Judah Mintz Player Evaluation

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Judah Mintz

Oak Hill Academy

Team Durant

Class

2022

Height

~6'4"

Weight

170 lbs

Position

Strong Hand

Right

Committed

Syracuse

June 2021

**This evaluation is intended to build on top of Mintz’s previous evaluation by Point Guard Eyes in 2020, focusing on progressions made (or not made), year-over-year**

High School Season Context: as a sophomore last season, Mintz had a much lower usage rate in his role as an efficient scorer. He was the 4th option alongside his high-major-bound senior teammates. This season, he saw his usage rate rise significantly, functioning more as an initiator and playmaker, as opposed to playing off the ball.
AAU Circuit context: as for his time with Team Durant on the Circuit, he played in his natural role, which is off the ball and not as an initiator/playmaker. While he was still able to exhibit playmaking abilities, he was not a main initiator of offense; and much of his ball handling took place as a scoring threat (i.e. one-on-one dribble moves)

Throughout the evaluation, you will see the two roles explained above compared and contrasted.

Statistics from 2021 (10 Games)

Physical/Athleticism

To reiterate: a very good overall athlete
Has excellent speed in the open court
Explosiveness looks to have grown further over last year (vertical, forward acceleration, and lateral quickness)
Improved explosion/quickness of his first step

Long arms that serve him well on the defensive end, especially
Frame is still quite thin, and he will benefit from adding more strength in his upper body
- His build should support more muscle mass as he matures without hindering his athleticism
Good hand-eye coordination
Terrific anticipation
Reliable endurance
Good core strength and balance

Other Offensive Qualities

Offensive Qualities

Aggressive 3-level scorer who has a diverse set of shots to go to in various situations
- You will see the shot chart below actually broken down into 4 levels in an effort to capture his shot type/choice with more accuracy
A true shooting guard who puts pressure on the defense in the half court and in transition
- A consistent scorer, putting up 17.3 ppg over the 10 games charted, despite his shooting woes
- Excellent isolation player; continues to hone his shot creation skills
- Has a smooth mid-range game and does a good job of getting to his spots with a variety of moves off the dribble, one-and-two dribble pull-ups, and from a jab-step series

Can use too many dribbles, at times, to get to that spot when utilizing the live dribble

A capable 3-point shooter who shoots a solid percentage off the catch (see more on this in the “Shooting” section below)
Very good when he fills the lane in transition. His speed can get him out in front of the defense. He can finish at the rim, stop and pop from mid-range, or make the right pass to a trailing/running teammate.

Has enhanced his ability to attack the basket with regularity or touch the paint. This is due to the combination of his explosiveness, the efficacy of his dribble moves, and the respect defenders have for his shooting ability. Finishes in and around the paint/at the basket with a diverse array of shots (see more on his finishing below).

Will drive left or right
His aggression gets him to the line, which leads me to my next point…

Improved his consistency in getting to the line, where he shoots a very good percentage (6 attempts per game at 82%)
- Draws contact well in multiple situations
  - Improved body control around the basket
  - Can draw the foul as a jump shooter, getting his man up in the air with the pump fake

Initiates contact as a ball handler to draw fouls on the floor
- Finds himself at the line during bonus time

Proved to be much more efficient and effective in his role off the ball as a traditional SG, as opposed to an initiator/primary ball handler
- The experience as an initiator was very good for his overall development
  - Exhibited good strides as a playmaker in the half court (i.e. pick and roll play) and in transition

Took the challenge head on, but tended to press the issue, force shots, or get caught in situations without an exit plan

Always persistent as a scorer, his aggression level was high when functioning as the initiator, putting up 15.5 shots per contest
- His shot selection was evidence that he was pressing to shoulder the scoring load (see more below in the “Shooting” section)
  - Helped lead to an uncharacteristically low shooting percentage from the field (37.6%)
- Showed the inclination to pre-determine possessions where he was set on getting an attempt
Functioning predominantly off the ball in his natural position, his game was more characteristic, with a lower attempt rate and a higher conversion rate (almost 9 FGA per game, shooting 61.5% from the field) (his lower number of attempts can also obviously be attributed to playing alongside several high-major prospects)
- He is able to play to more of his strengths in this role, some of which are shooting off the catch, working on the perimeter with his dribble remaining, and running in transition
- Effective when he is cutting without the ball and moving to the open spaces
  - Has a lot of potential off the ball, given his skill set, body type/athleticism, motor and endurance

Has learned to attack the rim when struggling from the outside
- Evidence of continued overall progression in his understanding of being a consistent scorer
Pick and roll – his growth in pick and roll action was encouraging. He was able to showcase some additional scoring versatility, as well as his potential for reading the defense.
- Will come off the screen low and aggressive; looking to turn the corner
- Uses a nice change of pace coming off the screen going left that can lead to a pull-up jumper or an explosion to the basket

Often limits the space between himself and the defender by taking proper angles
Although he is usually looking for his own shot, he displayed the ability to take his time, make the proper read, and find the open shooter
Showed the ability to discern between accepting or rejecting the screen

Finishing
- Has continued to add to a versatile set of shots around the basket and in the intermediate areas of the floor

Showed an improved left hand finishing capability

Understands how and when to use the rim for protection

Vertical explosion allows him to finish above the rim

Lack of physical strength shows most when attempting to finish through contact and amid traffic, but he does have creativity around the rim to help compensate for that
Showed flashes of a nice floater within the 8-10 foot range. Will benefit from continuing to develop this shot. I like it for him. Just more evidence of his shot creativity.

Shooting

Overall, he is a shot maker who is capable of converting on difficult attempts from anywhere inside the arc

Generally, he thrives off the dribble from mid-range, contested or not

Has a nice touch on his shot and maintains good concentration on the goal

Struggled mightily shooting the ball during his time as an initiator
- Had difficulty finding any kind of rhythm functioning more often off the live dribble. His shooting woes were none the more evident than from three (28.6% on 3 attempts per game), where he had trouble finding the mark, even off the catch. He is a much better shooter than this. Slumps happen.
  - What’s important is that he continued playing hard and found other ways to put the ball in the basket
Shooting settled considerably as he moved into his natural role on the Circuit
Mainly a catch and shooter from 3, where he shoots a solid percentage, since he is able to set his feet and get into his shooting rhythm

Possesses the ability/potential to shoot from range off the dribble, but needs to continue to work at it

Continuing to develop his range from deeper distances

Has a short memory and will continue putting it up when the opportunity presents itself; has the confidence you want in a shooter/scorer
Very good foul shooter – 82% on 6 attempts per game
- Was able to supplement his scoring and compensate for his low shooting percentages from the floor
Has a small tendency to allow his left shoulder open up on the shot and his right foot to drift out in front, turning him un-squared from the basket on the release
Shot selection
- Shot choice suffered quite a bit as the initiator
- As stated above, he forced shots from mid-range, at the rim, and in between
- Healthy balance of shots from each level, as he made reads and let plays develop
- Has a tendency to pass up easier shots for the more difficult ones

Shot Chart (10 Games)

Passing

Displayed nice progression as a passer overall, which was encouraging given the increase in sample size
- Not exactly labeled as a playmaker or distributor, but consistently makes the right pass and finds the open man.
  - Still, he showed flashes of his playmaking ability and overall court vision

Improved passer in the open court
- Regularly made good decisions with the pass
- Nice placement on the delivery
Exhibited that he is capable of manipulating the defense with his eyes to create lanes for cutters and space for shooters

It's subtle, but you can see how he is able to shift the defense with his eyes, opening the space and passing lane for the shooter.

Understands how to get the defense to commit on the break before making the pass
Showed a habit of leaving his feet without a plan
Occasionally exhibited tunnel vision when attacking the basket, but also showed that he is highly capable of the drive and kick
- Expect the latter to continue improving
Advances the ball well with the pass and delivers a nice catchable ball with good accuracy

Dribbling

Handle has become more well-rounded over the last year
- His dribble moves continue to be effective and quick amidst his scoring attacks
  - Utilizes a quick, crisp misdirection crossover (right-to-left or vice versa)

Comfortable going right or left
Will need to continue to tighten it up against ball pressure

Effective speed dribble in the open court and exhibits good ball control
Has a small tendency to go more east/west than north/south
Generally protects the ball well with his body
Still allows his dribble to drift too high
- Gets his body low to ground with the dribble. However, the ball remains up around his chest/shoulder area, leaving it susceptible.
- Also occurs when he switches hands/changes directions with a dribble move
Did a nice job as the primary ball handler in pick and roll action

Defense

In addition to passing, he also made excellent strides on this side of the ball, and has firmly established himself as a two-way player
As an on-ball defender, he can be a real ball hawk, at times
- Has improved his technique, doing a good job of moving his feet to cut the ball handler off or make him turn. Can really force his man to work.

Capable of applying heavy ball pressure
Is always a threat to get his hands on the ball with those long arms

Understands how to direct his man into help
He has a tendency to give up on the dribble drive when the ball handler persists on the drive; susceptible to straight-line drives

Very good motor on this end
Competes! Often checked the best perimeter player on the opposing team.
Plays with excellent anticipation, turning defense into offense

Increased tenacity overall

Basketball IQ

Showed an increased comprehension of how to draw fouls to get to the line
Progressed in his ability to manipulate the defense
Improved his pick and roll reads
Exhibited a growing ability to read the defense

He waves the wing through, recognizing the help side turns its back and immediately drives right up its back.

Must improve his awareness when driving/penetrating into the lane
- Knowing where the defense is
- Knowing when/when not to leave his feet
  - Will benefit from working off of a jump stop
More of a steady decision-maker off the ball compared to being an initiator/primary ball handler
- Struggled a bit with ball security as he looked to put more pressure on the defense off the live dribble

Dispostion/Presence

Disposition/Presence

A very competitive player; plays with passion
Increased aggression level and increased confidence
Keeps playing through adversity. Even though he struggled from the field and had some ball security issues, he kept playing hard.
Enthusiastic toward his teammates. You can tell he really enjoys when his teammates succeed.
Excellent motor
Takes the game very seriously on both ends

Coachability

Was benched for poor play and handled it very well. He accepted it, waited patiently, and returned to the game to contribute in big ways to an overtime win.
- This is consistent with last year, as well

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