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Alijah Martin, G, Florida
Height: 6-2 • Weight: 210 • Class: Senior • Age: 23
Summary: Martin is a hyper-athletic, high-energy guard who plays bigger than his size and impacts the game with his toughness, rebounding, and defensive grit. But his positional tweener status, streaky shooting, and limited creation ability complicate his ability to carve out a specialized role.
Comparisons: De’Anthony Melton, Derrick Jones Jr.
Strengths
Defense: Martin brings a toughness and physicality to the defensive end. He’ll hound opponents full court, fight like hell through screens, and battle against anyone at any size. He stays locked in off-ball too.
Intangibles: He plays bigger than his 6-foot-2 frame would suggest he can. He cleans up the boards, dunks over and through defenders, and flies around on defense.
Athleticism: He’s an elite athlete, both with his quick-twitch movements on the floor when attacking closeouts and driving to the basket, and with his verticality leading to highlight-reel dunks.
Concerns
Size: He’s only 6-foot-2, but plays like a wing so he’s not a natural position fit, making him a bit of a modern tweener.
Shooting: Martin made only 36.4% of his 3s in five college seasons. He is capable of catching fire, but he also goes through major cold spells. It’s vital that he finds some consistency, but he’s only a 76% guy from the line in his career so he might just have average touch.
Shot creation: He doesn’t project as a primary playmaker, which is unfortunate considering his height. He lacks a great passing feel or a handle beyond his typical downhill attacks.
For a two-round mock draft and a big board with full scouting reports, check out my NBA Draft Guide.
