Height: 6 Feet 4 Inches
Weight: 205 Pounds
Wingspan: 6 Feet 5 Inches
League: NCAA
Draft Age: 19.99
Draft Projection: Top-4
Possibly the most popular player in college basketball this past season, Jalen Suggs and the Gonzaga Bulldogs had a phenomenal, yet ultimately disappointing 2020-2021. Suggs built up his draft stock in a big way during his freshman season, securing himself a spot in the top-five of the 2021 NBA Draft. Though Suggs was a high-profile high school recruit, his time in college without a doubt helped his NBA stock.
Suggs had a blistering start to 2020-2021 but eventually came back down to earth. His perimeter defense was massive for the Bulldogs this year, as Suggs showed that he could match up with virtually any collegiate guard. This should carry over to the NBA as well, as he possesses solid size and athleticism at the one. His defense is arguably the strongest part of his game.
Offensively, many are much higher on Suggs than myself. He showed solid playmaking ability with the Zags, which gives promise that he can run a winning NBA offense as well. However, his three-point shooting is a bit shaky for a backcourt player projected to be picked in the to five. To start out the season, Suggs’ shot looked very promising, but scouts hope that this was not just a smokescreen.
His offensive game will be limited until he finds some more consistency with his jumper, but he should be able to get by as a perimeter defender and playmaker if nothing else.
Suggs will without a doubt be the second point guard taken in this class, and he has a ton of potential. I will be more convinced when the three-point shot comes around, but it is certainly good enough to work with and at the very minimum he should be a solid NBA guard.