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Isaiah Collier -- elite passer?

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donAZ62

Well-Known Member
I had watched a couple highlight videos of Isaiah Collier before the draft and had no interest-- because those videos mostly showed him bulldozing to the basket. He is good at it, but it reminded me of a smaller THT. I don't remember any passing highlights, and his assist numbers weren't great last year. On top of that- his turnovers were high. It is baffling to me because after watching this video- he seems like an elite passer-- making some very high-level difficulty passes look easy... If he can use his gravity going to the hoop to find open teammates he might justify some of the hype he had coming out of high school.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFAGDqArfac
 
donAZ62 said:
I had watched a couple highlight videos of Isaiah Collier before the draft and had no interest-- because those videos mostly showed him bulldozing to the basket. He is good at it, but it reminded me of a smaller THT. I don't remember any passing highlights, and his assist numbers weren't great last year. On top of that- his turnovers were high. It is baffling to me because after watching this video- he seems like an elite passer-- making some very high-level difficulty passes look easy... If he can use his gravity going to the hoop to find open teammates he might justify some of the hype he had coming out of high school.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFAGDqArfac
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31% assist percentage at usc. Pretty elite for a frosh.

Better than every lead guard drafted ahead of him. Sheppard, Dillingham, Carter and Carrington.
 
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assuming key plays in summer league it will be interesting to see how the handle the primary ballhandler duties as i assume they will play quite a lot of minutes together in that setting.
 
seattlejazzfan said:
assuming key plays in summer league it will be interesting to see how the handle the primary ballhandler duties as i assume they will play quite a lot of minutes together in that setting.
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I don't think key will play. Hope so though

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seattlejazzfan said:
i actually hope he doesn't. i don't see much upside from it and i'd like to see collier, williams, hendricks and sensabaugh get as many opportunities as possible.
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I think confidence is important, especially for Key. If he can go out there and dominate, I'm all for it. There are plenty of minutes in summer league for everyone.

We saw the difference between the rookies who played summer league and the ones that did not.
 
Cant really call a guy an elite passer with the way he commits turnovers. He has potential because of his driving ability, but the passing is erratic currently.
 
Saint Cy of JFC said:
Cant really call a guy an elite passer with the way he commits turnovers. He has potential because of his driving ability, but the passing is erratic currently.
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I get the sentiment and think there could be some truth to it, but Luka Doncic and Trae Young have led the league in turnovers the last two years - i think it's fair to call both elite passers.
 
He’s not elite, we throw that term around too much. He definitely has some good passing talent to pair with his great driving ability….but he as questionable decision making and is blessed with the THT gene. He tries to be fancy for no reason and it causes turnovers.
 
Seems he Can be elite passer. But it all comes down reading the NBA game. Many can execute great passes, but the other traits come in the way. Time will only show
 
Saint Cy of JFC said:
Assist to turnover ratio cousin.
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after coming back from injury, Collier was at 4.5 apg to 2.8 tpg. it's still not quite the 2 to 1 ratio luka had, but the improvement over just have a freshman season is impressive.

sbl above is correct. he absolutely can be elite, but just has to continue to improve his ability to take care of the ball.
 
I am one of the (very) few die hard USC basketball fans, as it's my alma mater. I probably watched 80% of their games last season (which was painful). Here are my thoughts on Collier:
  • He's a very nice player, and great value at #29. Even in a strong draft I would have expected him to go higher.
  • His billing as the #1 recruit in the country was perhaps misleading, as the class of 2023 was rather weak, and other top players (Holland, Buzelis, etc.) went elsewhere. I don't see the same top-end potential here that you'd expect in a stronger class.
  • His greatest strengths jump right off the screen. He's strong, plays fast, gets downhill, and is an absolute bulldog getting into the paint and to the rim. He got whatever he wanted at the college level. He is also exceptional in transition, a great passer, unselfish player, and good teammate. Soft-spoken off the court, but definitely an alpha between the lines. He's probably a better passer/playmaker than Keyonte was and is more of a true PG, but is very much a score-first lead guard.
  • Beyond general polish, experience, and being 19 years old, his greatest weakness long-term is vertical athleticism. He's a predominantly below the rim player and doesn't have great length, so he'll have to adjust both defensively (long way to go here) and finishing at the rim. He's also far too turnover prone and the shooting needs to improve, particularly at the FT line (I'm less worried from the 3PL - 34% on 6 attempts per is pretty solid for a freshman).
I don't expect much year one, but I think he's a solid rotational player/3rd guard for us by the end of his rookie contract, and a potential starter thereafter (with plenty of upside beyond that). There's a lot to like here and also reasons he dropped to #29.

Bottom line, great value at #29 - high floor, high ceiling. Bit of a head scratcher to see some of the names picked ahead of him.
 
I applaud those guys that stick to their colleges as fans. It helps provide some continuity and funding of course, so it is a good thing. But it is something I just never understood. I went to Weber State and feel all but no connection to the school at all, simply because it was my alma mater. When they do well I smile about it, but that is about it. For me it was just a means to an end.
 
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