Houstan struggled and so did Michigan. He came into this season looking like a potential top 10 pick. His stock has dropped quite a bit, but he still has tantalizing upside. He has been mightily inconsistent. However, his offensive tools are going to be hard to look past. He is a good self creator, while also having off ball skills. He has a nice handle and can create shots off the dribble. He also has shown flashes of being a spot up shooter. He is a solid athlete, and will show lots of improvement in the right system. Houstan is a pretty good rebounder, but hasn’t been consistent. He grabs a few steals, but hasn’t shown elite finishing skills. This could give him issues in transition. He is still a great prospect due to his physical tools. He has a bright future if he puts in the work to get better. With NBA spacing, he should succeed. He may not get minutes early on, but he will do well on the right team.

Comparison: Bigger Jaylen Nowell (?)

Projected Draft Range: 28-50

Height 6'8

Weight 205 lbs

Wingspan Estimated 7'0

DOB 1/9/03 (Draft Age: 19)

Pre-Draft Team Michigan Wolverines

Offense

• Great looking vertical shooting stroke.

• Could be a corner specialist.

• The ideal size and make up of a future NBA sniper.

• Great coming off movement and relocating for his shoot.

• Good finisher and ability to drive by defenders when overplayed.

  Defense

• The ideal length of a 3&D wing.

• A versatile defender with the potential to defend 2-4. *

Swing Factors

Role

• LOW:

• HIGH:

Ranking Scale:

Athleticism: 5/8

3pt shot: 4/10

Finishing: 3/10

Handle: 3/10

Playmaking: 2/8

Defensive Versatility: 6/10

Defensive Positioning: 4/8

Rebounding: 3/6

NBA Fit: 7/10

Total Score: 36/80

I kind of like Caleb Houstan? I mean he was pretty bad in college. But looks like a very smooth shooter. One of the better movement shooters in the class. Not much of an off the dribble guy and in general struggles with shot creation and ball handling. Poor finisher at the rim but should improve on that since he's 6'8 with quite long arms. Needs to improve and become a more fluid athlete so he can be a wingier guy, I don't think he works as a forward at the NBA level.

Best fits: Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Memphis, maybe Denver?

Player analysis

Caleb Houstan has an interesting draft stock, he had an up & down freshman season at Michigan. Caleb was a top 10 prospect in his highschool class and he was known for his high level shooting ability at 6’8, his shooting was inconsistent in college which caused him to fall. At Montverde high school he was often overshadowed into a secondary role on offense behind more talented players, he has tools to be a high upside lead creator but has never been asked to be one. He does have a nice feel for the game but isn’t very fluid on offense which limits him when it comes to on the ball offense, his handle was shaky when he was handling the ball which wasn’t often in a smaller role. Houston has defensive tools but lacks IQ and the sharpness to stay in front of his man, he is a little stiff and needs a lot of improvement in order to be effective on that end. Part of the intrigue in his game is the fact that we haven’t seen him in the role of a ball handler in high school and college, he has flashed a three level scoring ability as an off ball player so it leaves many curious as to what he could do as a handler. Houston did decline a draft combine offer which leads many to believe he acquired a draft promise somewhere around the late first round or early second, Caleb has an interesting offcourt trait because he doesn’t use any social media despite being a high level prospect so all of his info is through his inner circle. Caleb Houstan has the potential to be a lead creator but has lacked opportunity, many teams are interested in his upside and could take a late first round flier on him.

Projection

Draft range: [ 22 - 39 ]

Comp: [ Zaire Williams ]

he can shoot the ball from the threes he is a good defender The problem with him as no hops cant finish on drives terrible footwork cant run and dunk very well

But he can be a 3 and d guy and be a good role player

He is terrible out midrange and finishing terrible footwork he is bad it is hard to take him.

Strengths:

• Shot mechanics are beautiful

• Is one of the best catch and shoot guys in this draft

• A former five star

• Can find his way to the key nicely

• Super long as a 6'8 wing

• Has a lot of defensive upside due to his speed and length

• Incredible upside to be an elite role player

• Super young (2003)

• Moves off ball very well

• Lacks no confidence as a shooter, loves to jack them up

Flaws:

• Shot awfully from the field in college (38.4%)

• Has some awful games and might still be a bit raw

• Can be very streaky as most shooters are

• Can struggle to finish at the rim, especially over lengthy shot blockers

Very good shooter, especially on catch-and-shoot situations. Love the idea of him going to a team that needs shooting especially. Corner threat with a quick release. Wingspan makes him able to disrupt passing lanes and stay in front of man in 1v1s.

Not a good finisher. Often gets stuck driving slowly against defenders in isolation situations and throwing up a bad shot. Needs to improve on creating for himself.

Houstan is your prototypical sharp shooter. Nothing really stands out besides his shooting. He's caught fire in march madness and displayed his true potential.

Strengths: 3pt shooting, doesn't turn the ball over much and stays out of foul trouble

Weaknesses: playmaking rebounding and doesn't excel with anything else.