Post by jhb on Jul 1, 2021 8:00:37 GMT -5
Trent Tucker
SG
6'5"
193
22
Minnesota
Tucker is one of the more unique prospects in this class in terms of his skillset. Though the three point line wasn't a thing for him during his time in college, he was one of the handful of players in this class that showed a really sweet shooting stroke that expanded out to the perimeter near the TMBSL three point line and among those players he's likely the going to be the biggest deep threat at the next level. He has also shown he is a winner as he helped lead his Minnesota squad to a Big Ten Championship as a senior.
Because of his shooting stroke, Tucker has a tendency to be a bit passive as an offensive player. While he's pretty much strictly a 2, he's not going to operate with the ball in his hand a lot and he's definitely not going to be a secondary playmaker for your team. He's much better at moving without the ball and is much more effective when deployed as a catch and shoot option. He won't hesitate to let his shot loose once he has an opening, no matter the distance...and he's a shot-maker with very smooth and consistent fundamentals. He's nearly automatic when his shoulders are square and he gets off a clean look. Because he doesn't operate as a primary ball-handler offense, his dribble drive game is limited mostly to driving by defenders that close out on his jumper to hard before pulling for the mid-range jumper or taking a clean path to the rim for the lay-in. He also operates pretty effectively on back cuts and is efficient around the rim just based on high quality shot selection...but he won't ever be a guy who is pulling off highlight reel plays at the rim because he's not very strong or explosive as a leaper. He struggles with contact from larger defenders because of his slight frame so he tends to only take wide open looks in the paint.
Defensively, Tucker moves well and plays solid team defense. He has the adequate quickness to stay in front of most TMBSL wings while moving laterally and he has good defensive instincts. He was inconsistent as a steal guy, having a couple seasons at 1.2 steals per game or less but peaking at 2.2 per game as a junior, so he has some ability to disrupt. He's not a factor on the boards defensively as he was often looking for opportunities to start transition as he spent most of his college career as the beneficiary of TMBSL stalwarts Kevin McHale and Randy Breuer feeding him outlet passes.