20. Matthew Hurt, Power Forward
Current Team: Duke
Yet another good candidate to shoot up NBA Draft 2020 big boards in the coming months is the Duke freshman stretch-four Matthew Hurt. While the versatility and physical tools Hurt brings to the table might be pretty limited, he does excel in highly sought after areas in the modern NBA. Reliable shooting and solid off-ball defense aren’t taken lightly when it comes to draft night nowadays.
The problem that Hurt might run into is a clogged draft class of young power forwards. This position group also includes a number of prospects that could develop solid outside shots. That could box Hurt out amid a draft class of power forwards that are much more versatile two-way players than he is.
However, Hurt is averaging 10.8 points per game, 4.3 rebounds, and 0.8 assists, while shooting 44.7 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from three-point range. A solid 120.3 offensive rating and even better 84.7 defensive rating highlights his well-rounded ability.
Hurt isn’t much of a threat to drive or kick out the ball to the outside when commanding a lot of attention from opposing defenses. His role at the next level will be one of a smarter defender and a spot up shooter.
So far this season, Hurt is actually turning the ball over more times per game than he is assisting. That’s more of a statement to his lack of offensive creation and how much he’s counted on for pick-and-roll and spot up shooting.