Dream Fit: Pacers/Spurs/Pelicans

Overall Grade: 64.3

Projected Position: SF/SG

Strengths:

• Good adjustments off jump stops on drives

• Good bend & slide over screens

• Reads the defense well after he picks up the ball on drives

• Good hesi

• Good extension & contests from a stationary position

• Good change of pace on drives

• Solid foul drawing ability

• Quick rotation & drop speed

• Great lateral mobility

• Good strength fighting through screens

• Great elevation on shots

• Good midrange & post-up turnaround game

• Good ball tracking & passing lane jumps

• Good strips on help rotation

• Strong rebound secures & good rebound tracking

• Good pass decisions

• Covers a lot of groudn quickly on drives

• Good at gaining an edge on drives with speed, physicality & bend

• Great pass accuracy

• Solid upright post contests

Weaknesses:

• Clunky handle in iso situations

• Weak touch through contact

• Can overcommit on closeouts

• Bites too much on stop start moves

Scouting Report: Nique Clifford

Position: Guard/Forward
Height/Weight: 6'6", 200 lbs
School: Colorado State Rams

Draft Projection: Late first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft

Overview:
Nique Clifford is an athletic and versatile wing who has made significant strides during his college career. Known for his defensive prowess and ability to finish in transition, Clifford combines physicality with a high motor, making him a valuable two-way prospect. His improved shooting mechanics and rebounding ability further enhance his profile.

Strengths:

• Elite Athleticism: Explosive vertically and laterally, Clifford consistently makes highlight-worthy plays at both ends of the court.

• Defensive Versatility: Capable of guarding multiple positions, excelling both on the perimeter and at the rim.

• Transition Finishing: Thrives in fast-break situations, finishing through contact with strong body control.

• Rebounding Ability: Uses his athleticism and instincts to secure tough rebounds in traffic.

• Improved Shooting Mechanics: Significant strides in his jump shot make him a more reliable catch-and-shoot threat.

Areas for Improvement:

• Inconsistent Offensive Production: Relies heavily on transition plays and catch-and-shoot opportunities.

• Limited Shot Creation: Struggles to create his own shot under pressure.

• Passing Vision: Needs to develop playmaking skills to increase his offensive versatility.

Player Comparisons:

• Andre Iguodala: For his defensive impact and ability to thrive in transition.

• Josh Hart: For his rebounding and two-way contributions.

• Mikal Bridges: For his defensive versatility and improved shooting.

Summary:
Nique Clifford is a dynamic wing with the potential to be an effective two-way player in the NBA. His athleticism, defense, and energy make him a valuable prospect, while his offensive development will determine his ceiling at the next level.

NIQUE CLIFFORD

Position/Archetype: Do Everything Wing

College: Colorado State

Pros:

• Rounded Scoring and Defensive ability: Switchable wing who can guard the perimeter and fight more physically, Laterally quick and long arms to get in the lanes, can score from most levels moving or standing, and thats gonna be a very useful skillset for a wing in the NBA and we have seen that with various examples. Not only that he's a good to great Rebounder and Passer that we will go more in depth on, in the high 90s percentile for Scoring, Playmaking and Rebounding.

• Rebounding: 9.6 rebounds as a 6'5/6'6 player and a wing, very elite numbers. He is physical enough and long enough to grab them at the NBA level, probably not to the same level but this Is where we see most of the Josh hart Comparisons really make sense to me. Someone with the motor and determination to grab these rebounds like Clifford rubs off well on a team too.

• Playmaking: Decent to good at this, not gonna be your primary ball handler but a secondary makes sense, has a few technical issues for example jumping up when he passes into the paint, if someone spots this its gonna turn into a lot of turnovers and this WILL be spotted in the NBA so switching some stuff will be important, but hes experienced in the pick and roll and in transition and can get his own bucket

• Spot up shooting: Since he won't be handling the ball a tonne, having an off ball game is important and Clifford has that, his spot up shooting been a primary skill from that, shooting 38% in his college career and 40+% this season. This is a skill I value hugely when evaluating prospects, it matters a long way when evaluating a players floor for example.

• High Usage: 27 USG% is quite high so you see comfortability handling the ball and being the center of play which can be useful, showing he can be called upon to create for the team off the bench or in another role where he maybe creating in the pick and roll for example where he found some success swing passes out.

Cons:

• Age: he's gonna be 24 in his first NBA season, doesn't leave much room for improvement if he follows regular growth patterns but he was a late bloomer so maybe not, time will tell. but it also leaves not a lot of room to adapt to the league as well as changing skillset depending on needs.

• Consistency: Potentially a streaky shooter, went 0/9 from three in the tournament, but then went 10/15 before the conference tourney, something needed from role players and future veterans is consistency to rub off on others in potentially team cold spells and this is really what i'd like to see change as he goes into the next stage of his career

• Competition: Not very strong competition and as previously mentioned when he reached the tournament he shot pretty poorly from three but also the field although he had pretty rounded statlines and was very able to contribute without it. But as we see for these first 3 players their conferences leave a lot to be desired and again leaves questions over the magnitude of their strengths.

NBA Pro Comp: Josh Hart, Brandin Podziemski

Projection: Role Player, either a High level bench player or Decent starter, scouts gonna love this guy a tonne

CHEESE FINAL BOARD RANKING: (coming soon)

https://youtu.be/hCXOxDCjO14?si=1HF5-hmu0seCExHl

Draft Range: 11-24

Projected NBA rookie role:

Projected NBA position: Wing

Projected Rookie Statline (Pts, Reb, Ast, Blk/Stl):

Strengths:

Weakness:

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Best outcome:

mid outcome:

worst outcome:

Clifford was one of college basketball's best players last winter, and although he is on the older side, he has become a guy that is projected as a top 20, maybe even lottery pick. He's doesn't have the elite young talent of an Ace Bailey or Tre Johnson, but he has a high floor because of the wide variety of things he can offer. Clifford is a great on-and-off ball defender who is always in the right place at the right time. His length and tremendous athleticism helped him garner high steal and block percentages this past season. He rebounds extremely well and finds opportunities to create turnovers—positioning himself to tip passes or applying a timely pressure on a driver that dislodges the ball. He's a solid passer who creates well off the dribble and definitely fits the mold of a "point forward". An elite isolation scorer, he uses his strength to create space inside very well and has great footwork. I think that his mastery of those aforementioned little things will be his path to becoming a consistent scorer at the NBA level. He's a capable shooter, but he has been streaky over extended stretches during his career. But all in all, Clifford is someone who can chip in for a lot of teams.

NBA Comps: Moses Moody, Justin Holiday, Chris Duarte

Comp: Naji Marshall/Haywood Highsmith/Andrew Wiggins

• overall great defender; extremely talented at rotating and recovering, extremely versatile, quick footed, lengthy and athletic, high IQ

• erratic jump shot, though improved as of recent

• good driver attacking off closeouts, but struggles to create his own shot especially downhill

• quick thinker as a passer makes him a high IQ offensive connector

• great positional rebounder

• great pull-up shooter off the dribble especially in the deep mid-range

• doesn’t take contact particularly well

• unc status