Breaking down NC State’s Current Roster: Shooting Guard

We took a look at the roster so far and went position by position on our Podcast, looking at what NC State has and what they need. Here is our segment on SG:

Shooting guard, they have Christian Hammond. This is another guy, a 40% 3-point shooter who shot really well from inside the arc. He’s 6’4″, big, and Justin Gainey is going to know this guy well, so I feel very confident about Hammond. You have the fact that Herb Sendek was his coach at Santa Clara. Gainey played for Herb Sendek, so you can believe that Gainey was speaking to Sendek as this was going on. He was probably getting very good feedback from Sendek. He’s not going to lie to his former player.

So I feel comfortable with him at the two guard. I think State fans are going to like him. He’s going to be a scorer, but he’s another guy that’s not super athletic. He doesn’t get to the rim, he doesn’t draw a ton of fouls. He’s kind of a pull-up jumper guy, floater guy. He can kind of back down other guards, and he has this little floater over the top that he converts at a really high level. So he’s going to be a good scorer, and NC State should feel real confident about having him out there.

As for a backup at shooting guard, it’s the same thing I’m talking about with point guard. If you land a guy like Darius Adams, and they did, it doesn’t have to be Adams specifically, but a guy like that who can give you a little bit more offense at the rim, get in the lane, get a little bit deeper, and score over top of people.

I hesitate to say that you really want that guy playing a lot of minutes, but I just feel like that is a skill set that you really need to have on your roster. You can’t depend too much on finesse and skill. Athleticism and size has a place as well, and I think you need to mix that in accordingly.

Update after Adams’ Commitment: Last night, Maryland guard Darius Adams committed to NC State. You can read a lot more about him in the linked article here, but what does this addition do to the SG position?

I think that’s a little too early to be determined. Gainey always had a thing for Adams. He recruited him hard to Tennessee, and with this addition, you can see that his infatuation with his skillset wasn’t diminished by his inefficiency at Maryland last season. I’m not sure where he sees Adams slotting in. Does he see him as a primary ball handler when he’s in the game, or does he want to move him off the ball and try to take away some of the decision-making responsibilities? I think once we get to know Adams a little more, we’ll figure that out. He’s got the measurables to be a superstar, but he’s not a finished product, and throwing him into the fire at Maryland, who plays in the Big Ten, which is one of the toughest leagues out there, and giving him a primary ball handler role with a 26% usage rate…you’re just asking for failure. I think Gainey has a plan for him, and I think it might have him as a true combo guard coming off the bench next season.

Christian Hammond Highlights: