Now that the AAU/camp season is over, we'll take an in-depth look at each of Purdue's 2012 and 2013 recruits, in addition to its two remaining 2012 targets.
Today: Basil Smotherman Jr.
Prior: Kendall Stephens
July review
We saw Smotherman some in the spring, then at Purdue's team camp with Lawrence North, then in July at the IBCA Top 100 event and for just bits and pieces of the adidas Invitational.
The IBCA clinic was a great day for him, taking a break from AAU play - where he's not necessarily featured on his talented summer team - to thrive in a camp environment.
For the better part of a year, Smotherman's jumper has looked broken, but at Ben Davis, he knocked down threes with visible confidence, probably shooting 60 percent from long range in the three game sessions.
With his AAU team, where others do most of the scoring, Smotherman showed some signs of turning it up effort-wise and trying hard as a rebounder and defender, signs that were very encouraging in the context of his development as a player.
Smotherman, it seemed, had a solid month, but factors beyond his control side-tracked him, finishing July with a broken ankle that will sideline him into the fall.
Strengths
At 6-foot-6, pushing 6-7, and 200-plus pounds, Smotherman has a tremendous body for a college basketball prospect. He's tall, thick, long and very athletic. Oh, and he's ambidextrous. He's primarily left-handed.
He can complement those physical attributes with some guard-like skills, mostly as a penetrator and pull-up shooter, at this stage of his career. From what we've seen from him offensively, and it should be noted that we've not seen him in many situations where he's really had to score, he's looked very comfortable facing up and driving from 15 feet and in.
As a shooter, he's a spot-up type, but his percentage dipped between his freshman and sophomore seasons at Heritage Christian and it wasn't until IBCA that we really ever saw him make any shots.
At IBCA, for whatever reason, he looked distinctly confident shooting the ball. Smotherman's one of those Keaton Grant types who looks really good shooting the ball when it's going on but really bad when it's not. But as a shooter, there's potential there. Video
But a good portion of Smotherman's promise lies largely in his physical gifts. He's going to be a big, strong, athletic kid and his body and athleticism will give him a chance to be an imposing defensive presence on the wing and an effective rebounder at the college level, provided his mentality at that stage of his career matches what will be asked of him.
Weaknesses
Sometimes, the production doesn't quite match the promise for a player who's really only now defining what kind of player he'll be in the future. Like a lot of players his age, Smotherman's needed to pick things up from an intensity standpoint, which by all accounts, he showed signs of doing in July.
And as noted above, his shot's been off since a very good freshman season.
All across the board, there's room for improvement in every phase of Smotherman's game and though his body's well on track, he must get stronger.
Super-fun comparisons
This is going way back for some of you, but there might be some parallels to be drawn between Smotherman and Boilermaker-long-ago Justin Jennings, who was an undersized, but athletic, power forward for Purdue back in the mid-'90s.
Jennings wasn't/isn't as tall as Smotherman, but he was a great athlete.
Position
Smotherman is well on his way to becoming a college 4, with his size and athleticism, but he's someone who can probably project to defend a couple of different positions, sort of like a Kelsey Barlow of the frontcourt. I'm not comparing him to Barlow, but suggesting he could be equally versatile defensively in a different.
Offensively, the 4 might be the best fit because he can run the floor, jump and create some mismatches.
Final analysis
As we've said before, Smotherman's as much an athlete right now as he is a player. This junior season at LN, it would seem, will go a long way in showing just what type of player he'll become in the future. Playing alongside Eron Harris and other talent will put him in an opportunity to thrive in a role, as opposed to carrying a team.
If you ask me, it will be important for him to become a grinder of sorts, because he'll have the physical gifts to make his way in college as a rebounder and defender first, scorer second.
Mike Robinson came to Purdue years ago as a big-time shooter and scorer out of high school and left the Boilermakers as a player whose strength was probably his rebounding, particularly on offense. That's a transition Smotherman may now be making, though the scoring potential is absolutely there, too.
Copyright, Boilers, Inc. 2011. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or using editorial or graphical content, in whole or in part, without permission, is strictly prohibited. E-mail GoldandBlack.com/Boilers, Inc.
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Today: Basil Smotherman Jr.
Prior: Kendall Stephens
July review
We saw Smotherman some in the spring, then at Purdue's team camp with Lawrence North, then in July at the IBCA Top 100 event and for just bits and pieces of the adidas Invitational.
The IBCA clinic was a great day for him, taking a break from AAU play - where he's not necessarily featured on his talented summer team - to thrive in a camp environment.
For the better part of a year, Smotherman's jumper has looked broken, but at Ben Davis, he knocked down threes with visible confidence, probably shooting 60 percent from long range in the three game sessions.
With his AAU team, where others do most of the scoring, Smotherman showed some signs of turning it up effort-wise and trying hard as a rebounder and defender, signs that were very encouraging in the context of his development as a player.
Smotherman, it seemed, had a solid month, but factors beyond his control side-tracked him, finishing July with a broken ankle that will sideline him into the fall.
Strengths
At 6-foot-6, pushing 6-7, and 200-plus pounds, Smotherman has a tremendous body for a college basketball prospect. He's tall, thick, long and very athletic. Oh, and he's ambidextrous. He's primarily left-handed.
He can complement those physical attributes with some guard-like skills, mostly as a penetrator and pull-up shooter, at this stage of his career. From what we've seen from him offensively, and it should be noted that we've not seen him in many situations where he's really had to score, he's looked very comfortable facing up and driving from 15 feet and in.
As a shooter, he's a spot-up type, but his percentage dipped between his freshman and sophomore seasons at Heritage Christian and it wasn't until IBCA that we really ever saw him make any shots.
At IBCA, for whatever reason, he looked distinctly confident shooting the ball. Smotherman's one of those Keaton Grant types who looks really good shooting the ball when it's going on but really bad when it's not. But as a shooter, there's potential there. Video
But a good portion of Smotherman's promise lies largely in his physical gifts. He's going to be a big, strong, athletic kid and his body and athleticism will give him a chance to be an imposing defensive presence on the wing and an effective rebounder at the college level, provided his mentality at that stage of his career matches what will be asked of him.
Weaknesses
Sometimes, the production doesn't quite match the promise for a player who's really only now defining what kind of player he'll be in the future. Like a lot of players his age, Smotherman's needed to pick things up from an intensity standpoint, which by all accounts, he showed signs of doing in July.
And as noted above, his shot's been off since a very good freshman season.
All across the board, there's room for improvement in every phase of Smotherman's game and though his body's well on track, he must get stronger.
Super-fun comparisons
This is going way back for some of you, but there might be some parallels to be drawn between Smotherman and Boilermaker-long-ago Justin Jennings, who was an undersized, but athletic, power forward for Purdue back in the mid-'90s.
Jennings wasn't/isn't as tall as Smotherman, but he was a great athlete.
Position
Smotherman is well on his way to becoming a college 4, with his size and athleticism, but he's someone who can probably project to defend a couple of different positions, sort of like a Kelsey Barlow of the frontcourt. I'm not comparing him to Barlow, but suggesting he could be equally versatile defensively in a different.
Offensively, the 4 might be the best fit because he can run the floor, jump and create some mismatches.
Final analysis
As we've said before, Smotherman's as much an athlete right now as he is a player. This junior season at LN, it would seem, will go a long way in showing just what type of player he'll become in the future. Playing alongside Eron Harris and other talent will put him in an opportunity to thrive in a role, as opposed to carrying a team.
If you ask me, it will be important for him to become a grinder of sorts, because he'll have the physical gifts to make his way in college as a rebounder and defender first, scorer second.
Mike Robinson came to Purdue years ago as a big-time shooter and scorer out of high school and left the Boilermakers as a player whose strength was probably his rebounding, particularly on offense. That's a transition Smotherman may now be making, though the scoring potential is absolutely there, too.
Copyright, Boilers, Inc. 2011. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or using editorial or graphical content, in whole or in part, without permission, is strictly prohibited. E-mail GoldandBlack.com/Boilers, Inc.
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