The 2011-12 San Antonio Spurs’ season ended in one huge disappointing implosion versus the 
Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
Now the Spurs will be focusing on retooling the team and adding players to help the team make yet another march to a fifth NBA title next season and it begins with the upcoming NBA Draft and player workouts.
Last month, the Spurs took a look at Syracuse guard Scoop Jardine and according to Scoop, he is confident about his chances at making an NBA squad.
“Right now, I’m turning a lot of heads. I’m starting to really rise since the workouts started. My dream is just to be drafted. I don’t know where at. I’m very confident that I’ll be drafted come June 28.”
So what’s the scoop on Scoop?
Last season with Syracuse, Scoop (6’2″, 200 lbs.) averaged 8.9 points, shot 47.4% from the field, 37.9% from the three-point line, 55.1% from the free-throw line, 2.4 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 1.4 steals, and 2.3 turnovers in 25.2 minutes per game.
When Jardine is at his best, he’s a competent scorer in almost every facet of the game. He is a self-made shooter who can score the ball with range off the catch and off the dribble, can convert craftily around the basket despite his athletic limitations, and make life extremely easy for his teammates with his passing. Jardine could stand to improve his consistency from beyond the arc, especially in spot-up situations, by working on his footwork and being a bit more discerning with his shot selection, but he can be a tough cover when his shot is falling because of his feel for using his defenders momentum against him. His lack of elite quickness limits his ability to break down defenses one-on-one unless his defender is forced to close him out, but his court vision is, at times, truly excellent –as evidenced by the fact that he ranked among the top players in all of college basketball in assists per-40 minutes pace adjusted.
On the other hand, Jardine struggles at times as well. His consistency from beyond the arc has developed considerably since his freshman season, but his efficiency in catch and shoot situations could use improvement, as he tends to lose his rhythm at times because of the fact that he likes to shoot the ball on the way down. His shot selection leaves a lot to be desired as well, as he forces quite a few contested shots from the perimeter and converts just 46% of his 2 point attempts by being overly-aggressive instead of opportunistic.
Defensively, Jardine is fairly adept at reading the passing lanes in Syracuse’s 2-3 zone, but lacks ideal lateral quickness from a NBA perspective. He shows quick hands and is fairly crafty in compensating for his lack of foot speed, but will need to show that he can defend the point guard position competently in workout settings if he wants to get the benefit of the doubt considering the system he’s coming out of. (via Draft Express)
Not a very promising guard if you ask me Spurs fans. With Tony Parker and Cory Joseph as the guards, the Spurs are better off not drafting Scoop should he be on the board at pick 59 in the second round of the 2012 Draft. Plus, the Spurs need size and a better swingman seeing how Danny Green fizzled in the OKC series.
What do you have to say Spurs fans? Think the Spurs should go after Scoop or pass?
