ZIONSVILLE - Here's what jumped out most about Bryson Scott's quietly dominant 26-point, 11-rebound game in Northrop's 66-62 win on the home floor of a very good Zionsville team Saturday night: How a kid who can get a shot whenever he wants one only very rarely felt compelled to force things.
In helping Northrop improve to 12-0 with a big road win, the 6-foot-1 Purdue junior commitment didn't hunt shots like a lot of kids as talented and as gifted offensively as he is would. He turned just 15 shots into those 26 points, never settling for lower-percentage shots.
His jumper looked much-improved from the summer (and the other two dozen or so times I've seen him) and deadly, and Scott was every bit as effective at getting to the rim no matter what and finishing in a variety of ways, even through heavy contact. And he's really good in transition, attacking frequently off rebounds and getting a good shot or a foul every time, if memory serves correct.
But every shot he took was a very makeable one. He didn't just chuck anything up there. In so doing, he showed good judgment and faith in his teammates. After the game, his coach, Barak Coolman, talked about how unselfish Scott's been as he's racked up video game numbers.
In my estimation, when Scott signs with Purdue, he will represent the second-most skilled scorer Matt Painter will have brought to Purdue, with E'Twaun Moore's edge in that characterization perhaps dwindling.
Scott can score from anywhere on the floor, with a pull-up game that will suit him very well in college if his jump shot continues to look like it did Saturday night. While I wouldn't call him elite in terms of speed and quickness, he looked more of both Saturday night than he did this past summer in AAU. Maybe an optical illusion created by the talent level of summertime opponents.
He was recruited as a point guard, but his skills suggest he can easily, if not more comfortably, play off the ball in college. Doesn't seem like there's any reason to think he and Ronnie Johnson couldn't coexist nicely in the backcourt at Purdue should they be asked to.
People ask a lot about Scott's Mr. Basketball chances next season. Obviously it's way too early to tell, but the season both he and Northrop are having is going to put his name toward the top of the list heading into his senior season. I don't know if there's an obvious frontrunner out there, but the Fort Wayne thing makes me skeptical. Unlike Deshaun Thomas, Scott won't have a state scoring record and four years of assumption on his side.
But he's good enough, without question.
It's easy and understandable for fans to get caught up in who Purdue has not gotten in these highly scrutinized recruiting tales that come right down to the end. But the problem with that is that it overshadows and marginalizes the guys who it got early. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess.
Had there been any suspense at all to Bryson Scott's recruitment at all and had Purdue gotten his commitment in September of his senior year rather than September of his sophomore year, he's a talent worth rioting in the streets over, figuratively speaking of course.
Will he be a star from Day 1 in college? I don't know, but that's a lot to ask, and Robbie Hummel and Moore five seasons ago warped reality in terms of just how hard it is to excel at the college level immediately.
Like any high school player with Scott's skill set, he's going to have to adjust at the next level to college defenders who know how to take charges. Getting to the basket won't be as easy at the next level. Right now Scott can beat anyone off the dribble and just will his way to the rim.
Jump shots will be slightly harder to come by when he won't be dominating the ball with the freedom to dribble into a jumper at the drop of a hat, and when defenders are bigger, taller and longer, and faster and more athletic, than they are now. And when AJ Hammons is waiting at the rim in practice.
But Scott should be well prepared. He's a physical player with a fearless mindset, a kid who just oozes will. He plays mean, which Purdue needs. He wants to be good. And he's played and excelled against great, older competition in AAU.
Mr. Basketball or not, when Purdue signs Bryson Scott, it will be getting a big-time player.
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