Evaluating Devon Hall, Matt Mobley, and Jaylen Adams on Day 2 of the 2018 PIT

April 12, 2018

I took the time to see a basketball game that was played between the Portsmouth Sports Club and Roger Brown’s on Day 2 of the 2018 Portsmouth Invitational. It was a close one in the first half, but Portsmouth Sports Club later ran away with the game to get a double-digit victory. The top performers in this contest were Devon Hall, Matt Mobley, and Jaylen Adams, and other players were able to make some impactful plays in this match. For those that are looking for the box score statistics of this contest, it can be viewed on this link.

Virginia’s 6-5 senior guard, Devon Hall played very well for the Portsmouth Sports Club, as he scored 18 points and collected 8 rebounds to help his team defeat Roger Brown’s. In this game, he excelled as a shooter and scorer on the floor, and he generally had a solid all-around game to help get his team the win. Hall did a very good job of knocking down jumpers to space the floor for his team. He showed a knack for making pull-up jump shots off the dribble, particularly from the mid-range area. He also was able to make threes both off the catch and dribble, and has plenty of range on his shot.

He also showed a good ability to get scores off the dribble. Hall can draw plenty of free throws on strong drives to the basket, and he also threw down a dunk on one drive in transition. Hall has good strength and body control, as well as a decent first step to the hoop to regularly get scores on drives to the hoop, and he will usually go a good job of playing under control to do so. Plus, he also did a good job of throwing interior passes, as he is an unselfish player that can set up plenty of scoring chances for his teammates both on the break as well as in half-court sets. Also, he played good defense, and he was able to poke a ball away to get a steal once.

In general, Devon Hall had a very good game to help lead his team to get a blowout victory over Roger Brown’s, and he is a smart, skilled basketball player that can help a team significantly on offense. So far, Hall is off to a strong start in this year’s tournament, and his offensive skills combined with his high basketball IQ could enable him to be a second round pick in the upcoming draft.

St. Bonaventure’s 6-3 senior guard, Matt Mobley had a strong showing for the Portsmouth Sports Club, as he did a very good job of shooting and scoring the basketball as he scored 16 points and made 4 threes to lead his team to a double digit victory over Roger Brown’s. Mobley did a great job of knocking down three-point shots from beyond the arc. He can make them off the catch, dribble, or when running off of screens, and he also has a quick release that enables him to easily get his shot off. He did a really good job of making them in the second half, as he can make threes in a hurry.

He also showed a good ability to score on quick drives to the hoop. He can draw fouls upon the opposition, and he also drove down the court to score on a thunderous dunk on the break. Overall, Matt Mobley is an athletic, skilled combo guard that did a very good job of scoring the basketball. He did not seem to be as noticeable in the other areas, but he played well in this game, and his ability to put up points combined with possessing good physical tools could enable him to be a potential second round pick this year.

St. Bonaventure’s senior point guard, Jaylen Adams had a good showing for Roger Brown’s, as he nearly collected a triple-double, as he had 14 points, 8 assists, and 7 rebounds in his team’s loss to the Portsmouth Sports Club. He poured on the points early on as he was able to score in a variety of ways in the first half of this game.

Adams did a good job of knocking down jumpers to space the floor for his team. He showed a knack for making pull-up, mid-range jump shots, and he also can make three-point shots both off the catch and dribble. But sometimes, he can be streaky with his jump shot, as he can occasionally be prone to rushing his shots that can lead to misses. He also did a good job of scoring on quick drives to the hoop, and he has an assortment of ball handling moves that he can use to get past his opponents.

Also, he displayed good playmaking skills. Adams will look to find the open man, and he can get the ball to shooters to notch assists. He also managed to throw an interior pass to a roll man to set up a score. However, sometimes he can be inaccurate with his passes, and he also may hold the ball too long, which can occasionally disrupt the flow of the team’s offense. He also was active at crashing the glass, as he managed to haul in plenty of defensive rebounds to help his team.

He also played adequate defense. He has quick hands, as he can poke balls away to help his team come away with steals, and he also jumped a pass to almost force another turnover, but he landed out of bounds that time. But sometimes he can be too aggressive on this end of the floor, as he ended up picking up a couple of fouls when defending drives, and he once bit on a pump fake to do so on one play. In summary, Jaylen Adams had a solid all-around game, and he played really well early on in this contest. He played well in his team’s loss to the Portsmouth Sports Club, and Adams is a smart, skilled point guard that could be a potential second round pick in the upcoming draft.

Eastern Washington’s 6-6 senior swingman, Bogdan Bliznyuk quietly played well to help the Portsmouth Sports Club get a win over Roger Brown’s. He excelled as a scorer when he was on the floor, and he also defended fairly well when he was on the court. Bliznyuk showed a knack for scoring on patient drives to the hoop, and he has a crafty spin move that he can use to get past his opponents. Plus, he also can knock down jumpers to space the floor for his team. On the other hand, he was streaky with his jump shot, but he was able to make enough of them to keep the defenses honest.

He also showed off some passing skills, as he would kick the ball out to shooters to set up scoring chances for them. But sometimes, he would throw inaccurate passes hastily, which would lead him to commit some turnovers. Also, he defended fairly well. Bliznyuk would play passing lanes to get steals and deflections, and he also managed to contest a drive to force a miss. But there was one possession where he got backed down when defending in the post, as he ended up committing a foul that time.

In summary, Bogdan Bliznyuk had a fairly good game, and he is a skilled swingman that could project to be a 3 and D type of role player at the next level. With his skill set, he could end up being a solid addition to an NBA team’s summer league roster this year.

Arizona State’s 6-1 senior guard, Shannon Evans II was able to help the Portsmouth Sports Club, as he managed to score in a variety of ways to get buckets on offense. He can make threes off the catch and dribble, and he also showed a penchant for scoring on runners on drives to the hoop due to possessing good quickness, body control, and shooting touch. But sometimes he would be streaky with his jump shot, as that would lead him to miss more threes than anticipated. He also defended fairly well, as he managed to break up an entry pass to get a steal.

Overall, Evans is a fairly good athlete that can put up points in a hurry, and he played unselfishly to get assists for his team. He did also commit turnovers, and he will need to play more under control, but his skill set could enable him to be a good bet to make an NBA team’s summer league roster this year.

Vanderbilt’s 6-6 senior forward, Jeff Roberson excelled as a shooter and rebounder when he was on the floor. He didn’t take many shots, but he can knock down jumpers both off the catch, dribble, as well as when he runs off of screens. Also, he managed to score on a turnaround jumper after posting up, and he also ran the floor to score on the break. Roberson may only possess average athletic gifts, but his ability to score and rebound could allow him to latch onto an NBA team’s summer league roster.

Louisville’s 7-0 senior center, Anas Mahmoud quietly had a decent showing in this game, even if he did not put up huge box score statistics. He excelled as a scorer on rolls to the rim, and he also managed to throw down a dunk on one play. Mahmoud also used a spin move to score on a step-through move in the post, but he struggled to consistently score when he was on the block.

He also passed the ball well. He can hit the cutter due to possessing good court sense, and he also can throw long outlet passes to find teammates out on the break. Mahmoud is an unselfish player that can pass out of the post. But sometimes he may struggle to protect the basketball, as he would get the ball knocked away or lose it when posting up to commit turnovers.

He also showed off fairly good defensive skills. Mahmoud will actively contest shots, and he quickly rotated to block a three-point shot once out of bounds. However, he will still need to add strength, as he ended up allowing a score in the post on one possession. In summary, Anas Mahmoud is an energetic, athletic big man that plays the game with a solid motor, and he is a player that could project to be a defensive specialist, as he could end up being a potential second round pick on draft day.

TCU’s senior center, Vladimir Brodziansky also quietly played well, as he is an fairly agile big man that possesses good footwork, and he was able to get a couple of scores in the post, as one was on a jump hook, and another was on a stepthrough move. He can sometimes struggle to find his shooting touch, but there was a stretch where he played really well on offense.

He also is an unselfish player that will pass out of the post. Plus, he also blocked a shot when defending in the post. But there was one play on offense where he turned the ball over in traffic. In summary, Brodziansky had a decent game, even if he did not stand out in the box score statistics. He is a mobile big man that plays hard on both ends of the floor, and he could likely be a solid addition to an NBA team’s summer league roster this year.