1. Player profiles
Name: E.J. Liddell Liddell）
Date of birth: 2000.12.18
Age: 21 years old
Alma mater: Ohio State University
Height: 6'7" (2.01m)
Arm Span: 6 ft 11 in (2.10 m)
Weight: 240 lbs (109 kg)
Predicted picks: Mid-round of the first round
High Template: Millsap, PJ Tucker with low offensive ability and slowed down lateral movements
Low template: Pascal and Tillman with weakened ball holding ability and increased defense
Predicted teams: Spurs (Dragon Signing), Nets, Nuggets
2. Player data
3. Scouting report
NBA Scouting live
advantage
- Excellent low-level scorer
- Good ball-holding scoring ability
— Good mid-range pitcher
— Reliable positional combat passer
— The offensive end provides excellent cover quality for teammates
- Excellent rebounding ability
— Reliable defender
- Has a very good capping ability
- Good athleticism
inferior position
- The projection performance is not stable enough, there are ups and downs
- Lack of elite-level first-step explosiveness when holding the ball, making it difficult to get rid of opponents
— Will try some barely made shots on the outside
- No elite-level ball possession
— There is a tendency to foul
NBA draft room
Liddell is a very strong, destructive big forward who is the engine of the team and can continue to make a scoring threat to the opponent's penalty area. His weight of 240 pounds allows him to use his size and strength to gain the upper hand in the fight even against an interior line taller than his. Liedel has the prototype of becoming the modern type Of No. 4.
Riddle's vastly improved three-point shooting ability this year (shooting a full 38 percent) adds even more tactical value to him. He's a reliable rebounder and an all-around defender who's almost in positional combat. As a 2.01m striker, Liddell delivers 2.5 blocks per game.
Liddell's every year of neutral ohio has been a continuous improvement, and this year even reached the scope of the first round of the draft discussion, and he is very likely to be selected in the first half of the first round.
NBA Draft junkies
advantage
- Strong skeleton, stout lower plate and low center of gravity
— Outside projection capability
- Number four with the ability to block and dismantle external bombs
- Excellent ability to transfer the ball, averaging nearly 3 assists per game
— Expected to be a team glue player in the NBA
- Soft feel near the end of the frame
- The means of termination are diverse
— Has the potential to be a player like PJ Tucker
— Good mid-range scorer
— Efficient low singles and near frame finish
- As a cover, you can provide different help to the team
— Outstanding rebounding ability
- The timing of the cap is impressive
- Know how to use the slide to keep up with the opponent on the defensive end
inferior position
— Athletic ability, breakthrough speed
- Overly obsessed with the back jumper, there is a reluctance to shoot
— Offensive means may not be able to convert to the NBA
- As the fifth position, the height size is small
Fourth, the life of the player
Liddell grew up in Belleville, Illinois, and attended high school at Belleville WestSide High School. He averaged 20.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in his junior year of high school, won the 2018 Illinois Basketball Master Of The Year Award, won the 2018 St. Louis Post Player of the Year, and won the Illinois 4A State Championship. In his senior year, he averaged 20.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game. For the second year in a row, he won the Illinois Basketball Man, the St. Louis Post Player of the Year, and the Illinois 4A State Championship.
High school Liddell is recognized as a four-star player and is the best player in Illinois. Riddle played as a substitute in his freshman year, averaging 6.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. He played all 31 games and finished second on the team with 29 blocks. He performed well against Illinois in his sophomore year, scoring a season-high 26 points. Riddle averaged 16.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game in his second season. After Ohio State's 64-1 loss to Oro Roberts, Liddell was threatened by basketball fans via social media. After he tweeted screenshots of the threats, Ohio State university contacted law enforcement about the threats. On March 31, 2021, Liddell announced his participation in the 2021 NBA Draft while maintaining his college credentials Later he withdrew from the draft and announced that he would return to Ohio State to begin his junior season. On January 9, 2022, Liddell scored a career-high 34 points to win 95-87 over Northwestern University he was selected to the top ten first team. As a junior, he averaged 19.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.6 blocks per game.
5. Photos of the players
6. Personal summary
Riddle joined Ohio State as a four-star high school student, starting from the bench and stepping towards the pinnacle of his NCAA career. During this period, he also encountered various setbacks and unhappiness, such as insufficient sustainability on the defensive end, inefficient projection and so on. Even after losing the last game last year, at one point received threatening letters from extreme fans. He was not overwhelmed by these dilemmas and entered the discussion in the middle of the first round as an older rookie. The short space-sized No. 4 from Illinois, who tested the waters of training camp before last summer's draft, was judged to be not stable enough in shooting and defense insufficient. After another year of grinding, Liddell has improved a lot in all aspects of his body and technique. The three-point shooting rate has stabilized at 37%, and the personal data has also achieved overall growth, playing a role in the team's unyielding tactical core. For the Spurs, who are "blowing up the storm of youth", choosing a spatial four position that can act as the fifth position of the small ball in the middle and back of the first round is a good idea.
All-around defender
Although Liddell is only 6 feet 7, his weight and muscles give him the capital to fight the big guys on the inside, and the flexible footsteps that are not commensurate with the body also allow him to block the opponent at any time. He is especially good at using his strong upper body to give the opponent a full confrontation, and at the moment of the opponent's shot, he uses his excellent sealing ability to do his best to stifle this attack. Even on the weak side, Liddell has always focused a large part of his attention on the ball carrier. When the opposing ball carrier tore open the first line of defense, he would be like a roc spreading his wings, killing from the other side to send a hot pot feast. But going into the NBA, he may be better suited to defending the No. 4 position and some heavy forwards. If placed against a small, agile striker or a fast long man, he may get into trouble and be defeated by his opponent using speed and dribbling.
Excellent low-post singles ability
In his career at the NCAA, Liddell has proven himself to be an absolute top low-post singles player. Whenever there is a moment when the situation cannot be opened, emptying the side and letting Liddell catch the ball in the low position has become the most common means used by his coaches. Thanks to his excellent projection of threats, Liddell excelled at turning around and back-to-back threats and then pulling back jumpers. In addition, his forward or backward turn + jump step back jump shot is also aggressive, and from time to time he will show a slightly childish hook and low dream steps. These skills may not be able to stand directly in the NBA, but these potential individual scoring abilities can still help him take himself to the next level in the future.
A solid and highly intelligent coverer
Another particularly valuable trait of Liddell is the diversity he exhibits as a coverer. His sturdy stature allows him to completely block the covered person during the cover. After cover, he sometimes bounced outside the three-point line to shoot cold arrows, and sometimes went down to create low-level killing opportunities.
Reliable responsive type four
Another thing that makes Liddell's tactical value surge is his excellent ball quotient and out-of-the-box vision, and it may be difficult for him to deliver the whimsical and ghostly passes of Jokic and Dior, but his passing ability is often underestimated. He averaged nearly three assists in his third year. The university can flexibly switch the identity of the high-level operator and the low-level singles to attract the bag in the team, not only can send a pass that tears the defense at the moment before the opponent's bag, but also observe the position of the low-level teammate in the process of high-level organization.
Mediocre breakthrough speed, ball holding ability needs to be improved
Liddell needed to improve his ability to control the ball and the speed of the first step. By NBA standards, his possession is still a bit loose, which will limit his ability to create shots and break chances. If he still maintains the present, we may often see him holding the ball to break through to create no space, and finally shoot a hat in anger; or under the opponent's defense, the ball is directly lost, and the title of "boy who gives money" is mentioned.
Course decisions need to be improved
In individual singles, Liddell would often have a hard time shooting or poor shooting choices. Especially outside the inside, his decision-making ability needs to be improved. Sometimes the field of vision is a little narrow, facing the crowded basket overlord the bow, missing the opportunity to give the ball to the empty teammate.
Future outlook
This season, the Spurs have lined up more of the big and four small lineups on the court, and there is no pure No. 4 position (both in terms of height and technical characteristics). Neither Kelden Johnson nor Bates Diop can give Peltel and Collins enough help in rebounding protection and interior defense. These two are exactly what Liddle is good at, and his comprehensive offensive skills inside and out allow him to be on the court with a center like Pelter or as a small center in rotation. Riddle's trait of improvising power, which can both complement the shortcomings of the squad and increase the depth of the bench, may make him a good choice in the second half of the first round.
(Text:SpursPlaybook)