Midseason NBA Draft Scouting Report on Miami's Jalil Bethea
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When the Miami Hurricanes men's basketball team entered the season, one of the key players that they expected to be a surefire superstar was the highest recruit in program history and one of the best guards coming out of high school Jalil Bethea.
Going into this season he was looked at as a projected lottery pick who could have snuck into the top-10 had he been the full offensive weapon many expected him to be. Now as the season is past the halfway point, Bethea is off of many team boards. Now that is not all his fault. The Hurricanes look like the worst team in the Power 5 but he has also not grown as many expected him to.
There are still some positives with Bethea's game that could get him to the next level, but another year in college could work wonders for his confidence and his draft stock.
PROS:
1. Shot Creating Ability
Bethea is one of the best offensive weapons on the Hurricanes as talent goes but he is not used properly. He has a quick trigger and being stuck in a corner most games does not help with what he is capable of doing. His best shot has been his dribble-pull-up midrange this season which he has struggled to miss. He has been hit or miss from beyond the arch this season but when he is hot he can set the net on fire. His offensive bag has not advanced in the way that most would have hoped with a loose handle and questionable turnovers but the scoring potential is still there. He is more of a scoring guard than a point.
The Hurricanes play more inside out with Lynn Kidd as the primary bucket scorer but even a small tweak in the offense could change many things for the confidence of Bethea and his scoring ability.
2. Untapped Athleticism
Watching him play you might not realize that Bethea was the 2024 McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Champion. He is overly athletic and has not been seen attacking the paint in the half-court setting or even flying around to dunk the ball. He has had some acrobatic finishes around the rim but he is never put in a position to attack because of how clogged it gets with Kidd not being a remote outside threat.
He has been inconsistent around the basket this season but the flashes of athleticism for the five-star is bright as day. The Hurricanes system is not what is best for his game to develop at this current moment and a reasonable transfer looks to be on the books for the talented guard looking to reach his full offensive potential.
CONS:
1. Defensively, he can be a Liability
Bethea's best bet would be returning for another season of basketball at the college level to revitalize his draft stocks and one of the key things he will need to focus on is his defense. That is one of the reasons he came down to South Beach to learn from Jim Larranaga and grow defensively. Now with Larranaga gone, he likely won't have a reason to say and it's why he gets taken out of games so often even when he has it going offensively.
Bethea is a lengthy guard but tends to get lost on defensive rotations and can have a lack of communication with teammates with simple switches. Now the Hurricanes team as a whole is bad on defense so it is not just a singular issue with him on defense. He also doesn't have the physical stature at this moment to compete with the bigger guards in the ACC. He needs to put a bit more muscle so he could be more physical on the defensive end with players coming right at him.
Him getting bigger would also help his offensive skill set as well.
2. Frustrated Easily
Like most young star players they tend to have an ego about themselves but in the case of Bethea, the visible frustration on the court is hard to ignore. This also could just be more frustration than it being an attitude problem. He is a team player through and through but losing this much at this level with the amount of expectations placed on him and the ones he has on himself, it can be hard to stay calm and just have a smile on his face. He plays with 100 percent effort but when the little things do not work out, look at his face and his reactions.
This experience is also a humbling one of the young budding star players in the league. He can take it and rebound and use it as a growing point in his young career or he could let it turn into an issue. The ball is in his hands when it comes to that but he has a work ethic that shows that he cares about the game and winning and losing.
Bethea is a great talent to look at in terms of potential. He has the scoring ability to be one of the best basket-getters in the country and the right system could maximize the most out of him. Right now Bethea would be graded as a second-round pick and sneak into the late first round if he can turn his production around to close out the season.
READ MORE FROM MIAMI HURRICANES ON SI:
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Matthew Cleveland's Advice is to 'Just Smile'
REPORT: No Time Table for the Return of Nijel Pack
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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Communications with a concentration in Print and Digital Journalism. During his time in Starkville, he spent a year as an intern working for Mississippi State On SI primarily covering basketball, football, baseball, and soccer while writing, recording, and creating multimedia stories during his tenor. Since graduating, he has assumed the role of lead staff writer for Miami Hurricanes On SI covering football, basketball, baseball, and all things Hurricanes related.
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