Mike Miles:
Despite a slow start, Mike Miles ended the game with another big game against a top Big 12 team, going for 19 points, 6 assists, 1 rebound, and 2 turnovers on 6-14 shooting with 3 trips to the line, where he went 5-6 from the line. Additionally, he went 2-2 from 3, both off the dribble, and one being from deep range. Miles has great shooting form, and doesn’t change a thing on his shot no matter the distance. With his 3 point performance, he crossed the 30% mark from 3 for the season, which still leaves a lot to be desired. The shooting flashes against top teams should hold more value than what may be just random misses in other cases.
As a playmaker, Miles found his teammates at the right spots, and set his teammates up for high percentage looks. His ability to pass cross-court resembles Luka Doncic, which is even more remarkable given his 6’1 stature. He has a rare ability at that size to see over the defense, and combined with his feel for the game, he has both a strong floor and ceiling as a playmaker.
Christian Braun:
Christian Braun had a poor outing, recording 10 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 turnover on 4-11 shooting, including an impressive 2-2 from 3. While his tools are strong as a ~6’7 (give or take one inch) swingman, tonight showcased his main weakness that holds him back from best utilizing his tools: he pre-determines his shots, moves, and drives far too often, which leads to tunnel vision and forcing up low percentage shots over good defenders. As a 3 point shooter, his form is clean and projectable, and he can both spot up and shoot off the dribble, and he can use his shooting threat to attack closeouts to get him easy drives to the rim. He needs to brush up his shot selection and speed up his lower portion of his jump shot, although it speeds up on pull-up jumpers.
Ochai Agbaji:
Despite going 4-17, and 3-8 from 3 for 13 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 1 steal, and 3 turnovers with 4 fouls, Ochai Agbaji wasn’t entirely disappointing. The main area of concern in this was how quick he was to settle for mid range jumpers off the dribble in awkward spots, highlighted by the major difference in 3P% and 2P%. Defensively, he wasn’t a pushover, and still had some impact plays, mostly coming from off-ball help. TCU hosts one of the strongest defenses in the strongest defensive conference, so this may have simply been an off night, but the alarming part of his offensive struggles were from settling for bad shots and not being able to win drives. Some of this may be noise as he is likely a 3&D role player in the NBA with cutting ability. He still possesses some of the best tools in the class with freakish athleticism, arguably the best shooting stroke in the draft with almost no dip and a quick shot, vision on drives, and a high basketball IQ. This game doesn’t change a lot for my ranking and perspective, but does give insight on what his weaknesses are and how they can be exploited at the next level.
