Reacting to the NBA Combine Measurements

From Darius Acuff to Jayden Quaintance: Breaking Down the Most Important NBA Combine Measurements

Day one of the NBA Draft Combine is in the books. On this first day, we received official combine measurements from projected first-round picks. Money can be both made and lost depending on how a player measures, but ultimately I believe we should take into account the film we’ve seen throughout the season and during pre-NCAA careers. I remember hearing a story about an unnamed player putting his insoles in his socks to try to gain an advantage at the combine.

Having a plus wingspan is great, but ultimately does it matter if you are not creating defensive plays? That’s part of my issue with leaning too heavily toward measurements. I won’t ignore the value and impact of having great measurements, as basketball is often a numbers game. Kon Knueppel is a great shooter, but him weighing 215 lbs made a huge difference in the kinds of shots he was able to take off the dribble because his frame allowed him to absorb contact.

Conversely, Tre Johnson had a plus wingspan, but weighing only 190 lbs made the adjustment from college basketball to the NBA a steeper climb. Both are great shooters, but the 25-pound difference was massive, pun intended.

Let me react to the official measurements.