible two-handed jam. If you watched Sportscenter that night, you almost certainly saw it. The lone times Wright scored on something other than a dunk or layup were with a short 8-foot jumper and a nice kiss off the glass from 14 feet coming off a screen. He missed his lone 3-point attempt and another mid-range jumper.
Besides his scoring and rebounding, though, Wright did a nice job with his unselfish passing, as well as keeping his man in front of him. His outstanding lateral quickness and length makes him a potential terror on this end when he fully applies himself, and it's not difficult to project him developing nicely into an extremely bothersome perimeter defender.
What we're slightly more concerned about though his been the relative lack of progress we're seeing as far as his perimeter offense goes. Wright is barely a threat to create offense for himself due to his lackluster ball-handling skills. The ball slows him down considerably and nullifies any chance he has of beating players off the dribble. His perimeter shooting really isn't alleviating any concerns, as even though he's strictly taking wide-open shots with his feet set from behind the arc, he's just 3-11 on the entire season. In terms of pulling up from mid-range, the picture doesn't get much rosier. We can project Wright out as an NBA small forward all we want, but so far-- offensively at least, he really hasn't backed it up.
To be fair, though, Wright is nowhere near a finished product at this point, and wasn't supposed to be anywhere close to there yet. He clearly has the type of intangibles you look for in order to put faith in him continuing to work on his game. Regardless, he's saying that he's on track to graduate on three years and therefore will definitely be staying another season at Kansas. We'd have all the respect in the world for him if he indeed decides to keep his word, but he has to know that he's playing with fire with a move like that. Right now he's being projected as a top-10 pick almost solely based on his upside, and without showing substantial improvement next season, NBA execs will cool on him quickly. That puts a huge burden on his shoulders in terms of the offseason work he'll have to put into every facet of his game. But if he thinks he's up for it, then by all means that's what he should do.