The player that is slowly evolving into DraftExpress favorite player at the camp,
Rashad Jones-Jennings got by on very little today to make a very big impact on the game. One way to describe his style of play would be to say that Jones-Jennings is an addict, and the basketball is his drug. He is simple everywhere on the floor at any given moment, making big plays wherever he goes. Looking at how small he is (he looks around 6-7 or maybe even less), you want to just write him off in warmups before the game even tips off, but once you see how much of an impact he has, he forces you to rethink the sitaution
After watching him play for two games here, its no surprise at all to see him lead the entire NCAA in rebounding. He seems to have an innate sense for where the ball will end up once he sees it come off the hands of a shooter, positioning himself perfectly to come down with the rebound while pinning his man down with his strong frame. Its almost comical to see how quickly he goes to work once the ball hits the rim, just going after the rebound with reckless abandon and knocking over anyone that is in his way. Once he corrals it with his two huge and strong hands, hell sometimes swing his elbows around ala
Charles Barkley to scare off his opponents for good measure, just to further emphasize his dominance. No one here has figured out if Jones-Jennings actually has any teeth hiding inside his mouthpiece, but thats just another thing that adds to the level of intrigue.
Defensively, Jones-Jennings did a pretty solid job with the tools he has at his disposal, despite the fact that he gives up a lot of height and doesnt bring an incredible amount of explosiveness to the table to make up for it. He likes to gamble for steals on post-entry passes, and had some success at this tournament doing so, even if at times hell get burned. His lateral quickness is obviously very solid, allowing him to get out and hedge screens on the perimeter and then recover quickly just like an NBA coach would want him to.
Offensively, Jones-Jennings is a very limited guy, lacking serious touch on his post moves and not having much to hang his hat on outside of 10 feet. He did hit a mid-range jumper from the baseline on one occasion, and mixed in a turnaround jumper with some strong finishes on others. If given the opportunity, Jones-Jennings will attempt to absolutely kill the rim every time he touches it. If he makes a bad play, hell run down the court with a big snarl on his face, and sometimes clap his two massive paws together like hes crashing a pair of cymbals, creating a similar sound effect too.
Most NBA people we spoke to seemed somewhat dismissive of his chances of making an NBA roster. Thats not a surprise considering that hes 6-7 at best and not particularly skilled or athletic. Jones-Jennings is a guy that coaches fall in love with, not scouts, since hes clearly not the prototype for what they are looking for in an NBA player at his positon. Were not saying hes a surefire bet to make the league or even that he has any real chance of being drafted (barring a great showing in Orlando), but he is a guy we enjoyed watching and wouldnt be shocked if someone found a spot for him somewhere. His matchup with
Ryvon Covile was definitely a classic.
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