CHICAGO -- The 2015 iteration of the NBA Draft Combine convenes this week here with a return to the norm of sorts. For the first time since 2009, the combine will feature 5-on-5 play from prospects, as well as various drills and measurements that we have come to expect from the event in recent years.
On Wednesday, the players had their measurements taken. These included heights, weights, wingspans, standing reaches, hand size and body fat percentages. There are always some winners and losers from this event, so here are five things that you need to know about whose stock was affected today.
1. As expected, Kelly Oubre and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson were the winners on the wing
Oubre and Hollis-Jefferson both came in at around 6-foot-7 with 7-2 wingspans, which not only gives them excellent size to play the 3 on the next level, but also gives them a lot of positional versatility defensively by the time they grow into their bodies. It wouldn't be a surprise to see either of them guard both wing guard positions as well as some small-ball-4s on the next level. Hollis-Jefferson particularly was an elite collegiate defender, and it's not hard to see why with these dimensions. His energy is superb, and these measurements could even swallow up most NBA wings. Oubre is more of a blank canvas on that end, but he showed good energy under Bill Self and certainly is a better offensive prospect than his long-armed cohort. Both also profile to test well athletically tomorrow, and will do themselves well here.
2. On the other hand, do not freak out about Justise Winslow
Winslow got some publicity for the wrong reasons on Friday, as he came in at 6-foot-4.5 tall without shoes on. However, I would preach caution on that for a couple of simple reasons. First, basketball is played in shoes. Second, all players are measured/listed in shoes on the NBA level, where at 6-6 with a 6-10.5 wingspan Winslow will be more than fine. His standing reach at 8-8.5 is bigger than Jimmy Butler, Harrison Barnes, Gordon Hayward and Khris Middleton's, and is right on par with Michael Kidd-Gilchrist's according to DraftExpress.com's measurement database. This might limit his ability to play the small-ball 4 in the NBA, but then again Barnes does it just fine for Golden State. This shouldn't knock Winslow any higher or lower on an NBA team's draft board.
3. Robert Upshaw is really going to have to screw up the interview process to not go in the first round
Coming in at 7-foot with a ridiculous 7-5.5 wingspan, Upshaw was the largest player measured at the combine on Wednesday. His 9-5 standing reach is comparable to Hassan Whiteside, DeAndre Jordan and DeMarcus Cousins in the aforementioned DraftExpress database, and in fact it's only been exceeded by three drafted collegiate players in the last 15 years (Brendan Haywood, Jordan, and JaVale McGee). His ability to block shots is well-renowned, as he swatted 85 shots in only 19 games this season. But there's more to his situation than simple stats and measurements, as he was kicked off of two collegiate teams in three seasons (as outlined here) for situations that have more questions than answers. He'll answer for those problems in the coming month, and he'll need good answers to assuage teams' fears that he may not be worth the investment.
Still though, NBA teams tend to be forgiving, and the importance and value of rim protection is at an all-time high. It would take a lot for a team to not select him in the first round given how many people pulled out of the draft and given his tremendous potential value.
4. George de Paula is a human being despite his seemingly inhuman measurements
George is a raw point guard from Brazil that also played at Hoop Summit, where I wrote about him a few different times. His insane measurements became official today, as he came in at 6-5.5 with a 7-foot wingspan and an 8-8 standing reach. Those measurements alone place him in a class with basically only Tyreke Evans and Shaun Livingston at the point guard position according to DraftExpress' database. However, where he sets himself apart is with his hand measurements of 9.5 inches long and 10 inches wide. Basically, no point guard has ever had that combination of bodily size and hand size.
So yeah, it makes sense why he is considered one of the better defensive point guard prospects to come around in a while. The offense is a major work in progress as I wrote when I scouted him at Hoop Summit, but you could certainly do worse when looking to stash someone in the D-League for a couple of years.
5. Montrezl Harrell should be just fine at the power forward spot in the NBA
There were some concerns coming into the combine about Harrell's height, given that he had previously measured in at 6-6.5 in 2013 at a USA Basketball camp in shoes. Harrell measured better than that this week, coming in at 6-7.5 in shoes with a 7-4.25 wingspan. I wrote a long Harrell scouting report last week, and this measurement confirmation makes me feel much more comfortable having him in the top-20 of my big board. It's worth noting that he did come in a bit heavy though at 253.4 pounds and 11.9 percent body fat, which is something of a surprise. But he's a hard worker and generally was well-conditioned at Louisville, so I wouldn't think much of this.
Other notes:
- A pair of borderline first round defensive wing prospects came in with the long measurements they needed. UCLA's Norman Powell came in at slightly over 6-4 with a near-6-11 wingspan to go with his chiseled 215-pound frame. Arkansas' Michael Qualls ended up at 6-5 with a 7-0.25 wingspan. Those both will play well, especially if these two athletes do as well in the athletic testing as expected.
- Frank Kaminsky measured well height-wise at nearly 7-1 in shoes (the tallest player in Chicago), but his wingspan of 6-11 is slightly disconcerting. Certainly not the best day for him, but his standing reach of 9-1.5 is about average for a center, and is similar to that of Andre Drummond, Steven Adams and Jusuf Nurkic.
- Tyler Harvey's 6-5 wingspan measurement isn't great for a player that already has his struggles on the defensive end, as I wrote about a few weeks ago. That will cause some pause for teams looking to project some further potential for him on that end at the next level.
- Terry Rozier and Corey Hawkins likely didn't measure as tall as they would have liked, but their 6-8 wingspans will help to make up for that. Both are potential microwave scorers off the bench that might be able to annoy 2-guards with pure energy defensively.
- Finally, D'Angelo Russell and Willie Cauley-Stein are the other potential top-five picks that were measured today, and it went well for both. Russell is 6-5 with a near-6-10 wingspan and big hands. Cauley-Stein is 7-0.5 with a 7-3 wingspan. A solid day for both.
| Official NBA Draft Combine measurements | |||||||||
| Player | Pos. | Body Fat |
Hand Length (Inches) |
Hand Width (Inches) |
Height w/o shoes |
Height w/ shoes |
Standing Reach |
Wt. | Wingspan |
| Cliff Alexander | PF-C | 5.80% | 9.5 | 10.25 | 6-7.25 | 6-8.5 | 9-1.5 | 239.2 | 7-3.5 |
| Justin Anderson | SF | 5.00% | 8.5 | 9.5 | 6-5.25 | 6-6.25 | 8-5 | 230.6 | 6-11.75 |
| Brandon Ashley | PF-C | 8.80% | 9 | 9.5 | 6-7.25 | 6-8.5 | 8-9 | 228 | 7-3.25 |
| Ryan Boatright | PG | 6.60% | 7.5 | 8.75 | 5-10 | 5-11 | 7-8.5 | 169.6 | 6-0.5 |
| Devin Booker | SG | 8.30% | 8.75 | 9 | 6-4.5 | 6-5.75 | 8-6.5 | 205.8 | 6-8.25 |
| Anthony Brown | SF | 6.10% | 8.5 | 9 | 6-5.25 | 6-8.5 | 8-8.5 | 211 | 6-11.25 |
| Willie Cauley-Stein | C | 6.30% | 9.5 | 9 | 6-11.25 | 7-0.5 | 9-3 | 242.4 | 7-3 |
| Rakeem Christmas | PF-C | 9.60% | 9.25 | 0 | 6-8.25 | 6-9.75 | 9-2.5 | 242.6 | 7-5.25 |
| Pat Connaughton | SG | 10.20% | 8.5 | 9.25 | 6-4 | 6-5.25 | 8-0 | 215 | 6-8.75 |
| Quinn Cook | PG | 6.70% | 7.5 | 8.25 | 6-0.25 | 6-2 | 8-0.5 | 179 | 6-4 |
| Branden Dawson | PF-C | 5.80% | 9 | 8.75 | 6-5.5 | 6-6.75 | 8-9 | 230.2 | 6-11 |
| Sam Dekker | SF | 7.50% | 8.5 | 9.25 | 6-7.75 | 6-9 | 8-10 | 218.6 | 6-11.5 |
| Michael Frazier II | SG | 7.40% | 8.25 | 9.25 | 6-3.75 | 6-4.25 | 8-5.5 | 199.4 | 6-8 |
| Treveon Graham | SF | 5.50% | 8.5 | 8.25 | 6-4.75 | 6-5.75 | 8-7 | 219.4 | 6-10.5 |
| Jerian Grant | PG | 5.60% | 8.25 | 8.5 | 6-3.25 | 6-4.25 | 8-4 | 198 | 6-7.5 |
| Olivier Hanlan | PG | 4.30% | 8 | 8.75 | 6-3.25 | 6-4.25 | 8-4 | 185.8 | 6-6.5 |
| Montrezl Harrell | PF-C | 11.90% | 9 | 9.75 | 6-7 | 6-7.5 | 9-1 | 253.4 | 7-4.25 |
| Aaron Harrison | SG | 6.00% | 8.3 | 10 | 6-4.5 | 6-6 | 8-4.5 | 209.2 | 6-8.25 |
| Andrew Harrison | PG | 5.90% | 8.25 | 9.25 | 6-4.5 | 6-5.5 | 8-4 | 213.2 | 6-9 |
| Tyler Harvey | SG | 9.20% | 7.75 | 8.75 | 6-2.75 | 6-4 | 8-2.5 | 181.4 | 6-5.5 |
| Corey Hawkins | SG | 5.50% | 8.3 | 9 | 6-0.75 | 6-1.75 | 8-3.5 | 191.8 | 6-8 |
| Rondae Hollis-Jefferson | SF | 5.00% | 8.75 | 9.75 | 6-5.5 | 6-7 | 8-8 | 210.8 | 7-2 |
| Jonathan Holmes | PF-C | 7.20% | 8.25 | 9.5 | 6-8.25 | 6-9.25 | 8-11.5 | 242.2 | 6-11.5 |
| Richaun Holmes | PF-C | 8.80% | 8.5 | 8.5 | 6-8.25 | 6-9.5 | 9-0 | 242.8 | 7-1.5 |
| R.J. Hunter | SG | 6.00% | 8.5 | 8.25 | 6-4.5 | 6-6 | 8-8 | 185 | 6-10.5 |
| Vince Hunter | PF-C | 4.60% | 9 | 8.75 | 5-10.75 | 6-7.5 | 8-8.5 | 208.4 | 6-11 |
| Mouhammadou Jaiteh | C | 9.90% | 9 | 9.25 | 6-9.5 | 6-10.5 | 9-2.5 | 246.8 | 7-3.25 |
| Dakari Johnson | C | 14.90% | 9.25 | 10.5 | 6-11 | 6-11.75 | 9-4 | 264.6 | 7-2 |
| Stanley Johnson | SF | 7.50% | 9 | 9 | 6-5 | 6-6.5 | 8-6 | 241.8 | 6-11.5 |
| Tyus Jones | PG | 6.50% | 8.25 | 8.75 | 6-0.25 | 6-2 | 8-1 | 184.6 | 6-5 |
| Frank Kaminsky | C | 9.40% | 8.5 | 9.5 | 6-11.75 | 7-0.75 | 9-1.5 | 231.2 | 6-11 |
| Kevon Looney | PF-C | 11.90% | 9.5 | 9.25 | 6-8 | 6-9.25 | 9-2 | 222.4 | 7-3.5 |
| Trey Lyles | PF-C | 12.10% | 9.25 | 10.25 | 6-9 | 6-10.25 | 9-0 | 241.2 | 7-1.5 |
| Jarell Martin | PF-C | 10.10% | 8.25 | 6-8 | 6-9.25 | 8-10.5 | 238.6 | 6-9.75 | |
| TJ McConnell | PG | 7.30% | 7.5 | 7 | 6-0.5 | 6-2 | 8-0.5 | 187.8 | 6-2 |
| Chris McCullough | PF-C | 6.20% | 8.75 | 8.75 | 6-8.25 | 6-9 | 9-1 | 199 | 7-3.25 |
| Jordan Mickey | PF-C | 7.20% | 8.75 | 9.5 | 6-7 | 6-8.25 | 8-10 | 238 | 7-3.25 |
| Larry Nance | PF-C | 6.40% | 9 | 9.75 | 6-7.5 | 6-8.5 | 9-0 | 226.6 | 7-1.5 |
| Kelly Oubre | SF | 5.70% | 9 | 8.75 | 6-5.75 | 6-6.75 | 8-6.5 | 202.8 | 7-2.25 |
| Cameron Payne | PG | 6.30% | 8.5 | 8.25 | 6-0.75 | 6-1.5 | 8-1.5 | 182.6 | 6-7.25 |
| Terran Petteway | SG | 4.90% | 8.25 | 8.25 | 6-4.75 | 6-6 | 8-8.5 | 209.2 | 6-11.25 |
| Bobby Portis | PF-C | 8.90% | 9.5 | 9.25 | 6-9.5 | 6-10.5 | 9-0.5 | 246.2 | 7-2 |
| Norman Powell | SG | 6.40% | 9.25 | 9 | 6-3 | 6-4.25 | 8-6.5 | 215.4 | 6-10.75 |
| Michael Qualls | SG | 4.00% | 9 | 10.25 | 6-4 | 6-5 | 8-8.5 | 201.4 | 7-0.25 |
| Chasson Randle | PG | 4.50% | 8.5 | 9.5 | 6-0.75 | 6-1.5 | 8-0.5 | 178.8 | 6-7 |
| Terry Rozier | PG | 5.60% | 8.25 | 8.75 | 6-0.75 | 6-2.25 | 8-2.5 | 190.2 | 6-8.25 |
| D'Angelo Russell | PG | 8.30% | 8.75 | 9.75 | 6-3.25 | 6-5 | 8-6 | 193.4 | 6-9.75 |
| Keifer Sykes | PG | 5.00% | 8.5 | 9.5 | 5-10.5 | 5-11.75 | 7-9 | 167.2 | 6-2 |
| TaShawn Thomas | PF-C | 12.40% | 9 | 9.25 | 6-7.25 | 6-8 | 9-0 | 240.2 | 7-2 |
| Marcus Thornton | PG | 5.30% | 8.25 | 8.5 | 6-1.75 | 6-2.75 | 8-1.5 | 177.4 | 6-7.75 |
| J.P. Tokoto | SF | 4.10% | 8 | 8.75 | 6-5.25 | 6-6.25 | 8-4.5 | 195.8 | 6-10 |
| Myles Turner | C | 9.30% | 9.25 | 9.25 | 6-9.75 | 6-11.5 | 9-4 | 238.6 | 7-4 |
| Robert Upshaw | C | 12.50% | 10 | 11 | 6-10.75 | 7-0 | 9-5 | 258.2 | 7-5.5 |
| Rashad Vaughn | SG | 6.20% | 8 | 8.5 | 6-3.75 | 6-5 | 8-5 | 198.6 | 6-7 |
| Chris Walker | PF-C | 5.10% | 9 | 9 | 6-8.75 | 6-9.25 | 9-0 | 208 | 7-2.75 |
| Dez Wells | SG | 8.10% | 8.75 | 9.75 | 6-3 | 6-4 | 8-4.5 | 208.8 | 6-9.5 |
| Aaron White | PF-C | 8.00% | 8.25 | 9.25 | 6-7.75 | 6-8.75 | 8-10.5 | 219.8 | 6-11.5 |
| Alan Williams | PF-C | 12.00% | 8.5 | 9.5 | 6-7.25 | 6-8.25 | 8-10.5 | 261.4 | 7-1.75 |
| Justise Winslow | SF | 5.30% | 8.5 | 9.25 | 6-4.5 | 6-6.5 | 8-8.5 | 221.8 | 6-10.25 |
| Christian Wood | PF-C | 14.70% | 9.25 | 10.75 | 6-9.25 | 6-10.5 | 9-3.5 | 216 | 7-3.25 |
| Delon Wright | PG | 6.60% | 8 | 8.5 | 6-4.25 | 6-5.5 | 8-5.5 | 181.4 | 6-7.5 |
| Joseph Young | SG | 4.10% | 8.25 | 7.5 | 6-0.75 | 6-2 | 7-10.5 | 182.2 | 6-5 |
| George de Paula | PG | 6.70% | 9.5 | 10 | 6-4.5 | 6-5.5 | 8-8 | 197 | 7-0 |
