The San Antonio Spurs are still delving their way to the bottom of the standings. So that means there’s some major potential to gain a top-5 pick in the NBA Draft. However, it’s always good to be covered in case something crazy in the lottery or a trade takes place. So this week’s prospect to watch is Michigan’s Jett Howard.
The 6-foot-8, 215-pound shooting guard has skyrocketed up draft boards since the beginning of December thanks in large part to his shooting. He can do more than that as his size will be a huge factor in how teams see him and eventually how they see his value at certain spots in the draft. Here are the freshman’s stats through 17 games.
- 15.5 PPG, 2.6 APG, 2.9 RPG, 0.8 BPG, 0.6 SPG
- 45.1 FG%, 40.2 3P%, 78.2 FT%
- 20.8 PER, 123.3 ORtg, 104.5 DRtg
Jett Howard FROM THE LOGO 😱 @umichbball
He is a perfect 5-5 from three in the first 10 minutes of THE FIRST HALF!
📺: ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/OwLmIRUl3E
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 13, 2023
Jett Howard Breakdown
Howard is the son of former NBA veteran Juwan Howard so the NBA pedigree is there and the basketball IQ should be no question. The younger Howard is not quite as big as his dad but has a much different game that translates well to today’s NBA. He can shoot it, he moves well and is a versatile defender.
Jett Howard is a star. ⭐@JettHoward5 x @umichbball pic.twitter.com/V4NOiR5jvC
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 30, 2022
Jett is excellent in catch-and-shoot situations and is a supremely confident shooter. He has a quick release and is comfortable dribbling into his shot. Whether that is a side-step dribble or step-back, he excels at hitting those shots. It should be noted that Howard takes almost seven triples a game so he is not putting up those percentages on small volume. He has a slight mid-range game that he hasn’t shown off all too much but could be a nice part of his game if he expands on it. He can straight-line dribble and euro-step around guys, but his handling is not anything more complicated than that right now.
OH MY JETT HOWARD 😈 @JettHoward5 pic.twitter.com/Zcn3sdD6YZ
— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) December 17, 2022
Howard is a huge shooting guard in college, but would likely play one of the forward spots in the NBA. He is strong enough and quick enough to guard those players at the next level. Howard is a solid weakside rim protector and has the feet to stay in front of some of the quicker guys at his size. He is not an elite athlete but definitely plays above the rim. He is making his way into the back half of the lottery and could project higher by the end of his freshman season.
