The 2023 NBA Draft is one of the more highly anticipated drafts in the past decade partly because of the talent at the top of the draft. Def Pen Sports will be breaking down 14 of the best NBA prospects that have declared for the draft this year. Keyonte George committed to the Baylor Bears as a highly coveted five-star prospect. The program hoped he’d be a key contributor on a Championship team and while those goals fell short, George was a phenomenal freshman talent. An ankle injury in Big 12 play derailed the end of his season, but despite that, he did tough it out and continued to play. The NBA is always drafting young and talented wings in the draft hoping they will pan out and George will have a shot at the lottery because of that.
Scoring
While with the Baylor Bears, Keyonte George highlighted his ability to score the basketball at a high rate. His ability to score jumps off the page as perhaps his most NBA-ready skill entering the 2023 NBA Draft. While at times his shooting was a bit streaky, he did showcase overall precisely why he was a five-star athlete coming out of high school. Despite being a freshman on a loaded team with plenty of experience, George was the second-leading scorer for the 2022-23 Baylor Bears. He has the ability to score at all three levels and his jump shot looks to be NBA-ready.
As a freshman for the Baylor Bears, Keyonte George averaged 15.3 points per game with a field goal percentage of 37.6 percent and a three-point percentage of 33.8 percent. Overall George needs to work on taking better shots, but clearly, he has the ability on the court. NBA shooting guards are asked to score at high rates in the NBA and George could prove to be a starting-caliber player at the position one day. His three-point percentage is ideal and his focus needs to be on making better decisions when shooting in the mid-range and when driving to the basket.
Frame and Athleticism
Keyonte George is built like a typical NBA guard and could further develop as he adds muscle in an NBA training room. While not a spectacular athlete, George should be at least on par or better with most guards in the NBA once he gets there. Once again the ankle injury in Big 12 limited some of that, but he should be well removed from that issue by the time NBA training camp comes up. With his size and frame in college basketball, he averaged 4.2 rebounds per game. His ability to elevate when driving to the basket should add nicely to his NBA highlight reel for the foreseeable future. While not among the best athletes in the 2023 NBA Draft, he should solidly be considered in the second tier of athletes in the class.
KEYONTE GEORGE IS ON ANOTHER LEVEL RIGHT NOW ?
(via @BaylorMBB)
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 18, 2023
Defense
While the NBA is largely focused on finding top-level offensive players, that does mean that teams still have to find capable defenders to guard those players. George’s ability on offense has already been highlighted and he also projects to be a more than capable defender at the next level. While by no means elite on the defensive side of the ball, he should be viewed as better than an average defender. While at Baylor he showed the ability to guard both on and off the ball with his reach and quickness helping him do both. While with the Bears last season he averaged 1.1 steals per game with the team. He may not rack up eye-popping defensive numbers in the NBA, but he will guard his assignment and should not be a defensive liability that a coach has to pull out of the game in crunch time.
Weaknesses
Getting the ankle injury out of the way could clean up some of the more glaring issues with Keyonte George. That being said some of these issues were there before, but got worse after the injury. Shot selection is something that George will need to clean up after he is selected in the 2023 NBA Draft. His field goal percentage especially from the mid-range is not high enough and is largely in part because of his decision-making when taking jump shots. He seems to make better decisions when shooting from beyond the arc and that needs to translate inside the arc as well. Like a lot of college basketball prospects, George will need to get stronger in an NBA weight room. This will help him when he drives to the basket and when he is playing defense. At 6’4″ he is a little under the average size to play shooting guard, but not a good enough playmaker to be a point guard at the NBA level. Overall George does have some things to work on, but nothing that he can’t fix. Sometimes he looked like he wasn’t engaged on defense, but played it very well when he was locked in.
NBA Comparison: Eric Gordon
Eric Gordon has been a longtime shooting guard in the NBA and overall has had a great career. A reliable defender that can check into a game and knock down three-point shots when asked. Keyonte George would need to improve his ball-handling ability to make the comparison better, but he is capable of doing that in the NBA. George could end up being an NBA journeyman that shifts between being a plug-in starter and a primary sixth man for a team. Overall this is a great career for most NBA players and would certainly be worth a lottery selection in the 2023 NBA Draft. While Keyonte George has not solidified himself as a lock for the lottery, he has a good chance of making the top 14 on draft night.
