Big men nearly always develop at a slower rate than their smaller, more nimble guard counterparts. However, the development still must show signs of progress for scouts and college coaches to be sold on an otherwise impressive prospect.
That is what has always impressed people with Chase Jeter, the 6-foot-10 Duke signee. He has yet to have a year go by where he didn’t make some sort of quantum leap with regards to his game.
Name: Chase Jeter
Height: 6’10
Position: Center
Ranking: Five-star, No. 16 overall
Strengths: Let’s start with Jeter’s relentless knack for rebounding. On both ends, he sees the ball come off of the rim very well, and flashes a cerebral degree of anticipation for its trajectory. He may not be a boxing out machine, but his length, anticipation and quick first jump project him to be a very high level rebounder at Duke and as a professional, once he reaches that level. With the ball in his hands, Jeter has consistently improved his ability to score in the post throughout his career, and now can showcase a consistent jump hook, though his off-hand could still use fine-tuning. In the open court, Jeter can be a very effective rim runner and use his fluid athleticism to finish the primary or secondary break. He’s also very, very young for his class–he won’t turn 18 until September of this year–so his development is very much ahead of schedule as he fills out his frame.
Areas to Improve: Jeter’s frame still has a long way to go, as he still gets pushed around by more physically mature big men. That flashes its ugly head on both ends, but especially defensively. While he’s not quite thick enough to bang bodies on the block consistently, he’s also not laterally quick enough to stay with more active and athletic power forwards who might step out onto the perimeter from time to time. For his size, he’s not a consistent enough rim protector either, something that could seriously make up for his other shortcomings as a defender. Another thing we’d like to see from him is an increased degree of mental toughness. He’s not going to be the biggest guy on the court, but he has to be the toughest with his frame, and that mentality isn’t there at the moment.
