Analyzing Baylor Scheierman, Ryan Nembhard, and Anthony Black at the 2022 Maui Invitational

November 23^rd, 2022

By Alan Lu

Yesterday, I decided to watch Anthony Black and Arkansas face off against Creighton in a matchup that took place at the 2022 Maui Invitational.  Although Nick Smith didn’t play due to a lingering knee injury, it was an entertaining, hard-fought game that went back and forth as both teams traded leads.  Arkansas received strong play from their wing players, Anthony Black and Ricky Council, but Creighton received superb performances from Baylor Scheierman, Ryan Nembhard, and Ryan Kalkbrenner, and they made enough plays down the stretch to hold off Arkansas to get the win.  Here are my thoughts on how various prospects from both teams fared in this match.

Baylor Scheierman put forth a tremendous performance to help lead Creighton to a win over Arkansas.  He is a smart, very skilled swingman that did a great job of shooting and passing the basketball, and he made all sorts of strong plays on offense to help his team.

He showed a knack for making threes to provide floor spacing for his team on offense.  Scheierman was able to pull up to make a three while getting fouled early on, and he also would run off the ball to knock down quick long-range jumpers.  He also pulled up to make a very deep three from way out, and he showed off uncanny range and superb sharpshooting prowess when he was on the floor.  He also did a very good job of knocking down mid-range jumpers, and he also managed to make a step-back, long two later on.

Also, he showed a solid ability to score both off the dribble and out of the post.  Scheierman was able to use a pivot move to score on a crafty, fadeaway jumper.  He also posted up and scored on a smooth, fadeaway jumper over a smaller opponent.  He is an agile, skilled swingman that showed a great shooting touch from all over the floor.  He also was able to get the ball on a cut but missed, as he didn’t get enough lift on his shot that time.

Plus, he also showcased good playmaking skills.  He excelled at making touch passes to find his teammates on the move, and he also managed to make a nifty, drop-off pass off of a drive to notch an assist early on.  Scheierman also was able to set a good, off-ball screen to help his teammate score on an open backdoor cut.  On the downside, he can sometimes be too fancy with his passes, and on one play, he tried a fancy, behind-the-back, no-look pass that wound up getting intercepted.

He also did a good job of rebounding the basketball.  On the downside, he would tend to struggle to guard more athletic opponents as he doesn’t possess elite physical tools, and he would sometimes be late to rotate or to contest shots, which would lead him to give up baskets.

Overall, Baylor Scheierman had a tremendous showing in his team’s win over Arkansas.  He really excelled as a shooter, scorer, and playmaker, and he also grabbed plenty of rebounds to help his team on the defensive end as well.  He will need to show that he can consistently guard upper-echelon opponents in games, but his skill set and feel for the game could enable him to be a solid role player in the NBA.

Ryan Nembhard had a strong showing to help lead Creighton to a narrow victory over Arkansas.  He did a great job of making shots and getting the ball to his teammates, and he continually made plays to help his team get the win.

Nembhard showed a knack for making quick threes to help his team on offense.  He excelled at running quickly off the ball to make corner threes, and he also pulled up to knock down another three-point shot from beyond the arc.  He also showed an adequate ability to score off the dribble.  He is an agile, fleet-footed guard that has a fairly solid first step, and he was able to drive by his man to score on a surprisingly athletic dunk late in this contest.  He also would take on the contact to draw fouls upon his defenders.  However, despite doing a good job of being able to consistently get to the rim, he also missed his fair share off of drives, as he had trouble finishing some plays around the basket.  Also, he was active in looking to score on hustle plays, and Nembhard was able to score on a backdoor cut once.

Plus, he also displayed solid playmaking skills in this game.  Nembhard is an unselfish player that would make good passes off the dribble, and he would often get the ball to open shooters to set up numerous scoring chances for them.  Sometimes though, he would play too sloppy, which would lead him to commit some turnovers.

He also showed a solid ability to rebound the basketball.  He did a good job of getting defensive boards, and he would tend to push the ball quickly up the court afterwards.  On the downside, he struggled defensively.  He had trouble defending out on the perimeter, which would lead him to commit fouls and allow scores.  He struggled to defend shooters, as he would sometimes not contest threes in a timely manner, and he also fouled a three-point shooter another time.  He also once got beat on a move when defending in the post, which led him to give up another basket.

Overall, Ryan Nembhard played very well, and he thrived as a shooter, scorer, and facilitator to help his team get the win.  He had a terrific game, and he is an athletic, skilled playmaker that could end up being a good find for an NBA team in the 2023 draft.

Anthony Black had a solid showing in his team’s loss to Creighton.  He thrived as a scorer, playmaker, and defender when he was on the court, and had a solid all-around game for Arkansas.

He showed an adequate ability to score off the dribble.  Black has a fairly solid first step to the hoop, and he was able to score on strong moves to the hoop.  He struggled to score consistently on runners or in traffic, and he was inconsistent at scoring off of drives. 

Also, he did a good job of scoring on hustle plays.  He did a much better job of scoring on aggressive drives in transition, and he was able to utilize a crafty Euro-step move to score once.  Black showed a knack for scoring on tip shots after grabbing offensive boards, but he also missed on a cut in traffic once.  He also showed that he can score out of the post, and he also utilized an overhead ball fake and a drop step to score once.

He also showed off a decent jumper in this game.  Black utilized a pump fake and pulled up to knock down a three-pointer, and he also got fouled to draw three free throws on another three another time.  He wasn’t consistent as an outside shooter from beyond the arc, but he showed that he was a credible enough long-range threat to force opponents to respect his jump shot and to stay up on him.

Plus, Black showcased satisfactory playmaking skills.  He did a good job of making swift passes off the dribble due to possessing good court vision, and he also threw crisp, accurate interior passes to set up a wealth of scoring chances for his teammates.  However, he also tended to over-dribble into traffic, and he had several balls poked away when handling it that led to turnovers.

He also did a decent job of rebounding the basketball, and Black excelled at collecting offensive boards.  Also, he played decent defense in this game.  He would jump on loose balls to help his team get numerous steals, and he also managed to recover when defending a drive off of a screen to alter the shot to force the miss.  On the downside, he would also tend to get beat off the dribble at times, which would lead him to commit fouls and allow scores.

Overall, Anthony Black played well in his team’s loss to Creighton.  He is a smart, skilled point forward that has a good feel for the game, and he showed off solid all-around skills to help his team on both ends of the floor.  He could be a solid pick for an NBA team in the mid to late first round range, and he could end up being a solid role player in the association.

Travon Brazile also played well in his team’s loss to Creighton.  He is a very athletic big man that excelled as a shooter, scorer, and shot blocker in this game.  The most surprising thing was that he came off the bench prior to the start of this match.  Brazile did a very good job of making spot-up threes, and he also thrived at scoring on hustle plays.  Particularly, he showed a knack for catching lobs off of rolls to score on alley-oop dunks.  He had more trouble making mid-range jumpers and didn’t seem to make any noteworthy passes, but he excelled at making shots from all over the floor.

Also, he was fairly active at crashing the glass to get boards on both ends of the floor.  Defensively, he looked to be fairly average.  He did a great job of blocking shots, and he also swatted a three once due to possessing good length, athleticism, and timing.  He also would poke balls and get his hands on passes to get steals and deflections.  However, he would be too aggressive at times when contesting shots, which would lead him to commit fouls, and he also bit on a pump fake that led him to give up a basket.  He also would sometimes be late to defend opponents when guarding them off the ball, which would lead him to allow them to score on dunks.

Overall, Brazile played well, and he did a good job of making plays on both ends of the floor.  He will need to improve his playmaking skills and be a more disciplined defender in games, but he is a very athletic, skilled big man that could be a solid pick for an NBA team in the first round of the 2023 draft.

Ricky Council IV played fairly well in his team’s loss to Creighton.  He is an athletic, skilled swingman that showed off versatile scoring skills, as well as a strong pull-up game from the mid-range, and he also passed the ball well.  He looked to be at his best when taking and making mid-range jumpers, but he also would look to score on off-ball motion play.  He was able to run the floor to score on a high-flying dunk on the break, and he also scored on an acrobatic put back another time.  Council was able to make a couple of deep threes, but he was quite streaky with his outside shot in this match.

Also, Council showcased satisfactory playmaking skills.  He is an unselfish player that would make timely passes to set up scores for his teammates, and he also threw a behind-the-back bounce pass off of a drive to notch an assist once.  He also was active in hauling in boards to get them on both sides of the ball.  Defensively though, he struggled in this game.  For the positives, he was active in looking to force turnovers when defending opposing ball handlers, and he was able to poke a ball away to get a steal once.  However, he tended to get beat off the dribble, which would tend to put his team in compromised situations.  He also had some trouble defending shooters, as he bit on a pump fake and allowed his man to score on a long range jumper while committing the foul early on, and he also was late to get out on a shooter to give up the basket late in this contest.

Overall, Ricky Council IV had a solid showing in this game, and he is an athletic, energetic swingman that played well, especially on offense.  He’ll need to improve his defense and be a more consistent shooter in games, but he is a solid prospect that could end up being a solid pick for an NBA team in the 2023 draft.

Ryan Kalkbrenner played very well for Creighton in this game.  He excelled as a finisher, screen setter, and interior defender to help his team on both ends of the floor.  While he isn’t an elite athlete, he is a very tall center whose size and length would help his team score and also get his teammates get open on offense, and his size and length would enable him to prevent opponents from getting easy shots off.  He also was able to make some tough catches to score on powerful dunks.  He had a strong showing, and he reminded me quite a bit of Utah Jazz’s rookie center, Walker Kessler.  Kalkbrenner’s draft stock may not be high at the moment, and he will likely need to extend his shooting range and improve his passing skills, but he could end up being a solid second round pick for an NBA team in the 2023 draft.

Creighton’s 6-4 sophomore guard, Trey Alexander had a solid showing to help Creighton get the win in this game.  He is a fairly athletic, energetic combo guard that excelled at driving to the hoop to score.  He didn’t shoot as well from the outside, but he was able to score on a pull-up, mid-range jumper from the baseline early on.

He also passed and rebounded the ball very well.  He also threw crisp, accurate interior passes to notch numerous assists, and he excelled at finding his teammates in stride.  He struggled more on the defensive end, as his lack of size or elite physical tools would make it difficult to rotate or make plays on that side of the ball.  Overall, he played well, and he could be a prospect to keep tabs on in the future.

Arthur Kaluma didn’t have a great game in his team’s win over Arkansas.   He showed a solid ability to score on strong, left-handed drives, and he was able to score on some hustle plays, which included him scoring on a high-flying dunk in transition once.  However, he had trouble knocking down outside shots, and he was also incredibly turnover prone.  He did a poor job of passing the basketball and he also didn’t handle the ball very well, which would often lead him to commit many turnovers on offense.

He also rebounded the ball well.  He also played adequate defense.  Kaluma is an active defender that excelled at getting steals and blocks.  However, he struggled to stay in front of his man when defending out on the perimeter, which would lead him to commit fouls and allow scores.

Overall, Arthur Kaluma had a disappointing showing in his team’s win, and he will need to improve his jump shot and playmaking skills considerably.  Currently, he projects to be a second round prospect for the 2023 draft.

Jordan Walsh didn’t have a great game, but he generally passed and defended well when he was on the floor.  Offensively, he was very passive and didn’t do nearly as much as expected, as he didn’t show much in terms of shooting or shot-creation skills, but he was able to make a quick, trail three off the catch once. 

He did a much better job of moving the ball, as he excelled as a secondary ball mover, and he would make drive and kick passes to get his teammates the basketball.  On one play though, he threw an ill-advised jump pass that got intercepted.  He played satisfactory defense.  He is an active defender that was able to poke a ball away to get a steal, and he would look to contest shots to force misses.  However, sometimes he would get beat off the dribble, which would lead him to give up baskets.  Overall, Walsh didn’t have a great game, but he generally made solid team plays despite not shooting or scoring well, and he could end up being a second round pick if he decides to enter the 2023 draft.

In conclusion, those are my thoughts on how Scheierman and other various prospects fared in the Creighton-Arkansas game that was played at the 2022 Maui Invitational.  Thanks for reading.