Like many younger players, he struggles focusing defensively occasionally. . By using NBA sites, you are agreeing to our revised
Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Use<\/a>, including our Cookie Policy<\/a>"; R.J. Hampton was a star in high school, but his time in the NBL left a lot to be desired. His most noteworthy skill is his ability to attack the rim downhill in transition and isolation situations. As a driver, he needs to continue working on his left, but it’s definitely not a significant issue and will definitely improve over time. For that reason, it was huge news when he announced he would forgo the typical NCAA route to instead play in the NBL in Australia. Started his first 12 NBL games before sustaining a hip injury on Dec. 6 that sidelined him for four weeks. The views expressed here do not represent those of the NBA or its clubs. Scored a season-high 18 points vs. Cairns (Oct. 31). The first thing that stands out is his athleticism and length for a combo guard. By using NBA sites, you are agreeing to our revised :privacyPolicy and :termsOfUse, including our :cookiePolicy"}; As a playmaker, he has a long ways to go from being the main facilitator of an offense. An absolute blur in transition he was a one-man fast break in the NBL and created a huge amount of easy buckets off turnovers, long rebounds, and even made baskets. Please log in using one of these methods to post your comment: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. He’s a good three point shooter and an exciting ball handler who can take over games with his offensive ability. More and more we're seeing teams retreat defensively instead of offensively rebounding and in doing so it's becoming difficult for transition-reliant players to get scores. Boom or bust? While not yet a good shooter, his solid mechanics present the possibility of improvement. In terms of fit, the teams that should be looking into him are the Thunder (25), Knicks (27), and Wizards (37). What does that mean for his NBA stock? We will be posting articles regularly on the NBA and up and coming NBA prospects. Team: New Zealand Breakers. He’s a great leaper off one or two feet, and is a threat at the rim. Spent the 2019-20 season in Australia’s NBL with the New Zealand Breakers. R.J. Hampton Scouting Report. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. ", Scouting report provided by Carl Berman and David Sauriol of NetScouts Basketball. His hyper athleticism allows him to recover defensively if he is screened or beaten off the dribble to make a contest or a play on the ball. I’ve had a lot of guys kind of take me under their wing and just show me different things. All rights reserved. He's light on his feet but has gotten tangled up + also shown some trouble stopping quickly. Hampton’s mostly effective in transition and he’s always gonna run if he sees an opportunity. He shot a miserable 29.5% from 3 and 67.9% from the free throw line. 18, including RJ Hampton and Desmond Bane In the first of a three-part series, we evaluate which … MORE: Boom or bust? His jump shot mechanics aren’t promising yet. His handles are fairly decent as he’s got a good feel for when to use crossovers and hesitations and does a good job of setting it up and changing speeds. There are going to be some teams that love the idea of him as a prospect due to his high school pedigree, while others won't be so high after seeing lackluster basketball from him in his most recent sample. 1on1 Interview with R.J. Hampton is a silky smooth combo guard who has good size and can light up the scoreboard. It’s likely we don’t discover the type of player he is until year 3 or 4. The good thing is that he’s aware of his weaknesses as a shooter. He’s a more than willing passer. How Hampton's game translates to the NBA is definitely a bit of a question mark. Hampton has all the physical tools to excel on defense. R.J. Hampton spurned the NCAA college basketball system in favor of the NBL’s New Zealand Breakers. Now defensively, if he can just stay motivated and buy in on that end, he can be a plus defender with his wingspan and athleticism. Won gold medals with USA Basketball at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship and the 2018 FIBA U-17 Basketball World Cup. The ability to score in transition against a defence that isn't set makes Hampton a player who can get buckets without needing a play called for him. Presently, he lacks upper body strength to hold his position defensively as well as the ability to finish and draw fouls. What makes Hampton's speed so special is that he's 6'5". When the game slows down Hampton's biggest offensive strength is his touch in the midrange. Generally, he’s very good with knowing the scouting report as well and knowing how he needs to defend a player. Overall Impressions. Averaged 32.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 3.9 steals at Little Elm (Texas) High School in 2018-19. We are twin brothers who are passionate about basketball and want to make it into the NBA industry. His upper body mechanics are fairly capable. Grabbed a season-high eight rebounds vs. Perth (Nov. 3). It was evident he wasn’t thinking quickly enough as in the film room, he said everything right. That length helps him finish around shot blockers at the rim with a creative package of layups, but it's not just buckets that his length is good for. View more posts. He’s smart, especially with euro’s knowing to manipulate the defender and blow right by him. Pos: PG/SG. On the defensive end, he has the length to potentially be a disruptor and has shown flashes of good instincts. Reclassified after his strong play on the AAU circuit in the spring of 2019, when he ranked second in scoring at the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (28.8 ppg). If he hasn’t changed it at this point, I’m not sure how to help him. Part of this is continuing to develop reads, but just to also learning to not panic and play at his own pace sometimes. 5 NBA draft prospects the Mavs should consider at No. Despite this, generally smart people figure things out and he is smart, but the game was so fast for him overseas and it’s only going to get faster in the NBA. In Hampton a team is going to get one of the best scorers in transition and the midrange in the draft, but what exactly is that worth? Favorite subject in high school was geometry. Off the ball, he also wasn’t much better. Athletic combo guard with good size and length. Hampton, like many players who play at a breakneck pace, is prone to turnover problems and his hectic style of play won't be desirable to some NBA coaches. His feet looked like he was a penguin as you can see in the photograph I used above. School/Club: New Zealand Breakers. He can overrun his man/lane leaving the bucket exposed. Tends to overrun closeouts, leaving himself vulnerable for easy lay ins and fouls trying to catch up. Hampton really knows how to employ his long arms defensively and it can make it difficult for smaller guards to figure out how to get around him. His speed will often get him into the middle of the floor and when he meets opposition he has one of the purest midrange strokes in the class and if his momentum is still rapidly moving forward he has impeccable touch with the floater. The Thunder would be most beneficial for Hampton’s growth as CP3 was able to mentor Dennis Schroeder and Schroeder was able to slow the game down, but yet still pick his moments. There are a lot of “what ifs” though as his playmaking, jump shot, and defense all still have a ways to go. Hampton has a lot of upside for a late first round pick as a combo guard. Originally intended to play college basketball in 2019-20 after reclassifying into the 2019 high school recruiting class. Height/Weight: 6-5 / 185 lbs. Despite nice looking shooting mechanics, he struggles both with his accuracy and willingness to shoot the three-ball. Additionally, playing fast inherently makes for more turnovers and that's something NBA teams don't have much patience for. While generally a solid individual man to man defender he can struggle defending off the ball in particular when navigating a variety of off-ball screens. He needs strict, but yet an organization that believes in him. Playing against older professionals his physical gifts were made apparent but a hip injury sidelined him before he was really able to get into a rhythm. Usually, the fastest player on the court who also happens to stand 6'5" he was considered as one of the top players in his age group since his freshman year of high school. ); "[I’m learning] just how to be a professional. This is why he'll be one of the most fascinating storylines on draft night. Change ), https://www.basketball-reference.com/international/players/rj-hampton-1.html, https://www.orlandopinstripedpost.com/2020/4/19/21217834/2020-nba-draft-rj-hampton-scouting-report, https://theathletic.com/2093647/2020/10/01/vecenie-why-im-buying-r-j-hampton-stock-after-changes-to-his-shot-mechanics/. Then his inability to be a primary distributor makes him limited to playing more off the ball. window.gdprTextData.text = "NBA sites use cookies and similar technologies. Age: 19 (February 7th, 2001) Height: 6’5” Weight: 188 lbs. Hampton is a fluid athlete who challenges defenses with his combination of speed, quickness, and explosiveness. Hampton was a below-average shooter in high school and hit 30% of his threes in Australia so his outside jumper is going to be in question. Using his length he can steer and manipulate ball-handlers away for their desired path and if they lose focus for even a split second Hampton can poke it away and dunk the ball on the other end before his opponent realizes they got their pocket picked. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Every year NBA general managers have the difficult task of weighing production versus potential and they'll have their hands full with one of the most enigmatic players in the draft-R.J. Hampton. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. He is dangerous coming at flat-footed defenders when he gets the opportunity to attack going downhill. He is known to regularly run straight into the chest of a big man and get screened. Unfortunately, those aren't skills that are entirely functional to the modern NBA game. This makes me question his work ethic slightly, because he showed no real growth. Draft Home | Draft Board | Teams | Prospects. FIrst thing to address for any guard is the jump shot. The problem is his feet are so close together, his balance is terrible most times, which makes for an inconsistent shot.