NBA Comparison: Dante Cunningham

Strengths: A defensive minded forward with a blue collar work ethic and high effort level … Has solid athleticism and great length with a 7-foot wingspan … A surprising outside shooter, connecting on 43% of his 3 point shots as a junior and 37% as a senior (2.0 makes per game) … Shows some ability to defend on the perimeter and in the post … Solid decision maker with a positive a/to ratio … Productivity showed a solid increase in each of his four seasons in college … Team oriented player with four years of experience (three in the SEC) … Ability to play as a small ball four could give him some added intrigue … Solid at finishing around the rim and strength gives him the ability to play through contact … Strong offensive rebounder and gives good effort on the boards … Seems to have a solid understanding of what he does well and doesn’t try to do too much or play out of his comfort zone … Big hands give him good control of the ball …

Weaknesses: Limited as an offensive player … Not great at creating offense for himself. Too predictable and too much of a straight line player when he tries to ISO and drive … Shot has mechanical problems as he shoots it from his shoulder and sort of slings the ball … An older player as a 23 year old senior so therefore not viewed as a player with a great deal of upside left to develop … Could be viewed as a "tweener" player lacking a position as he’s not truly a small forward and too small to play as a full time 4 … Hit a decent 73% from the line as a senior but shot very poorly in both his freshman (58%) and junior seasons (59%) … Lacks much of an ISO game, not a great ball handler … Shot a low FG percentage for a forward (44%), granted a high number of shots came from the perimeter (50% of all FG attempts were from 3) … Difficult to see him as a full time SF as his ball skills aren’t great, and he lacks the lateral speed to stay with quick wing players … Shooting form is not ideal. Although he’s got good efficiency, it may be tough for him to extend his shot further without reworking his form … A good athlete, but not a great one … Has absolutely no post game, which is unfortunate because he could use it at the next level as a SF that posts up smaller wings …

Notes: 6′ 6.5” barefoot, 6′ 7.75” in shoes, 212.6 lbs, 6′ 11.75” wingspan at the NBA Draft Combine … Measured 6’7.5 (in shoes) 214 lbs, with a 6’11.5 wingspan at the 2014 Kevin Durant Skills Academy … Averaged 14.7 ppg and 8.3 rpg as a senior … Sat out the 2012-13 season after transferring from from Virginia Tech following his freshman season …

Aran Smith 6/3/16