Jaden Hardy: 6'4"195 lbs

Jaden Hardy demonstrated a stunning scoring acumen with NBA range in his high school career and has developed into a better athlete as he has matured. Hardy is a scorer by nature who has improved as a facilitator drawing much attention as the go-to scorer on G-League Ignite. Hardy has all-star like traits in his ease with which he gets space and to his spots but will need to learn when and how to use those skills to fully fit an NBA team and their roster construction.

Strengths:

• He can score the ball and has the belief that he is THE SCORER.

• Can shoot the ball with ease from well beyond the NBA 3 point line off of the bounce or off of the catch.

• Has a very good first step he uses to drive to the rack at an impressive level against grown men in the G-League.

• Enticing ability to get to his spots with absolute ease using a tight handle and an understanding of how to change pace.

• Developing as a playmaker.

• Shot 88.2% from the free throw line and got there often against impressive athletes fresh out of high school.

• Great step-back shooter who shoots more purely going backward than he does stepping into a mid-range jumper (slight mechanical difference that causes this dip in efficiency)

Concerns:

• Inefficiency that can be attributed to poor shot selection. (He is a good shooter but only shot 27% from 3 and 35% from the field).

• Can get tunnel vision and settle for difficult shots because he has the capacity to make them.

• Shoots too many isolation jumpers rather than using his plus speed and handle to create advantages toward the rim and get to the line.

• Though he is improving as a passer, he still needs to pass as less of a reaction to being stopped and more as an instinctive part of basketball if he wants to be the featured guard that has all-star talent like he does.

• Competes on defense but can fall asleep off ball and will be attacked for such by energetic cutters.

Jaden Hardy is polarizing because he can score the ball and that is clear but his shot selection scares some evaluators. IF Hardy wants to reach the all-star potential he has, he must improve as a facilitator and the scoring and passing will become easier if he attacks the rim more often. Hardy can play the Cam Thomas role instantly and can grow into the Jordan Poole role as a scorer with a beautiful jumper but toes a line of confidence as opposed to arrogance that if kept in check can result in amazingly potent offense. Hardy presents a rare scoring upside that few possess and good enough athletic traits that I remain confident in his development and I think he will score 20 ppg at some point in his NBA career and will be a steal should he fall much past the lottery.

The Rundown:

Everyone, DO NOT let the percentages at this point fool you. Right now, in the G-League (better competition than college, don’t forget that either), he is shooting around 32% from the field and 26% from three (when written, the percentages have ticked up but the point still stands), but do not be tricked. Jaden Hardy is a GREAT shooter, far and away the best shooting prospect in this draft, and one of the best shooting prospects I have ever seen. Any range is in range for him. Sometimes the shot selection is a little iffy but I am more comfortable with Jaden Hardy taking 35 foot threes than 95% of NBA players, right now. He can hit it off the catch, off the dribble, from three or from midrange, every type of shotmaking you want, Hardy can provide it. A lot of his shotmaking from the midrange is very Tatum-esque, very similar movements and composition.

While he isn’t the high flyer of the last two highly ranked scoring guards in Edwards and Jalen Green, his athleticism is more than sufficient, and while his finishing isn’t on the aforementioned twos level, it is not a hindrance. Offball the picture looks a little less clear. He has prebuilt gravity, putting a good high floor on his offball play. Wherever he is on the court, the other team needs 1 to 2 sets of eyes on him. In high school, he seemed to fall asleep without the ball in his hands, however at this level he has begun to run around more skills and take advantage of his great movement shooter. His passing is nothing special, but sometimes it gets overly criticized. He can make the reads, some of the advanced variety, but naturally (and perhaps correctly) he is looking to score first, pass later. However, in this new G-League ignite setting, where he is being required to be a good passer, he has shown the capabilities that makes me not completely get rid of the idea he’s a point guard at the next level.

On defense, he has the tools, but isn’t there yet. I am gonna sound like a broken record, but on ball he is sufficient, offball is where the real troubles lie. His IQ is fine, his athleticism and length is good, the effort (sadly the hardest part to teach) is sometimes lacking BUT I have been very excited to see him ramp that up this season, he has been vocal and engaged for the most part. He floats on offball defense, and when he does pay attention it’s because he feels a sudden urge to gamble for a steal. It works to the tune of 1.8 steals per game but is clearly not the ideal way of defending. People have given up on Hardy far too quickly, someone with that level of shooting doesn’t forget how to shoot, and if that lack or forgetfulness is the case, then his only meh other skills STILL shouldn’t drop him out of the lottery.

Synopsis: 

A transcendent on ball scoring talent, solid passing and defending with the ball of his hands, but it is day and night with onball/offball in all facets.

Shades of: 

Damian Lillard, splash of a shorter Jayson Tatum, pinch of Gilbert Arenas

Hardy is one of the more difficult players to assess. Coming into the season for the Ignite, he was labeled as a knockdown shooter. However, he has shot extremely poorly in the G-League. Still, his athleticism and frame are intriguing. It isn't that he’s been a bad scorer, but he hasn’t been very efficient at all. Nonetheless, he is an amazing athlete and finishes often with flashy layups or dunks. The closest comp that I can find for him is his Ignite predecessor Jalen Green. While they aren’t identical, they both have similar issues in their game. If Hardy plays as well as Green has played so far, he will be well worth the pick.

Comparison: Jalen Green, Bouncier James Harden

Projected Draft Range: 11-30

Best Team Fits: Washington, San Antonio, Cleveland

Height 6'4

Weight 200 lbs

Wingspan 6'9

DOB 7/5/02 (Draft Age: 20)

Pre-Draft Team G-League Ignite

Offense

• Struggles to create spacing to the rim.

• Finishing not there hasn’t finished strong or with enough space yet.

• Turnover prone early on in G-league.

• Shot creation skills are the draw.

• Good shooting mechanics. Could become a knockdown shooter.

• Adequate playmaking upside.

• Too many turnovers and poor decisions.

Defense

• Defensive effort and awareness isn't great.

• *

Swing Factors

Role

• LOW:

• HIGH:

Jaden Hardy is a great shot maker with superstar potential. A similar prospect to Johnny Davis, Hardy is a great scorer but a little bit iffy on defense.

Ranking Scale:

Athleticism: 6/8

3pt shot: 9/10

Finishing: 6/10

Handle: 5/10

Playmaking: 4/8

Defensive Versatility:4 /10

Defensive Positioning: 2/8

Rebounding: 3/6

NBA Fit: 7/10

Total Score: 46/80

I'm not a fan of Hardy. But he does have shotmaking talent and he did improve a fair amount second half of the season. I think if it comes to the other mid first round guard talent you might as well take a big shot on Hardy since the rest isn't much better either. Not likely he pans out but if he does he could be a really good NBA player.

Best fits: Honestly who knows. Maybe Cleveland if they're moving on from Sexton? Maybe Charlotte if they wanna trade Rozier/Bouknight away? The Wolves as a potential D'Lo replacement down the line?

Player analysis

Jaden Hardy is a weird player to project because of his high production but horrible efficiency last year for g-league ignite, he was a top highschool prospect who was looking to be a top five pick but although being the leading scorer for his team he often looked like a ball hog. Hardy is a gifted passer for a wing/combo guard but often doesn’t utilize those skills as often as he should and ends up taking a bad shot. I like his driving ability far more than his shooting but he would try to show off a little too much and again, take a bad shot. His efficiency makes him out to be a bad scorer but in actuality he just isn’t a smart one, if he knew how to find the right shot he would go from 17 ppg to around 23 on the same sound of shots. Hardy has good size and strength so I think he has the tools to be a defender but needs to work on IQ on that end, he isn’t a horrible reader on defense but certainly not good. Jaden is definitely a talented player and even has the potential to be a top three player in the draft class but I'm not sure if he will actually turn his talents into tangible skills that are a positive on the court.

Projection

Draft range: [ 13 - 28 ]

Comp: [ Cam Thomas (better passer) ]

Strengths: Scoring and Athleticism Weaknesses: Defense and IQ

High Side Comp: Anthony Edwards Lite Low Side Comp: Malik Newman/ Anfernee Simons

Ideal Fit: Secondary Scorer in team with structure and playmaker

Draft Range: 9-30

Result: 37- DAL

My Thoughts: Jaden Hardy is an elite prospect in my opinion. He was given the keys to the ignite at 18 and went through growing pains. I value the experience of the G League as the level of competition is much harder than college. All of those guys are pros who were already great college players and are grown men. He was asked to push out of his comfort zone and went through struggles rather than just show what he already does well. He showed that he can't be a primary playmaking guard but I still see him as a secondary scorer. If he just sat out this year like Sharpe his stock would be even higher. I view the fact that his weaknesses got exposed as a positive because he grew and now the team that drafts him knows how to play him and where he can grow. His floor is as a guy that can come off the bench or be your starting SG and be a solid contributor.

Athleticism: 8/10 Size: 4/5 Defense: 5/10 Strength: 4/5 Quickness: 7/10 Creation: 3/5 Jumpshot: 8/10 Finishing: 4/5 NBA Ready: 4/5 Ball Handling: 7/10 Passing: 6/10 Intangibles: 4/5 Potential: 9/10 TOTAL: 73 =Early/Mid Lottery

Despite to low percentages, he can be a good shooter at the next level.

Hardy is also a solid athlete too, but struggles as a defender, though he shows promise in this area.

Hardy's stock has fallen after his curent season in the G League, but his 3-point shooting (especially considering he can hit from the logo from time to time despite inefficiencies) will translate. He is also versatile as a shot-creator and driver, so he should be a three-level scorer at the next level.

If all goes well for him, he can be like the player I cam comparing him to below.

NBA Comparison: Bradley Beal