Cassius Winston
Position: PG
Height: 6-1
Weight: 185
School: Michigan State
Cassius Winston can’t dunk and is unassuming physically, but he put together a tremendous college career. The 22-year-old has the most assists and highest assist percentage in Big Ten history. He shined in a ton of important games over the past four years, being named Big Ten Player of the Year as a junior and leading Michigan State to a Final Four appearance.
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Strengths
If you give Winston the ball at the top of the key and a screen, odds are he’ll make something positive happen, either as a passer or a scorer. Go under the screen? Despite elevating into his jumper with a pigeon-toed stance, Winston shot 43 percent from three-point range in college. Hedge the screen? Winston is great at shifting pace, staying patient and manipulating the defense. He’ll draw the defender out, wait until he’s in a bad position and capitalize on it. Blitz him? He enjoys setting up his teammates and is a skilled passer who can quickly hit the roller, fire the ball cross court if the defense overcommits or simply give it up to the open man on the perimeter.
Though he’s undersized, Winston still finds plenty of ways to score around the rim. By playing off the defense’s rhythm and expectations, he’s effective in the paint with layups and floaters that use unconventional timing and angles. He also shot 84.5 percent from the foul line at Michigan State and averaged 18.7 points per game over the last two years.
Weaknesses
NBA
Winston is definitely not Allen Iverson, a 6-foot guard who was a blur in the open floor and could sky above players he was shorter than. He’s much more of a special basketball player than a special athlete. That means the large majority of his basketball skills still must work in the NBA. He likely needs to remain an above-average outside shooter, a highly efficient pick-and-roll player and a confident playmaker when defended by bigger, quicker players.
Another reason it's so important for his offensive traits to translate is that he’ll probably be vulnerable on defense. Though Winston did finish with 1.2 steals per game this season and rates above many of his peers in defensive effort and intelligence, he doesn’t have the agility or size to bother most point guards.
Fit
The Sixers haven’t had a stable backup point guard situation this year. Drafting Winston might be one way to rectify that, or at least to add another name into the mix.
If he’s available at pick No. 34 or No. 36, Winston is worth serious consideration. His game lines up well with what the Sixers need — sharp, intuitive playmaking along with an impressive track record as a three-point shooter. Winston’s defensive deficiencies would also be less problematic here than in most other possible destinations, since the Sixers are sixth in defensive rating and obviously a very large team.
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