I think he said that about Keegan Murray but he's been high on Mathurin too. Those guys are 1-2 for me but I do prefer Mathurin for a number of reasons. His ballhandling and passing are both better than most are giving him credit for. Nobody watches the Pac-12 unless they live on the west coast so it's hard to take some of these scouting reports too seriously (the one you posted is one of the better breakdowns but it is 4 months old and Mathurin improved a lot in the second half of the season -- I'm sure Hoops Intellect will post a full breakdown on him before the draft though).
I like that his dribble moves are almost always toward the basket - he doesn't dance side to side trying to create an opening. but if one is there he'll take it. He can not only shoot it from deep but he's got a quick release and he specializes in catch and shoot jumpers. And he shot the ball even better as a Freshman (42% from 3 and 85% at the line). He's a serious weapon as a cutter too because he's got great timing and when he elevates his head is at rim level. His leaping ability also makes him a factor on the offensive glass.
As for weaknesses, the big one is defensive intensity. He's a capable defender but he doesn't get locked in consistently. That's the biggest area he needs to improve but the same is true for Ivey, Banchero, and Sharpe (in HS). I also didn't see him take a lot of midrange jumpers.-- his offense is primarily at the rim or from behind the three point line. I suspect this is the biggest reason why he's often dismissed as a secondary option scorer and less of a star than Ivey or Sharpe, but it's not like he can't create shots off the dribble. I've seen him create high percentage shots with drive and kicks, dump off passes, and step backs from a live dribble. It wasn't a big part of his game at Arizona but that was probably by design. Most modern coaches don't want their players taking mid-range jumpers anymore except as a last resort and Arizona had a balanced offense and didn't need any single player to dominate the ball.
So the shooting is already there. He's at least the equal of Ivey and Sharpe as an athlete, he just does most of his damage on catch and shoots and finishing backdoor cuts or lobs. He's a good enough passer and ballhandler for a wing with some room for improvement but some encouraging growth in those areas throughout the season. The defense needs to be better but he's had moments where he stifles ballhandlers and comes up with big steals so there's some projectability. Effort seems to be where he lags behind so I'm glad we finally hired a defensive coach. That gives him a chance of developing into a complete player. And the X-Factor for me is that he comes across as somebody who really loves playing team basketball and turns up his intensity in big moments and big games.
I like that his dribble moves are almost always toward the basket - he doesn't dance side to side trying to create an opening. but if one is there he'll take it. He can not only shoot it from deep but he's got a quick release and he specializes in catch and shoot jumpers. And he shot the ball even better as a Freshman (42% from 3 and 85% at the line). He's a serious weapon as a cutter too because he's got great timing and when he elevates his head is at rim level. His leaping ability also makes him a factor on the offensive glass.
As for weaknesses, the big one is defensive intensity. He's a capable defender but he doesn't get locked in consistently. That's the biggest area he needs to improve but the same is true for Ivey, Banchero, and Sharpe (in HS). I also didn't see him take a lot of midrange jumpers.-- his offense is primarily at the rim or from behind the three point line. I suspect this is the biggest reason why he's often dismissed as a secondary option scorer and less of a star than Ivey or Sharpe, but it's not like he can't create shots off the dribble. I've seen him create high percentage shots with drive and kicks, dump off passes, and step backs from a live dribble. It wasn't a big part of his game at Arizona but that was probably by design. Most modern coaches don't want their players taking mid-range jumpers anymore except as a last resort and Arizona had a balanced offense and didn't need any single player to dominate the ball.
So the shooting is already there. He's at least the equal of Ivey and Sharpe as an athlete, he just does most of his damage on catch and shoots and finishing backdoor cuts or lobs. He's a good enough passer and ballhandler for a wing with some room for improvement but some encouraging growth in those areas throughout the season. The defense needs to be better but he's had moments where he stifles ballhandlers and comes up with big steals so there's some projectability. Effort seems to be where he lags behind so I'm glad we finally hired a defensive coach. That gives him a chance of developing into a complete player. And the X-Factor for me is that he comes across as somebody who really loves playing team basketball and turns up his intensity in big moments and big games.
