Luke Babbitt

Strengths

Left-handed… As a former McDonald's All-American, scouts wonder what a player of Babbit's caliber could produce at Nevada. In his freshman campaign, Babbit finished third in the league in both scoring and rebounding. In his sophomore season, Babbit was the preseason WAC player of the year and will most likely complete the season with that hardware… With a strong build and a 6'9" frame, and an all-around skill set, Babbit would seem like a pretty good NBA prospect… What makes Babbit so dangerous is his versatility. He is an outstanding perimeter shooter- a career 42% 3-point shooter, but he is also a dangerous threat in the low post. He has a great arsenal of moves, including a hook shot over his right shoulder and a strong drop step. He utilizes his jump shooting well, making turnaround shots out of the blocks. He is a matchup nightmare- do you put your 4 or 5 man on him to match up with his size, or your other forward because he plays on the perimeter? Babbit has a good motor and excellent toughness. He is willing to go head-to-head with anyone over a rebound or one-on-one for a key basket…

Weaknesses

Babbit really needs to work on his physical limitations in the offseason if he wants to make the jump to the next level. He is simply not quick enough to play small forward, especially on the defensive end. His lateral speed projects to be poor against NBA 3s, while is nowhere near strong enough to bang with NBA 4s. So where will he play? Who can he defend? Is he an NBA athlete? Anything Babbit can do to help scouts answer these questions will greatly help his draft stock…