Getty Jarrett Culver of the Texas Tech Red Raiders, who projects to be a first round NBA Draft pick.
By far the leading scorer for the third-seeded Texas Tech Red Raiders, Jarrett Culver has shot up NBA mock drafts in his sophomore campaign and looks poised to be a potential lottery pick heading into the NBA draft. An athletic shooting guard with great size (6’6″) and athleticism for the position, Culver has a crafty offensive game and projects to be a very effective scorer at the next level.
Jarrett Culver with the smooth ACROBATIC finish through traffic.
Culver is a plus shooter from all levels of the court and his three-point percentage has taken a hit due to the fact that he is extremely confident in his shot and happily pulls the trigger on contested three-pointers. Shot selection is something that can be taught but the fact remains that Culver has the intangible skills to be an elite NBA shooting guard.
Jarrett Culver NBA Draft Profile: Latest Mocks & Projections
Jarrett Culver’s upside and strong play have not gone unnoticed by NBA executives and mock drafts have him going towards the top of the first round. NBAdraft.net has him going 11th to the Orlando Magic, while ESPN has Culver going off the board even earlier at 7th to the Atlanta Hawks.
Culver also profiles to be an above average defender at the NBA level, adding to his intrigue of becoming a potential two-way star at the next level. Although he does display questionable defensive IQ at times, he has the benefit of playing for a loaded Texas Tech defensive unit and usually has some help available.
Jarrett Culver NBA Player Comparison
Jarrett Culver’s game is similar to that of Will Barton’s, with the exception that Culver is a better natural scorer with a much higher ceiling. Both primarily shooting guards but can easily switch and defend every position on the perimeter, they also find ways to chip in outside of the scoring column by moving the ball well, defending, and hitting the boards hard.
The pure scoring ability of Culver is really the biggest factor that sets the two apart as Culver can create his own shot while Barton is more reliant on playing alongside the Nuggets multitude of unselfish playmakers to get him his open looks.
Barton was a second-round pick in 2012 but has far outplayed his expectations and looks to be a player that will stick around the league and contribute quality minutes at both ends of the floor for years to come. Expect the same future out of Jarrett Culver except for Culver to score considerably more points at the NBA level and possibly develop into an all-star at some point down the line.