2016 Houston Rockets Draft Prospect Series: Malik Beasley

The 2016 NBA Draft will take place on Thursday June 23rd with the Houston Rockets selecting 37th and 43rd. While the Rockets are without a first round pick given GM Daryl Morey’s tendency to orchestrate trades it would be unwise to count him out of making a deal to move up. With that Space City Scoop is featuring a Draft Prospect Series covering 60 of the top ranked prospects. Next up is Malik Beasley

Draft Prospect:

Specifics:

Height:6 ‘3.5″
Weight: 190
Country: America, Georgia
Position: Shooting Guard
Age: 19
Reach: 8’4.5
Wingspan: 6’7″
College or Pro League: Florida State Seminoes, Freshman
Stat line: 34 Games, 15.6 Points Per Game, 5.3 Rebounds Per Game, 1.5 Assists Per Game

Current Rank:

Please note, the rankings below come from the most up to date versions as the time of writing. That said not all the mock drafts provide second round ranks or updates often only extend to the end of the first round.

Therefore, if you check a ranking and note the number has changed it’s likely due to updates and a shift in the rankings.

ESPN Chad Ford: 22

Draft Express: 26

David Aldridge:Places Beasley behind a couple of solid shooting guards in Buddy Hield, my proposed top 10 shocker Denzel Valentine and Timothe Luwawu.

The Skills:

Beasley occupation is a little surprising given he comes from a family of actors. His parents and his grandfather are all thespians. But, it’s no surprise Malik chose to utilize his copious skills to his advantage.

Though only 19 Beasley has shown the ability to play both ends and has consistently demonstrated extremely high character with a great motor. His ceiling is high which should have teams who can afford to take the time to develop him sitting up and taking interest.

Add in the tangible qualities of length, efficiency and overall strong fundamentals and Beasley is a prospect who’ll surely go in the first round.

Many scoring prospects enter the draft with prowess either via drives or an ability to hit from the field, seldom are they adept at both. Beasley is one of those rare prospects that fits that bill. As per Draft Express:

As a shooter Beasley is very sound mechanically, showing outstanding shot preparation before the catch, tremendous balance, quick elevation as he goes into his motion, and a clean wrist action at the top of his jump that produces a healthy amount of back spin. Beasley can shoot off the hop or after planting one foot after another, an important skill for shooting on the move and under duress.

With defenders having to respect Beasley’s catch-and-shoot jumper, which yields 1.175 points per possession, he’s able to use his athleticism to attack scrambling defenders to get into a mid-range pull-up, floater or finish at the rim. Beasley displays the same impressive mechanics on his pull-up that he does on his catch-and-shoot jumper, which should help him become more of a versatile scorer as his ball-handling improves.

Weaknesses:

Obviously Beasley needs to add size to his frame and at just 19 there are still multiple areas the youngster needs to improve upon.

The most obvious areas Beasley needs to improve upon is his ball handling, ability to create off the dribble, and play making for his team. While he’s been highly successful in College once he hits the pros players at his position who’ll guard him will take away his initial move. Though he’s been highly successful in Florida most of his scoring opportunities came from his first move, so it adds further precedence to him expediting his ability to offer versatility on offense.

Defense is another area he’ll need to make strides which isn’t uncommon for NBA rookies. Obviously as he gains strength and size this will come easier to him, but his work ethic should help in this regard. The main things his new team will need to work with him on is his focus on defense to operate in a system and to stop taking unnecessary chances which is his tendency.

The Fit:

More from Space City Scoop

He’s shown an ability to be a high level scorer and has a great motor with an extremely high ceiling. That said it’s not exactly like the Rockets are in desperate need of a shooting guard (hello James Harden).

Further with Beasley ranking on most draft boards to go in the first round it’s also unlikely (nor wise) for Morey to trade up to add a player who wouldn’t see the court since he’ll need time in the D-League. This isn’t news to Houston Rockets fans since of all the positions on the roster drafting a player at the position of your super star makes zero sense.

Still, Trader Daryl has done some crazy things in the past, but let’s hope he sees the priorities lie elsewhere. Factor in Dwight Howard opted out today and it should provide a laser focus for GM Morey on where his priorities lie.

Next: Draft Prospect Guerschon Yabusele

Next: Draft Prospect Chinanu Onuaku

Next: Draft Prospect Demetrius Jackson

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