It’s hard for me to see how Burries won’t be a successful NBA player, at least in some regard. He’s a terrific two-way threat who can pressure the defense from all three levels as a scorer, thanks to his jumper and footwork. Defensively, he’s a hard-nosed, on-ball player who stays engaged off the ball and makes action plays happen with disruptive hands. I loved the way he fit into what Arizona did this season, not only as the team’s primary scoring threat but also as part of what made it a great defensive team.

Yet, I could understand if rebuilding teams aren’t wildly enthusiastic about Burries. He strikes me more as an elite complementary player than one who will turn into a star. He can average 20 points while playing high-level defense, but for him to turn into an All-Star, we’d need to see growth as a passer and playmaker, as well as development with how he separates from his opposition.

Overall 8 Guard 5 Brayden Burries Arizona

An aggressive scoring guard who makes shots, attacks in transition and defends fiercely.

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Hollinger’s pre-draft analysis

When a freshman guard shoots 57.1 percent on 2s in the Big 12, you take notice. When he does it while shooting 39.1 percent from 3, rebounding like a power forward and playing solid defense for one of the best teams in the country … yeah, that’s elite stuff. Burries would be a top-five pick on my board in a lot of years, but the strength of this year’s class pushes him to eighth.

Burries doesn’t quite profile as a lead guard, but he can shoot and get to the cup, especially in transition. He loves taking his own rebounds and pushing them down the court, and he loves shooting pull-up 3s at the end of those forays. His finishing can be very right-handed, but he attacks from either side on his push.

Oddly, Burries’ overall 3-point volume was pretty low in an Arizona system that was basically allergic to 3-pointers (Arizona was 363rd out of 365 Division I schools in 3-point attempt frequency). However, he shot 80.5 percent from the line, and his stroke looked pure when I watched him pregame the two times I saw Arizona in person.

David Aldridge’s draft confidential

Eastern Conference executive No. 1: Burries is a three-level scorer. And he’s a fundamentally sound guy. At 6-4, when you’re more of an off-ball guard, you become a little less unique. But he’s built for today’s NBA because he’s so physically strong, and he’s smart, and he’s efficient with the way he plays. He’s very compact. He’s a very good closeout attacker. And the shooting was a big swing skill coming in (to Arizona). He wasn’t known as a reliable 3-point shooter, but he showed this year he has a shot that commands respect. Good at getting to the foul line. He can draw contact, maintain body control. He can guard, run second-side pick-and-roll. He’s more of a fundamentally sound combo guard.

College basketball assistant coach (his team played Arizona): Great size, super physical. Great body. Elite in transition and the open space. That’s what we tried to focus on with him, keep him in the half court, where we thought he was just a little more indecisive. Doesn’t do anything great, but he’s got good size, good disposition, he’ll try to guard. Surprised he’s up as high as I’ve seen him, but he must be working out well or measuring well.

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