2016 NBA Draft Prospects: Breaking Down NBA Future of Iowa's Jarrod Uthoff
Jarrod Uthoff's breakout senior season changed the perception of what he could become.
Before his senior season, Uthoff was a solid player in Iowa's program, best known as the guy who transferred from Wisconsin and dealt with then-coach Bo Ryan blocking schools and making his transfer a national story. As a senior with the opportunity to be Iowa's go-to scorer, Uthoff blossomed into one of the best stretch 4s in college basketball and a jump-shot-blocking menace on the defensive end.
| Age | 23 (Born May 19, 1993) |
| Team | Iowa |
| Height | 6'9" |
| Weight | 221 lbs |
The fifth-year senior earned Associated Press third-team All-American honors and emerged as a multi-position prospect. Some scouts wonder if Uthoff was just a product of Iowa's system, but even if that's the case, he has NBA tools that will give him a chance to get drafted.
Relevant Stats
| 2015-16 | 30.8 | 18.9 | 6.3 | 2.5 | 44.8 | 38.2 |
| 2014-15 | 30.3 | 12.4 | 6.4 | 1.6 | 43.0 | 37.2 |
| 2013-14 | 18.2 | 7.6 | 4.6 | 1.1 | 50.0 | 42.5 |
Uthoff's usage went up as a senior, and he was a more efficient scorer than his junior season; typically, the opposite happens when a scorer is asked to take more shots. For his NBA role, which is not going to be a high-volume shooter, it's promising to see that he was also efficient when he had a low-usage role as a sophomore.
Uthoff moved from small forward to power forward as a senior, which helps explain why his shot-blocking numbers took off. He spent more time protecting the paint, and he also showed off a rarely seen ability to block jump shots. (More on this later.)
Strengths
Uthoff's three-point shooting gives him the best opportunity to get drafted and become an NBA specialist. He had the green light to shoot from just about anywhere at Iowa, and he was never shy to show off his range.
"I mean... This is silly, Jarrod Uthoff. #FromDesMoines #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/S8VZpIEA2x
— Chris Douglas (@ChrisDouglas515) February 15, 2016"
Uthoff expanded his game as a scorer when head coach Fran McCaffery moved him from small forward to power forward. In his role as a wing, most of his scoring opportunities had come from the endless pin-down screens that Iowa runs to free its shooters.
This past year, Uthoff got more work from the blocks and mid-post. At 6'9", he has no issue getting off shots and thrived in the mid-range with some unconventional releases, including the Dirk Nowitzki-patented fadeaway off one foot.
"Normally you would tell your guys, 'don't take that shot,'" McCaffery told Bleacher Report earlier this year. "Sometimes when he'll have what's seemingly an easy shot, he'll turn it into what looks like a hard shot when in actuality he makes the harder shot more often than he would make the easier shot.
"I know that sounds illogical, but he'll have an opportunity to go straight up off his left shoulder and he'll turn the other way and shoot a one-legged step-back and make it, and you just say, 'OK. That's Jarrod.'"
The most unique aspect of Uthoff's game is his ability to block jump shots. He led the nation in blocked jumpers with 64 (including 14 three-pointers), according to Jeff Haley of Hoop-Math.com.
Uthoff also showed this year that he's comfortable defending in the paint against true big men or floating out to the perimeter to take on wings.
"What's interesting is he gets most of his recognition because of his shot-blocking and his length, but his ability to move his feet laterally is phenomenal for a guy as tall as he is with that length," McCaffery said. "He can keep the dribbler in front of him, which a lot of long, lanky shot-blockers kind of play alongside of you and then they go contest you at the rim. He'll move his feet and then jump up right in your face and block your shot. That's really hard to do."
Weaknesses
Uthoff's reputation as a shooter was hurt by a late-season slump. He shot just 23-of-84 from deep (27.4 percent) over Iowa's final 14 games. His NBA role will most likely be as a spot-up shooter, and teams aren't looking for streaky performers in that spot.
"He's great in that system where everybody is looking for him," an NBA scout told Bleacher Report. "He was comfortable with what they were running and where he was getting his shots. He's a very situational scorer."
McCaffery did such a good job of putting Uthoff in situations where he could be successful that it is difficult to find many other holes in his game.
NBA Player Comparison
Cleanthony Early (Wichita State) and Doug McDermott (Creighton) are two recent players who had similar roles as Uthoff in college and are currently on NBA rosters. Except, Early and McDermott were both better (and quicker) versions.
McDermott has found more of a solid footing in the NBA than Early because he's been able to make shots when on the floor. That's why the consistency of Uthoff's jumper is so important to his chances of making it in the league.
Best-Case Scenario
The ideal setup would be to get drafted by a team that uses him similar to how the Chicago Bulls deployed McDermott at times this past year: as a small-ball 4. If Uthoff proves he can make shots at the NBA level, he could work himself into a rotation as a shooter.
Worst-Case Scenario
Uthoff going undrafted is a real possibility, and he would have to prove himself in summer league to get an invite to an NBA camp. That could be a challenge for Uthoff in an every-man-out-for-himself type setting. He didn't have much success in the draft combine scrimmages, shooting 6-of-18 from the field (1-of-7 from distance) during 39 minutes over the two games.
Prediction
Uthoff is a good shooter, but he's not at the level of a McDermott. That's where he would need to be to get a real shot in the NBA. Expect Uthoff to get picked either late in the second round or go undrafted. He's one of many players in this draft at that fringe level.
C.J. Moore covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @CJMooreBR.
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