Post by jhb on Feb 25, 2021 11:11:51 GMT -5
Kevin Durant
SF
6'9"
215
19
Texas
"An incredibly unique offensive threat" is the way that most scouts have described Durant. His freakish length and his ability to move fluidly with his length is astounding. He has a very refined handle for someone with his wingspan (although that could still be improved as he has a tendency to get a bit high with it still) and his ability to navigate his way through traffic and pull-up from anywhere is, frankly, unfair to anyone trying to defend him. His length and his ability to elevate on a dime means that there is likely no one in the NBA that can challenge his shot when he wants it. He has great touch around the basket and while still a bit green in the post, he has already shown that he is willing to put in the work to develop some back-to-the-basket moves to allow him to be an efficient iso player at the next level. His shooting ability is incredible for a player of his age; he made 40% on a high volume of three pointers and he has a very smooth stroke that may allow him to flirt with 50/40/90 levels of efficiency at the next level. While he is one of the weakest players in his class in the weight room, he has shown the ability to play much stronger than those raw numbers as he finishes strong in the paint and gets to the free throw line. Despite a seemingly laid-back demeanor on the court, he demands the ball in crunch time and seems to have the will to be great that will allow him to maximize his enormous potential.
While Durant's offensive potential has already manifested, his defensive potential is still a bit theoretical. His size, athleticism, and wingspan should mean that he can be a menace if he wants to, but he will need to learn how to defend much more physical opponents at the next level. He recorded an obscene amount of steals and blocks in college, but he won't be able to rely on his length alone to be that disruptive at the next level. If he can add some strength, he should even be able to serve as a stretch big who can hold up in the paint at times. KD has also shown that he's an engaged rebounder in college, overcoming his lack of strength to use positioning and his length to get to a lot of boards for the Longhorns. He should be an asset in that regard at the next level.