Kyle Anderson
College: UCLA
Age: 20 years old
Height: 6’9″
Weight: 230 Lbs
Position: Small Forward
NBA Comparison: Hedo Turkoglu
One of the more intriguing prospects in this year’s NBA Draft is the sophomore from UCLA; Kyle Anderson. A jack of all trades for the Bruins last season, Anderson played the point forward position averaging 14.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game.
Anderson led UCLA to a 28-9 record this past year, while also taking the Bruins to the sweet sixteen in the NCAA tournament.
Initially projected to be a late first round pick, Anderson is now being pegged as a mid first round pick on Thursday night. The latest mock draft from NBADraft.net has Anderson going to the Atlanta Hawks with the 15th overall selection, while ESPN’s Chad Ford has him landing with the Thunder at #21.
Strengths:
When your 6’9” and can play the point guard position, NBA GM’s will take notice. During his sophomore season at UCLA, Anderson proved that he could play multiple positions at the NBA level. With the point forward position now being utilized more often, Anderson’s ball-handling and high basketball IQ will allow for his future NBA club to have more offensive options, while also providing them with the ability to run plays through him on the offensive end.
One area that Anderson greatly improved on this season was his three point shooting. In his freshman season, Anderson averaged 21% from three, after his sophomore season, his percentage more than doubled to a blistering 48%.
To go along with an impressive 7’2” wingspan, Anderson is also an excellent rebounder; as he averaged 8.8 rebounds per game, primarily from the guard position last season.
Weaknesses:
With a nickname of “Slow-Mo”, it’s pretty obvious that Anderson lacks quickness. At the NBA level, Anderson will not only struggle with keeping his counterparts at bay on the defensive end, but offensively, he will also be unable to blow past defenders to get to the rim.
For all the great numbers he put up last season, his 3.7 turnovers per game could increase if the ball is in his hands at the NBA level. Every season one of the main eye openers for rookies is the speed of the NBA game. If Anderson is unable to adjust, look for the pace of the NBA game to cause problems for Anderson.
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