Age: 21

Position: Guard/Forward

College: Tulane

Measurables

Height w/o Shoes: 6’4.5”

Height w/ Shoes: 6’6”

Weight: 198

Wingspan: 7’1.75”

Standing Reach: 8’9”

Max Vertical: 40.5”

College Statistics (2017/2018)

MPG: 34.4

PPG: 15.9

RPG: 5.6

ASTPG: 2.9

STLPG: 2.2

FT%: 71.2%

2-PT FG%: 62.3%

3-PT FG%: 38.5%

Comparisons: Kent Bazemore, Patrick McCaw

3 Things to Know

1. One of the most athletic players in the draft with eye-popping measurables.
2. Uses his body and great instincts to wreak havoc on and off the ball on defense.
3. He’ll need to adjust his shooting mechanics in order to become more than just a driving threat.

Strengths

• Explosive driver who uses long strides and long arms to finish at the rim
• Decent shooter with good form and potential
• Great defensive fundamentals and instincts
• On the ball, uses active hands and quick feet to contain on defense
• Off the ball, shows constant engagement and focus when helping on defense

Weaknesses

• Inconsistent shooting mechanics with a slow release when coming down
• Needs to improve ball handling
• Limited off the dribble on offense. Will improve when handles are tightened up
• Needs to slow down, as he sometimes rushes and makes silly mistakes

Summary

Melvin Frazier of Tulane will be one of the more interesting and intriguing prospects available in the late part of the 1st round in Thursday night’s draft. The 6’6” 198 lb junior from Marrero, Louisiana possesses intriguing measurables like a 7’1.75” wingspan, an 8’9” standing reach, and a 40.5” max vertical, which was tied for 6th best out of all the participants at this year’s combine. While Tulane had quite an underwhelming season finishing at 14-17 on the year, Frazier finished the year impressively averaging 15.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 2.2 STLPG. Frazier’s 15.9 PPG come from his explosive finishing around the rim with good cutting instincts and the ability to use his long strides to throw down monstrous dunks. Shooting wise, he finished at 55.6% from the field, but he’ll need to clean up some mechanical issues with his shot like finding a quicker release and not bringing the ball down so low. Also, while he was able to shoot 38.5% from 3, he’ll probably have a longer adjustment period transitioning to NBA 3 range. Frazier isn’t much of a threat off the dribble either; however, that should improve once he tightens up his ball handling as his athleticism alone should help him create space. Finally, he showed flashes of a high basketball IQ and good court vision; however, he made a number of mistakes that could’ve easily prevented if he slowed down and didn’t rush through things, which will get better with time and more experience. Moving to the defensive side of the ball, Frazier uses good fundamentals and technique when guarding on the ball like a low wide stance while sliding his feet with active and quick hands in order to be a very pesky on-ball defender. He also uses his long arms and length to contest and alter shots. Off the ball, he’s shown 100% engagement by never taking a play off as he uses his long arms to disrupt passing lanes as well as good stunts and footwork in help situations around the rim. Overall, Frazier is oozing with defensive potential that would make any NBA team take a chance on him; however, he’ll need a bit of work on the offensive end to hit his true ceiling. Look for Frazier to be selected during the latter part of the 1st round in Thursday night’s draft.

Locke’s Take

Frazier is one of my favorites in the draft.  He has elite defensive skills.  He is a multiple action defensive player.  The best defensive players can move from one action to the next and Frazier can do this remarkably well.  He is the best defensive player I have seen in the draft.  He will be athletically capable on his first day in the NBA.  Offensively,  the hope is he can be Trevor Ariza.  That is who I think he is.  He has a high release jumper that may have a hard time making the change to the deeper line.  Obviously, if he doesn’t make shots it will be hard for him to stay on the floor.  He doesn’t have other aspects to his game.  His awkward around the basket.  He took just 24 jumpers off the bounce and made only 8.   He ran the pick and roll 62 times all year and not with much succcess.  He is 3 and D or not.