Now that our lottery position is basically set, (and we’re not in the playoffs, so there’s not much Raptor related to talk about there), we can talk about the draft.
With our squad lacking shooting, and with the constant drafting of 6’9 athletes who can’t shoot becoming a buy redundant and tiring, a lot of eyes have turned to the guards in this draft. Based on where we’re sitting in the draft, there is a plethora of guards. Lots of buzz about Keyonte George, Nick Smith Jr, Cason Wallace, Jalen Hood-Schifino. Each bring their own strength and weaknesses, but the prospect I’m been loving most for a while has been Kobe Bufkin. He is going midteens into the early 20s in most mock drafts right now and I’m not honestly not sure why he’s not higher.
Adam Spinella probably has the [best scouting tape](https://youtu.be/ydcdGbX8NMw) on him right now – it’s a good watch.
He’s a sophomore, which may go against him, but he’s actually 19 and young for his class. He’s basically the same age as George and Wallace, and younger than freshman like Hood-Schifino, and even his Michigan teammate Jett Howard.
He is a bit slight of frame, which also goes against him, but he’s young and has room to grow. Moreover, watching him play, he does not play like a weakling. He’s absorbing contact, finishing into guys. Hard not to think about what he could do with some growth and NBA strength and conditioning.
He’s a great finisher even at 6’4 with his slight frame. 70% at the rim (35% of his FGA). Sight for sore eyes for those who find it hard to watch our guards miss at the rim. He finishes with both hands (he’s a lefty) and is quite crafty. He has the Nash-like left hand finish the right side, the jelly, the euro, etc. He’s got that herky jerky handle, the hesitation.
He can play PnR. He’s great navigating screens, splitting defenders to get to the rim. He’s a good passer and can create out of PnR. He’s not a pass first PnR maestro, and I think he can improve further on his passing. Even still he’s making breads and making passes out of PnR with both hands, so I think he has potential to become an even better playmaker.
He can shoot, he’s got pull-up range out to the 3. Shot .355 on 3.7 attempts this year. 83% FT shooter throughout college. Can score off the dribble.
He’s athletic – he doesn’t have Scoot bounce, but he can get to the rim on drives just fine. He has functional athleticism, to get high up enough to finish, he can [dunk](https://youtu.be/NkHEW8GxB90) in the lane, get up high enough for chase down blocks (more on this later). [This](https://youtu.be/YXR_cqtQs1w?t=1101) is an odd example of athleticism for a guard, but I love it. Seals a smaller guard for under the basket, catches the post entry pass and pivots for a standing dunk? It seems trivial because we have freaks like OG doing it all the time, but this is a 6’4 combo guard.
Can impact the game defensively. Great hands, quick, gets lots of steals at point of attack. 23 blocks as a guard which is pretty damn good, with some [highlight reel chase down](https://youtu.be/l00d8Led5sE) potential.
I think the knock on him right now is that he’s a jack of all trades, master of none. I think as he got more responsibility as the man with Jett out, he was coming into his own.
I’m not sure what the best comp for him is, but I see a Jordan Poole with a smaller bag offensively, but a plus defender. I think he could fit on this team in a lot of ways. He still fits in with our defensive mindset, but also adds lots to the table offensively. He can run the offense off the bench, or fit in as an off ball player.
Plus, what could be more meant to be than Kobe at 13?
by myeezy
5 Comments
>finishing into guys
I’m listening.
…jokes aside, I agree with you. He’s the guy I want if Cason Wallace is off the board at 13 (which looks pretty likely at this point)
My case for Kobe Bufkin:
His name is Kobe
Interestesting write up. Good job. Im sold !
I think he’s underrated, but JHS runs the pnr better and has the [hostage dribble](https://youtu.be/oytrbsBZs68) down which is something that can take some point guards years to figure out. Rather draft someone with a shit ton of scoring potential like Nick Smith, Keyonte George or even Hawkins.
My worry with Kobe is can he play off ball. Fred will be back next year, I imagine Scottie is going increase his PG reps, and Pascal isn’t going to play off ball all the time.
What I like about Wallace is he seems equally capable of contributing off and on ball and is primarily going to be a great perimeter defender.
I certainly like the idea of someone like Kobe running the bench offence, but it’d be nice to also have someone that can play as the 2 alongside Scottie or Fred. I haven’t watched enough Kobe film to know whether he can do that effectively, but his low 3 point attempts don’t necessarily give a lot of confidence there