Although he was one of the most entertaining and recognizable players of the last few years in college basketball, Brigham Young’s Jimmer Fredette is also one of the hardest to pin down when it comes to NBA projections. The scoring ability is obviously there, but it’s the rest of his game that raises questions.
Some analysts feel Fredette’s sweet shot will translate well to the pro game, while others see him as a decent bench scoring option. Still even more fail to see him succeeding at all, a la Adam Morrison, another recent college scorer who couldn’t adjust to the skill and speed of the NBA. Fans of Fredette might be frustrated by such claims, but history has proven that some who fail in college succeed in the big league while many stars have fizzled at the NBA level. It’s simply a different game.
Even with a defensive deficiency, ESPN’s Chad Ford has Fredette landing with the Phoenix Suns at No. 13 overall — the last lottery selection in the draft. He writes, ‘His shooting ability combined with the Suns’ free-flowing offense are a very good fit. Fredette’s terrible defense raises concerns, but at least he is a fit on a team that has been willing to overlook Steve Nash’s weakness in that area for years."
CBS Sports Dave Del Grande has Jimmer headed to the Sacramento Kings at the No. 7 overall spot, easily the highest ranking that any draft analyst has Fredette headed — at least to this point. Even Del Grande admits that it would mostly be for a franchise opportunity to sell tickets.
Sean Deveney of the Sporting News has Fredette headed to the Charlotte Bobcats at No. 9, saying, “The Bobcats need shooting help, and no one in this draft does it better than Fredette.” However, CBS Sports Ben Golliver has Fredette falling all the way to No. 20 overall to the Timberwolves, showing just how volatile the shooter’s stock is.
Jimmer Fredette will no doubt sell tickets wherever he goes, and he can definitely shoot the lights out in any arena coast to coast. But whether or not he’s too much of a liability on the other end of the floor will determine just how high he is taken.