Kendall Brown 6'8" 201 lbs

Kendall Brown is a live-wire athlete who has impressive court awareness and demonstrated an improving jump-shot at the Combine to help his effectiveness in half court offense. Immediately, Brown should be an above average on ball defender and with time the youngster should border on elite level defense in the NBA where he will switch seamlessly. Brown features an impressive maturity and unselfishness/ playing his role to a tee at Baylor where he did not shoot a lot but was a valuable piece to the offense due to phenomenal cutting instincts and a knack for delivering on time passes. his incessant energy and big-time finishing ability made him a fast break weapon and someone who will be more than capable at attacking closeouts should become a good NBA 3 point shooter.

Strengths:

• Extremely explosive and twitchy athlete who converts the athleticism into productive plays on both ends of the floor.

• Active, aware and timely cutter.

• Has played without the ball and been productive having not played the scorer role so he will assimilate nicely to NBA role.

• Switchable defender who projects to guard 2-4 very well and is one of very few who has a shot to guard 1-5.

• Flies up and down the floor. Will thrive on an uptempo team.

• Shot the lights out at the combine in the Star Drill (18/25).

• Willing and very adept passer.

Concerns:

• Hesitancy to fire away on his shot will need to be overcome to be a threat on the perimeter in the NBA.

• Must become a threat from the intermediate range.

• Handle is loose but does not handle often so that will help him create space when attacking.

• Can improve FT shooting.

Kendall Brown seems like the player that if his offense never comes around, at the very least, he can use his defensive prowess to be an effective NBA player for years. I believe his offense will come around if he can shoot close to league average from 3 and think he will. It's hard to shoot well as a freshman in high level college hoops, and he still made a major impact on a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Brown will have to improve his touch and shooting to be a 2 way threat but no one batted an eye when Isaac Okoro was selected 5th on the heels of a solid but unspectacular freshman year where he shot poorly from 3. Brown to me is reminiscent of Okoro, but has better upside as a passer and as a shooter and he is taller and thus probably more able to switch onto taller wings and forwards. A comparison I believe fits Brown is Josh Green, who is early in his career or Corey Brewer. Brewer had a 13 year NBA career and I think Brown can be better than Brewer fairly easily should his jumper come around sooner rather than later.

The Rundown:

One of the biggest risers in this early season rankings, and that is in a large part due to the types of roles that he will play in the NBA. Before the season, I was thinking Kendall would be a bit like Sekou Doumbouya, an athlete for no reason. I thought he would go to the NBA, win a dunk contest, and dip. But oh sheesh he might go to the NBA, win a dunk contest, and then make an all star game!

First, the offense. It is tough to evaluate his long term projections due to his role at Baylor. He is primarily a tertiary or quaternary option, unable to truly unleash himself. So, we will look at his aptitude within his role, before looking past that to his ceiling outcome. So, what makes Kendall excel in his current role? He may be able to shoot the ball, that part is huge. It is tricky to tell at this point, but his form is fine, and he has good touch around the paint, so it seems fair to think that he will be able to hit the corner three at a good clip. He is a great cutter, with great timing on his cuts. His athleticism first starts to come into play right here, with great burst with cutting to the rim, and generational explosion jumping to the ceiling makes the finishing basically predetermined. He is a great extra passer, not just with the vision and accuracy but with the timing and quickness. However, even with all of that goodness, the offense is still where my issues lie with Kendall. Far too often, he just doesn't look to score, and maybe for good reason, he doesn't have a ton of ability to do so either. He can finish in the paint, but he has no in-between game, his three point shot is lacking, and his handle to get into the paint by himself just isn't great. He lacks any aggression or confidence, making him essentially a non factor on that end most of the time. This greatly decreases my evaluation of his upside, even if there are lots of positive signs on this end of the floor.

The defense is obviously great, due to the lateral quickness, tenacity, and recovery ability. It is easy to see him being a primary defender on guards one play, before being a great secondary rim protector the next. The defense I have (next to) no worries with, I expect it to translate quickly and easily, with a ceiling and floor that are fairly close due to the non negotiable athleticism, passion, and brains. One thing that does give me a bit of pause is how often he falls asleep on defense. He watches the ball with intensity, getting back door cut time and time again. He's a young player, so perhaps this is to be expected but it certainly isn't great. I wish he was getting more steals+blocks as that often shows a great defender when projecting from college to the NBA, but it’s best not to overthink this. The offense is what has a larger range of outcomes. He could just be a dominant cutter, who can spot up from three every once in a while, but the higher end outcome rests squarely on the development of his passing and ball handling. Coming into the year, I looked at it as a non factor, but he is making advanced reads look simple, using his gravity driving to the paint to open up scoring opportunities for his teammates. There is lots of Scottie Barnes in this guy, with his defense and passing in particular. Don’t let the assist totals fool you, if given a longer leash in an offense, Kendalls playmaking potential will be properly unveiled. Not a lot of primary equity here, but I doubt it matters, but I could see some team expecting him to drop 20 points a game and he will fail in that regard due to his lack of on ball scoring creativity.

Synopsis: 

Elite athlete, vertically, laterally and everything in between, which opens up all sorts of avenues for success, be it defensive, transition maestro, cutter, or playmaker.

Shades of: 

Lamar Odom with better defense, Scottie Barnes, Jarred Vanderbilt +++

Kendall is a built, athletic forward. He plays solid defense and can be a weak side rim protector. He is a great transition player, but is also a good passer and playmaker. He has a high motor and fights hard at all times. He has shown to be hesitant to shoot. That is a fixable problem within the right system though. He doesn’t project as an elite scorer, but his defense will warrant himself a nice payday.

Comparison: Aaron Gordon

Projected Draft Range: 18-38

Best Team Fits: LAC, Milwaukee, Minnesota

Height 6'8

Weight 205 lbs

Wingspan 6'11

DOB 5/11/03 (Draft Age:19)

Pre-Draft Team Baylor Bears

Offense

• Awesome transition athlete. Gets down court fast and can push the ball quickly.

• The vertical as an athlete shows up, good bounce. Some poster launchpad dunks.

• Terrific finisher for his age. Advanced bag of finishes.

• Decent shooting base, will need to speed up the load and release. Just 14/41 from deep. Developing him as a consistent shooter should take a couple years.

• Lack of a pull-up.

• Very functional handle while moving quickly downhill, but can also incorporate deception making him harder to stop.

• Improving playmaker with real upside. Just scratching the surface of what's possible.

• Lack of change in pace and left hand.

Defense

• Defensive playmaker. Gets into passing lanes, also a good on-ball defender.

• Is prone to blow byes because he isn't in low enough his defensive stance early enough. Mostly a technique issue/awareness issue.

• Awesome hip flexibility. Really huge versatility on this end of the floor. Should be able to guard 1-4.

• High motor and energy. They type of defender teammates love.

Swing Factors

• Offensive Versatility - Long road ahead as an offensive threat. Questions as to whether there is any playmaking upside, will he be able to go left and how effective can he be in C&S/ pull-up situations? Without any of this it's hard to see him as a positive offensive player let alone a playmaker.

• Defensive Technique - Teams banking on his defensive upside will need to clean up some of the awareness, stance, and reactivity issues to get the most out of him on this end of the floor.

Role

• A large bodied wing who can get out and run in transition, finish at high level and be a positive, versatile team defender.

• LOW: Brown underwhelms his defensive potential and fails to develop any sort of effective offensive bag. He becomes an end of the bench journey man.

• HIGH: Brown's youth plays to his favor while he hones his craft in offensive skill and defensive technique. He becomes a reliable C&S player with the ability playmake in spurts. Defensively he becomes more well versed on the nuances and works towards being one of the better wing defenders in the league. Brown is a starter/sixth man who possesses the length, athleticism and developed skill desirable for almost every NBA team.

Kendall Brown is a lanky combo forward with surprisingly good passing and defense. Offensively he won’t ever be insane but he is a very good role player, as well as being great on defense. He kind of reminds me of like Scottie Barnes as a prospect.

Ranking Scale:

Athleticism:5 /8

3pt shot: 3/10

Finishing: 4/10

Handle: 6/10

Playmaking: 7/8

Defensive Versatility: 8/10

Defensive Positioning: 5/8

Rebounding: 4/6

NBA Fit: 6/10

Total Score: 48/80

Not exactly the biggest on Brown. One of those guys who is more of a pure athlete than an actual basketball player. But damn is he athletic. Mf just flies and glides every time his feet leave the hardwood. Good and high effort defender, switchable too so that should earn him minutes. Entirely a play finisher on offense, doesn't handle the ball or create for himself. 3 point shot is not good. Showed some very light flashes of playmaking early in the season but never expanded on it. Should be good on the glass too.

Best fits: Memphis, Golden State, Miami, Toronto

Player analysis

Kendall Brown was a top ten level talent earlier in his freshman season but was quickly outshined by fellow freshman prospects including his own teammate at Baylor, Jermey Sochan. He is a gritty rebounder and defender who played a winning role at Baylor which was what gave him his original status as a top prospect in highschool and early on in college with his main downfall being his limitations. Brown isn’t able to shoot on the perimeter or even in the mid range and he isn’t extremely skilled with his extremely high efficiency being able due to a system that he fit very well in, a lack of diversity on shots, and physical superiority. Brown stands at 6’8 with a good frame and poses great bounce, he mainly was a dunker on offense at Baylor because that was all he needed to score but although above average, his physicality doesn’t stand out at a freak level. Kendall is a quality defender who improved in off ball ability throughout his freshman season and he really shined as a rebounder on offense and defense, he displayed an ability to track the ball and get to the right spots in order to give his team second chance points. Brown will most likely be a hustle role player who can be a real offense threat if he gets a jumpshot but it’s probably unlikely that the team that drafts him will expect him to be anything but a two way slasher.

Projection

Draft range: [ 16 - 29 ]

Comp: [ Jarred Vanderbilt ]

Strengths: Athleticism Weaknesses: Shot Creation

High Side Comp: Josh Smith Lite/Miles Bridges Low Side Comp: Perry Jones

Ideal Fit: Developmental Wing/ Transition Scorer/Defender

Draft Range: 16-34

Result: 48- IND

Athleticism: 9/10 Size: 4/5 Defense: 6/10 Strength: 3/5 Quickness: 8/10 Creation:1/5 Jumpshot: 5/10 Finishing: 4/5 NBA Ready: 3/5 Ball Handling: 5/10 Passing: 3/10 Intangibles: 2/5 Potential: 8/10 TOTAL: 61= Late First

Brown is a really good SF. His playmaking is very good for a SF and is terrific finisher. He may be a bit rough on the defensive side but has a great upside offensively.

Celling: Star/ Carmelo Anthony (Lakers)

Floor: Role Player/ Troy Brown Jr.