Note: This article was written by Brian Emory.
It’s amazing what one extra year of college can do for some players. As a true freshman, Nik Stauskas was a role player for the Michigan Wolverines; he displayed his elite shooting abilities on multiple occasions, but that was about the extent of his role on the team. When he was hitting, he could almost turn the tide of a game by himself, but when he wasn’t he was almost a non-factor. That all changed in year two for the Maize & Blue. The wing product out of Canada took his game to a completely different level and established himself as one of, if not the best, players in the Big-10.
The 2013-2014 Big 10 Player of the Year dropped 17.5 points per contest which ranked third best in the conference, while also shooting 44.2% from deep, ranking first in the Big-10. It’s not hard to figure out that Stauskas’ biggest strength is his three-point shooting, and that’s something that never will change. However, he did show a lot more potential as an all-around offensive player in his sophomore season. In addition to shooting lights out from deep, Stauskas displayed more of his abilities to slash to the rim and create his own shots. The improvements Stauskas made his sophomore year are very promising. He has great potential as an offensive player, but he still has plenty of work and growing to do before he’ll be able to dominate opposing defensive wings. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Stauskas’ game is how deep his range goes and his lightning quick release on his jump shot. With the NBA evolving into a high volume, three-point shooting game which relies so heavily on floor spacing, Stauskas looks ready to find a role at the next level.
The most prominent concern Stauskas is currently carrying all relates to his potential as a defender. Due to a combination of a middling frame, pedestrian length, and poor lateral quickness, there are undoubtedly reasons to be concerned about Stauskas as a defender. However he does have good size for a wing player, standing at 6’6” and weighing in at around 205 lbs. With Kevin Pelton’s new “Real +/-“ suggesting that having good defensive big men is much more important that containing opposing team’s guards, there may be some saving grace to Stauskas.
In addition to being a lethal scorer and shooter, Stauskas is also a very crafty distributor. He ranked tenth in the Big 10 with 118 assists this season (3.5 per game). Michigan put Stuaskas in a lot of pick and rolls at the top of the key. He displayed a vision and understanding of the game; if he wasn’t hitting a jumper he was finding the roll man or a spot-up shooter on the perimeter. Having offensively limited Jon Horford and Jordan Morgan as his pick-and-roll partner meant teams would most of the time send two men at Stauskas. He handled this extra attention very well and forced the defense to pay by finding the open man. While it’s not exactly a strength of his, Stauskas is also a willing rebounder and averaged right at three rebounds per fixture in both his freshman and sophomore seasons.
Another promising trait Stauskas has already displayed is his willingness to lead a team. A lot of shooters go through dry spells and will have to come out of games when their shot isn’t falling because they don’t have other ways to positively impact the team. This isn’t the case with Stauskas, who played 35.6 minutes per game (second in the Big-10), and rarely ever sat. Stauskas almost at times comes across a little too confident though as his shot selection was questionable at times.
There is a huge focus on perimeter scoring in the NBA today, so Stauskas is easily a first-round pick, and I’d say there’s a very good chance he hears his name called in the top 20. His defense is certainly a cause for concern, but good coaching can always find ways to cover up some weaknesses, and he still has plenty of time to grow and improve as a defender. The fact remains that Stauskas has potential to become one of the best scorers out of this entire draft, and he’s going to be a high pick because of that.
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By Brian Emory
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