bhawk wrote:Love the Stepien site and they nailed Brandon Clarke. I don't know what is up with their rankings... they literally say Riller is lottery material, post all of this crazy praise, and then they don't rank him! Even worse they rank Cole "not special" Anthony, Nico and Theo Maledon among other guards. Maybe they will update their rankings? I don't know. It could be that since Riller played in poor conference and played against poor competition, that they don't rank him as high? I will say though that the tape and praise looks legit.
GOK - Riller looks special - Right? Maybe not Doncic special, but I can certainly see the Lilliard comp. I also saw a Deron Williams comp but tough to remember Deron for me.
This is very accurate! And exactly the predominant reason that Riller does not get the top tier recognition that he would otherwise be getting.
However, why Riller isn’t projected as highly as he should be isn’t surprising. As a player, he combines two characteristics that NBA executives do not care for when evaluating prospects: he’s an older four-year player (not counting his redshirt season), and he played for a mid-major in a conference that most casual basketball fans have never heard before
Make no mistake, Riller is definitely legit! And
ABSOLUTELY IS SPECIAL with elite level potential.
Lillard comp- He's got ELITE burst, penetration, Really advanced handling abilities, And is super efficient and nearly unstoppable at scoring at the rim . Also his propensity to hit
Big Shots and make
Big game winning plays.
** In the above video, You see Dames' elite burst, Big shotmaking, unstoppable penetration, Sneaky athleticism ( dunking in traffic) Riller does the same things!
Shot Creation and finishingDeron Williams compMuch like Deron Williams, Riller is a very smart/ high IQ guard, That is very strong, Has ELITE ball handling skills that allow him to easily break down the opposing defenses, Get to the rim at will, And his Elite burst and solid strength allows him to get pretty much anywhere on the court he wants. Also in that he's very crafty with his dribble, and how he craftily uses his elite ballhandling skills and high IQ to manipulate the opposing defenses.
*** Here you see the very similar advanced ballhandling/ crossovers that Riller also uses to get separation on his shots or to any spots on the court.
Off the dribbleFred Van Vleet comp and CJ McCollum comp
are two other comps that he often gets too. For the Fred Van Vleet comp, It's due to his high basketball IQ, His elite craftiness in scoring and playmaking at/ around the rim, Also in his poise, His big shot making ability, and his consistency in making big plays, Both offensively and defensively that impact the outcome of the game.
Rillers' PassingAs it shows here, Riller can be an underrated passer/ playmaker.
Defensive potential As you can see, He has quick hands and good speed/ athleticism to get steals and deflections.
And for the CJ McCollum comp, It's primarily due to his being a very potent natural scorer, With an advanced ballhandling skillset, and the solid strength and athleticism to be a passable to maybe even plus defender IF he locks in!
The point is, Riller is easily one of the most mature, COMPLETE, NBA ready guards in the entire draft. He's skillset and abilities are quite elite in a few areas, And He's widely considered the most potent ISo scorer in the entire draft class. The only reason he's so severely overlooked and not already ranked as a top 10 lotto prospect, Is that he played at a small unknown school lacking any tangible national recognition. But the skills and elite attributes are definitely there, And the seemingly outlandish comps are in reality, Not really that far off. Riller is that guy that teams pass on due to his being a relative unknown " under the radar prospect. And one that most every team that passed on him will deeply regret for years to come. And they'll all question how they could've missed the signs?
Big Shot making
Similar to all those teams that passed on Lillard, McCollum, Even Van Vleet. Basically what makes him very special is his combination of many elite skills that make the game ultra easy for him to dominate. He's absolutely without question a lottery pick! And should be our number one guard target in a trade back scenario. Heck, I'd even strongly consider him at 10, rather than risk him not being available later.
