Strengths
Hollis-Jefferson’s offensive numbers won’t blow anyone away, but that’s okay; the defensive end of the floor is where he’s going to make his money in the NBA anyway.
“That’ll definitely get me on the court and keep me on the court,” Hollis-Jefferson said after his pre-draft workout in Phoenix.
Though he’s classified as a small forward, Hollis-Jefferson very well could be able to defend the 2, the 3 and the 4 in the pros. As a Pac-12 All-Conference First Team and All-Defensive Team member, he certainly has the strength, lateral quickness and sound defensive principles for his D to translate to the next level.
“I think he embraces that role as a stopper and he’s not afraid to take on a defensive challenge,” McDonough said. “He feels like he can guard multiple positions, he did that at Arizona and I think he’s certainly capable of doing that in the NBA.”
On the other end of the floor, Hollis-Jefferson has a glaring weakness we’ll get to in a minute, but he’s not completely hopeless. At the very least, he’s got the right motivation and athleticism when it comes to attacking the basket:
NBA draft hopeful Rondae Hollis-Jefferson says he wants to dunk all over Serge Ibaka. Ibaka responds: pic.twitter.com/BxGvzzhZCc
— MoneyLine App (@MoneyLineapp) May 18, 2015
He’s a a great rebounder, but he’s also a decent ball handler for his size. Though he’s not as prone to attacking the defense once it’s set up in the half-court game, he’s capable of getting by defenders in transition with no-nonsense drives to the rim, where he’s a pretty effective finisher.
Between his size, strength and athleticism, Hollis-Jefferson can also finish through contact and get to the foul line. According to Draft Express, RHJ averaged 7.1 free throw attempts per 40 minutes pace adjusted, which ranked him first among all small forwards in their top 100 prospects.
Because of his energy, his raw offensive talent and his potential to be elite defensively, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is kind of like if Tony Allen had better ball handling skills and had the body/length of a small forward. There will be quite a few NBA teams intrigued by the possibility that his ceiling extends beyond that.
Next: Weaknesses