Julian and Draft

[prjohnnies]

Julian is at minimum a 3, and perhaps a 4, year player.  For someone like him, there is only upside to returning to school.  His shooting has come along nicely, but he can improve his ball handling, scoring off the bounce and playmaking immensely to make his professional options more desirable.  Adding strength and athleticism which will come with natural growth and training, and which will help him in those areas and defensively.

 

[Anthony Mattia]

Julian is at minimum a 3, and perhaps a 4, year player.  For someone like him, there is only upside to returning to school.  His shooting has come along nicely, but he can improve his ball handling, scoring off the bounce and playmaking immensely to make his professional options more desirable.  Adding strength and athleticism which will come with natural growth and training, and which will help him in those areas and defensively.
 

I agree Rob.  He has to become more explosive off the bounce.  When you get past your man diving baseline you have to go up and dunk, not get a layup blocked, which happens pretty often.  He has to get a better handle and stop getting stripped when he enters the lane from the wing.  Not knocking him.  I love JC, I just think there are things he can work on to make him a better prospect for the league and they are things that are attainable.

 

[Knight]

I hope he realizes that staying for 3 or 4 years is no negative reflection on him.  Let his body fill out, build strength and improve his skills---and get an education.

 

[QueensBall]

I agree he shouldn't come out this year (and will be shocked if he does) but some of this depends on how Julian evaluates his own potential as a pro. To be an NBA player he needs to work on ball security and scoring off the bounce for sure. That being said, Champagnie comes across as a bit wise beyond his years so he may realize that just becuase he's got some size and can shoot doesn't mean he's the next Jayson Tatum. If that's what he wants to be he has a ton of work and will probably not get there. But if he realizes his shooting and size give him an excellent opportunity to play for a decade as one of these 3 &D type wings that NBA teams are loading up on, he can show up next season, commit harder to what is already pretty decent college-level defense and declare after next season (assuming no major regression.) He's not really showing up in mocks yet but he's definetly creeping onto the NBA radar.

Edited to add...it would suck for us as fans to not get to see the guy play for a full 4 seasons but a nearly unranked kid showing up at St. Johns, making all conference teams and getting picked in the draft would be huge for the program.  Anderson would be able to recruit wings for the next 5 years by putting them on "the Champagnie program."

 

[ShrekII]

I don't think that Julian SHOULD go to the NBA this year, but he does project pretty well as a role player (and that is probably his ceiling).  The 2 things he needs to work on to be a better prospect are shooting on the move (curls, screens, etc.).  His step back is great, he has a quick clean release, but mostly shoots step backs and spot up jumpers.  The other thing is work on his body.  To defend in the NBA he needs to be a lot stronger and maximize his athletic ability.  His ball handling and ability to drive and finish at the basket is important for his success in college, but that is unlikely to ever be his role in the NBA.  Think of DJ Kennedy (one of my favorite players over the past 20 years), he is really good in lots of areas (handle, shooting, passing, defense, rebounding), but not great in any.  That is why he was called the Lebron of the TBT.  For role players in the NBA it is much more important to be excellent in your role (and not so bad in others that you are a net negative).