HH Draft Profile: John Collins

Hardwood Houdini Draft Profiles

John Collins: Wake Forest, PF

Height: 6’10″

Weight: 235 pounds

Age: 19

Click on the name for up to date stats: John Collins

Strengths

Rebounding:

Collins is second in the ACC with 9.4 rebounds per game. He has terrific size and physicality at 6’10” and his rebounding abilities on the offensive end often create extra possessions for him and his teammates. He is a double-double machine, especially of late. He has 13 double doubles on the season. As the Celtics continue to struggle in rebounding, Collins becomes even more intriguing.

Athleticism:

Collins has a lot of bounce in his step, which makes him such an effective rebounder. His athleticism also helps him around the basket, which is where the majority of his scoring takes place. His athleticism as a 19 year old will help Collins’ upside and get him drafted.

Offensive Upside:

Offensively, Collins is just scratching the surface for how good he is going to be. He has 10 consecutive games now with 20+ points, including a massive performance against Duke, recording 31 points and 15 rebounds. He is shooting 61.4% from the field on the season. Collins runs the floor extremely well in transition. He is slowly starting to expand his game with perimeter shooting. When his skills start to develop, he can become scary good when pairing those skills with his athleticism.

Feb 4, 2017; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward John Collins (20) grabs a rebound ahead of Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets forward Quinton Stephens (12) in the second half at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Wake defeated Georgia Tech 81-69. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /

Weaknesses

Raw on Offense:

As mentioned, Collins doesn’t really have a polished offensive skill set. His scoring primarily takes place down low. He gets away with his scoring due to his great size and athleticism. His jump shooting and his down low moves in the paint still have a long way to go.

Defense:

Collins does not have great defensive potential. Not having great length for his size does not help him in this regard. The pace of the game sometimes looks to be too much for Collins, and he can sometimes get lost with defensive assignments. Although athleticism is in his favor, he doesn’t have great defensive abilities or IQ.

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Overview

Not heavily recruited out of high school, Collins has almost come out of nowhere. His improvement from a season ago is immense, and he just keeps rising up draft boards. Offensively, he has a lot of upside, as his game is only scratching the surface. However, it will take time. Defensively, there is not as much upside. Overall, he has great size and athleticism for the power forward position. I see Collins being a mid to late first round draft selection.