Caris LeVert, Michigan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvsm3OKKd0k
Age: 21 years old Size: 6’7, 200 pounds
Last Season’s Stats: 16.4 points; 5.4 rebounds; 4.9 assists per game
Percentages: 50% from the field; 45% from three-point; 78.8% from the free throw line
Caris LeVert is going to make a franchise extremely happy one day. Like most of his peers, no one has any real idea of where LeVert will be going on draft day, but it seems most likely it will be closer to the middle of the second round. If the Nuggets find themselves able to draft LeVert in the late second round, they should be jumping with joy.
There is almost nothing LeVert cannot do. He is a fluid athlete that brings a huge frame for a guard. To be 6-foot-7 and have a wingspan close to seven feet as a backcourt player offers many benefits. LeVert is able to use his length and size to see over defenders and use passing lanes most guards can’t see. He also has the ability to shoot over defenders in the pick and roll or in isolation due to his extreme length. LeVert has a subtly quick first step and the control with the ball in his hands to wreck havoc on the paint. Using his strong, long frame, he finishes at the rim well.
Not only can he do it all, but he does it in the smartest way possible. LeVert’s basketball IQ is extremely high and he plays the right way. He is a coach’s dream. To be able to score from the post, three-point, as a slasher, or in isolation and play solid defense is rare.
If not for his injury history he may be a lottery pick. Having three separate left foot injures and only playing 31 games in two years is impossible to look past, but if available in the late second round, how could the Nuggets not at least take a flier on a lottery type talent?
