Observing Jean Montero in an Overtime Elite Game

November 17^th, 2021

This time around, I decided to take the time to watch Jean Montero play in an Overtime Elite basketball game, to see if I can get an accurate gauge of what he can do in a full basketball match. I watched him play for Team OTE in a November 12^th game against Team Elite, with thanks to YouTube via OTE. It wasn’t a perfect way to watch him play, as there would be snippets where they could cut away from the game, or chop off moments that also happened in there. The footage was long enough that I could evaluate him, and it also presented an opportunity to watch Dominick Barlow play. Here are my thoughts on how Montero and Barlow fared on that day.

Team OTE’s Jean Montero had a solid showing in his team’s win over Team Elite. He is a gifted scorer that excels at attacking the hoop to score on offense, and he also is a very athletic combo guard that was able to make highlight reel-worthy plays on both ends of the floor. Montero showed a decent ability to score off the dribble. He can use either hand to finish plays around the hoop, and he also went to his left to score on a crafty, double pump layup in traffic. He also was able to take on the contact when going to his right to score on a three-point play. On the downside, he can be prone to rushing and he also can tend to take tough, contest shots, which can lead to misses. He also excelled at scoring on hustle plays. He showed a knack for scoring off offensive rebounds, and Montero was able to run in to score on an impressive tip slam early on. He also managed to score on a quick cut to the hoop. He also would use nifty dribble moves to draw free throws when driving the ball to the hoop in transition.

On the other hand, he was quite streaky as a shooter from beyond the arc. For the positives, Montero was able to dribble to his left to score on a couple of pull-up threes, and he has both good footwork and shooting form to knock down shots from long distances. On the downside, he can tend to take a lot of threes from way out that missed. He also would sometimes pass up open shots and then dribble around for a while before either missing on deep threes off the dribble, or he would pass it off to a teammate late in the shot clock.

Also, Montero displayed fairly average playmaking skills. He is a quick guard that can consistently get into the lane, and he would swing balls to shooters to set up scoring chances for his teammates. He also can throw accurate interior passes to find his teammates on the move, and he also did a good job of throwing long, accurate outlet passes. Sometimes though, he would throw inaccurate passes that would lead to turnovers. He threw one pass behind his teammate that was dropped out of bounds. He also telegraphed a weak pass to a cutter that ended up getting intercepted. He also threw an inaccurate lob pass in which his teammate didn’t jump up for that also ended up getting picked off.

Montero also did a very good job of rebounding the basketball. He was quite active at crashing the glass on both ends of the floor, and he would tend to bring the ball up off of defensive boards. He also was able to pull down a couple of offensive rebounds. He also managed to leap up to get an impressive, acrobatic one-handed defensive board, and he was able to push the ball up the court afterwards.

Defensively, he looked to be fairly average in this game. For the positives, Montero is an active help defender that did a very good job of forcing turnovers. He would often intercept passes to get steals for his team. He also was able to pounce on a loose ball to help his team get another, and he also poked a ball away another time. Sometimes though, he would not hustle back on defense or try to make a play on the ball, which would lead his team to allow scores. Other times, he would not make enough of an effort to actively close out on shooters, and he also would take bad gambles by missing on steal attempts when playing passing lanes. Another time, he got over-powered on a drive that led him to commit a foul another time.

In general, Jean Montero is a very athletic, skilled combo guard that can shoot and score the basketball. On the downside, he will still need to improve his shot selection, and he will need to consistently give more effort defensively. He is a very talented guard that may have plenty of upside, but he will also need to improve in the finer points of the game. Currently, he could be projected to go in the lottery, and he could end up being a solid, offensive-minded combo guard in the NBA.

Team Elite’s 6-9 forward, Dominick Barlow had a decent showing in his team’s loss to Team OTE. He showed off versatile scoring skills, and he also was able to make some defensive plays in this game. Barlow was able to make a wide-open corner three to showcase some of his shooting skills. He did miss on corner threes two other times, but he showed that he can ably knock down threes when he gets ample time and space to shoot.

He also was active at scoring on hustle plays. He ran the floor to score on a smooth drive in transition. He also managed to score on a tough put back in traffic while getting an extra free throw afterwards. On the downside, he would sometimes struggle to score in traffic, and he can sometimes e prone to rushing his shots. He also had a couple of his shots blocked when driving to the hoop.

He also showed off decent playmaking skills. Barlow is an unselfish player that will make the extra pass to keep the ball moving to consistently find the open man, and he also can pass out of the post to set up scores for his teammates. He also was able to set an off-ball screen to help his teammate get an open jump shot. On one play though, he posted up, but he threw a pass that his teammate dropped that led to a turnover. Also, Barlow was able to leap up to chase down boards to get his fair share of rebounds in this game. He also was able to push the ball up the floor after getting one defensive board. On the downside, there was one play where he didn’t box out his man, and he ended up allowing him to score on a put back.

Defensively, he looked to be fairly average at best. Barlow was able to break up a lob pass to get a steal. On the downside, he would sometimes tend to cheat off his man too much and give up open jump shots. He over-helped off his man and was late to rotate back or to contest the shot, which led him to allow his opponent to score on a corner three. Another time, he got beat off the dribble and allowed a score on a drive in transition.

Overall, Dominick Barlow is a fairly athletic combo forward that can shoot and score the basketball. He can sometimes be too passive on offense, and he will need to improve his shot-creation skills and focus on defense. Currently, he is a borderline second round candidate for the upcoming draft. He will need more time to polish up his overall game, but with continued development, he could end up competing for a roster spot in the NBA in the future.

Other Notes:

Team OTE’s Amen Thompson is a tremendously athletic swingman that did a great job of attacking the hoop to score the basketball. He excelled at scoring on strong drives to the hoop, and he was able to score on a thunderous dunk when driving right off of a screen once. He also showed solid shooting touch, as he also scored on a running, baseline floater another time. He also managed to throw down a very athletic windmill dunk on the break.

Plus, he also did a great job of rotating to block shots to get stops defensively, and he also threw accurate passes to notch assists. The only thing was that he didn’t shoot the ball well from beyond the arc. Still, Amen Thompson is a top-flight athlete that has strong scoring and defensive skills, along with a solid ability to create shots for himself and others, and that could make him a likely lottery candidate for the 2023 draft.

Team Elite’s Matt Bewley is a very athletic big man that excelled at attacking the hoop to score on offense. He would run the floor to score on high-flying dunks, and he also would run in to score on powerful, tip-slams. He was active on the glass, and he also was able to pass out of a double team in the post to set up a score for a teammate to show some passing skills. Overall, he had a very good showing in his team’s loss, and he could be one of the best prospects to watch in the 2023 draft.

Team OTE’s Ausar Thompson also played well in this game. He showed a knack for scoring on hustle plays, and he was able to make some really nice plays defensively. He managed to catch a lob off of a cut to score on a high-flying, alley-oop dunk. He ran the floor and used a power dribble to score on a powerful, two-handed slam. He also managed to score on a tough, fallaway layup off the dribble to show his ability to create his own shot.

Plus, he also did a great job of rotating to block shots to help his team protect the paint. He struggled to make outside shots from beyond the arc, and he would sometimes not actively contest long-range jumpers, which would lead him to allow opponents to score on jumpers. Still, Ausar Thompson is a very athletic, high-motor swingman that could be one of the best prospects to watch in the 2023 draft.