luke-kennard-hd.jpg

5 - Luke Kennard

6-6, 195 Shooting Guard
Duke Sophomore
Birthday
06/24/96 (27.8 yrs)
Hometown
Franklin, OH
High School
Franklin
Team Site Profile
Statistics
Athleticism
7
Size
7
Defense
7
Strength
7
Quickness
7
Leadership
8
Jump Shot
9
NBA Ready
9
Ball Handling
8
Potential
7
Passing
8
Intangibles
9

NBA Comparison: Nik Stauskas/Jeff Hornacek

Strengths: Crafty lefty with an ability to score from anywhere on the floor … Big time development from his freshman to sophomore campaign …  Extremely fluid player on the offensive end … One of the best shooters in college basketball and can do so in both catch and shoot situations as well as coming off screens … Good pull up game as well … Not an overly quick first step but defenses must respect his ability to knock down shots with limited space so it helps him get defenders off balance … Moves extremely well off the ball and creates a lot of space with his ability to utilize screens … Extremely high basketball IQ with improving play making abilities.  Good vision in both the half court and open court settings.  Limits turnovers for a guy with the ball in his hand as much as he did last season with Duke not having a true PG … Can finish at the rim and through some contact and has the ability to use both his left and right hands to get shots off once in the paint … Good size (6’6) for the two-guard position at the next level but lacks great length … 6’5 wingspan and 8’4 standing reach, the same as Donovan Mitchell … Showed great leadership capabilities during his sophomore season at Duke as he was the glue that held the oft injured/suspended team together during the season’s first two months …

Weaknesses: Not a bad athlete by any means but not the explosive type of guy that you would want out of a potential lottery pick … He’s going to play on the wing at the next level and will be going up against the league’s best when it comes to that category … His aforementioned wingspan would rank in the bottom third of the league at 6’5 … Lacks explosiveness at the rim and is more of a crafty scorer than a guy that is going to get into the lane, absorb a ton of contact and get to the free throw line … Moves his feet well on defense but can get burned by quicker players on the perimeter … Will need to be in a good defensive scheme with better individual defenders around him to be effective on that end of the floor … Had an extremely poor showing in the NCAA Tournament as Duke fell short of expectations as they fell to South Carolina in the Round of 32 …

Overall: Few players in the entire NCAA did more for their draft stock this season than Kennard … Coming into the 2016-2017 season he was considered a solid role player and a guy who might get some draft consideration in 2018 or 2019.  Led the ACC in scoring during the regular season.  Lot to love about his game one the offensive end and a lot to be desired on the defensive end.  Kennard is just one of those guys who "gets it" and knows how to play the game.  Rarely gets out of control and seemingly does whatever he needs to for his team to win on any given night.  He will be one of those guys who surprises people at the next level and should stick around in the league for quite some time due to his overall skill set and versatility on offense.

Notes: Measured 6’5 (with shoes) 182 lbs with a 6’4.5 wingspan at the 2013 LeBron James Skills Academy … Measured 6’4.75, 189 lbs, with a 6’5 wingspan and 8’3.5 reach at the 2014 USA U18 tryouts … Measured 6’5 (in shoes) 183 lbs, with a 6’4.5 wingspan at the 2014 Kevin Durant Skills Academy …. Measured 6’4.5 without shoes, 6’5.5 with shoes, 192 lbs, with a 6’5 wingspan and 8’3.5 standing reach at the 2014 USA Junior National Team Mini Camp

Clayton Crowe 3/29/2017

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