GreatLakeState
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- Apr 22, 2005
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From Draft Express:
For the fourth and final workout of DraftExpress' West Coast swing, we
visited the 360 Health Club in Los Angeles to watch a private workout
with likely top 5 pick Adam Morrison.
The workout was run by former UCLA legend Don MacLean, the all-time
leading scorer in UCLA history. Shooting drills were the name of the game
here. Morrison started by roaming around the perimeter shooting 18-20
footers from different spots on the floor, 50 to be precise, of which
Morrison knocked down 46 of or 92%. NBA 3-pointers followed, and over
the course of the workout Morrison shot 5/8, 5/8 and 5/8 from the left
corner in 3 separate shooting contests, 5/6, 5/10 and 5/8 from the left
corner-wing, 5/8, 5/5 and 5/5 from straightaway, 5/8, 5/11, and 5/7
from the right corner-wing, and then 5/8, 5/5 and 5/5 from the right
corner, for a total of 90/110 - or an absurd 82%. In NBA private
workouts, 50% is considered average for a wing player, 60% is considered
good, 70% is excellent and anything over 80% means you might have a
future in the NBA 3-point shooting contest. What's truly scary is that
Morrison looked quite disappointed in his effort for the most part when
he wasn't knocking every single shot down. Some players throw a hissy-
fit when their shot isn't falling in a workout, but Morrison just quietly
scolded himself with a confident aura of disappointment, knowing that he
is capable of better than that. What this tells us is that no one can
question the fact that Adam Morrison brings consistent NBA 3-point
range to the table right off the bat for the team that drafts him, and that
the 45% he shot from college 3 this year is a lot more indicative of his
perimeter shooting ability than the 31% he shot as a sophomore.
Morrison's shot is technically perfect from a mechanical perspective. In
the drills he shot it identically every time, with an incredibly quick release
and a super high release point that makes it extremely difficult to block
or alter when taking his size and the elevation he gets on his shot into
consideration.
Shooting 3-pointers while training by yourself in a gym is one thing, but
getting it off in a competitive setting is another matter altogether.
Morrison was matched up with a 6-10 and fairly long power forward in
Kibwe Trim who had the unenviable task of defending him. While some
might say that this is a matchup that Morrison would eat up all day long,
which is true, Trim actually did a very nice job of getting a hand in his
face on almost every single shot, moving his feet well, trying to anticipate
what he'll do next, using his body and strength to challenge him, and
generally doing everything humanly possible to stop him. And while it
might be hard for some to believe, Morrison actually shot the ball better
while being defended than he did when he was wide open, which tells you
a little bit about the type of competitor he is.
Morrison started most of the competitive 1 on 1 possessions from behind
the college 3-point line, and used an incredibly wide array of offensive
moves to put the ball in the basket nearly every time. His ball-handling
skills are phenomenal and he possesses a wonderful arsenal of shot-
fakes, jab-steps, hesitation moves, change of speeds and other crafty
moves that made him the toughest player to defend in college basketball
throughout his career. He mixed up his mid-range game with plenty of
slashing, taking the ball strong to the rim and finishing with either a
dunk, or a pretty floater or finger roll. When Trim would deny him the
angle to the basket, Morrison would calmly and quickly pull-up off the
dribble for an incredibly difficult fadeaway shot off one foot. The type of
crazy floaters from 14 feet out on the baseline, one handed step-
throughs off one foot from 18 feet and other ludicrous moves are things
that would get most NBA players benched immediately, but these are
things that Morrison practices everyday until he's reached perfection and
made it an art form. Those are shots he's made throughout his career and
he knows exactly what he's doing when he's taking and making them. His
footwork and touch are off the charts and he can release the ball with
consistency from a half dozen or more different release points, which
again makes him a nightmare to defend.
The best thing to come out of this workout might have been the work
MacLean and Morrison's strength and conditioning coaches have been
doing with his agility. Morrison has more bounce to his step right now
than we remember from college, possessing a quicker first step and
vertical leap and just much more overall mobility than we've really ever
seen. Much of this workout was focused on conditioning, and this is
something that Morrison himself says has been the biggest improvement
he's seen in his game over the past month or so. Full-court sprints,
baseline to baseline, plenty of dunking drills to work on his lower body
strengthâ€â€Morrison's body seemingly has no choice but to respond with
the work he's been doing here over the past month or so. He's still as
skinny as he was during the season, but according to him, the majority of
his work in the weight room will be done during the offseason, not before
his private workouts.
One thing that we certainly did not come away impressed with from this
workout was Morrison's defense. He is likely to put a lot more effort in on
this side of the floor in a real NBA workout rather than in front of us, but
with this being one of the top weaknesses we came to look at, Morrison
didn't do much change our mind here. Getting banged around in the post
by the much bigger and stronger Trim was more than understandable,
but he did not do a great job of getting out to contest the mid-range
shots he took on the perimeter.
All in all, though, Morrison backed up the hype and then some in this
workout. Watching him play in a setting like this, it's hard not to come
away with the feeling that his impact in the NBA will be almost immediate.
Granted he lands on the right team (Toronto, Charlotte or Portland, for
example), he has to be considered the early favorite for Rookie of the
Year honors. That isn't saying that he doesn't still have room to continue
to grow as a player and improve upon his weaknesses, though, as a new
dimension to his slashing game will be opened up as he improves on his
strength through work in the weight room.
Talking to him off the court, it was surprising to see how humble and
good natured he seems to be. From his on-court demeanor and swagger
there is a certain impression left that he might be quite an arrogant
person off the court as well. After having the chance to sit down with him
after the workout and conduct a candid and wide-ranging conversation
with him over lunch, that was not the impression at all. He seems to
realize that there will be an adjustment period from the NCAA to the NBA,
but is confident enough in himself and his work to know that he'll be fine.
Perhaps the most telling sign of his personality to come out of this entire
day came after we first met in the parking lot before we both walked in.
While I was signing in to the gym as a guest, he caught wind of a big-
screen TV on the other end of the room showing an old NBA finals series
from the 80's between the Celtics and Lakers. Morrison was in a trance
for a few moments as he watched the players on screen go at it. Already
done signing in, I stood next to him wondering which direction I needed
to walk towards. Morrison snapped out of it all of a sudden and smiled
sheepishly..."sorry, that happens to me sometimes."
For the fourth and final workout of DraftExpress' West Coast swing, we
visited the 360 Health Club in Los Angeles to watch a private workout
with likely top 5 pick Adam Morrison.
The workout was run by former UCLA legend Don MacLean, the all-time
leading scorer in UCLA history. Shooting drills were the name of the game
here. Morrison started by roaming around the perimeter shooting 18-20
footers from different spots on the floor, 50 to be precise, of which
Morrison knocked down 46 of or 92%. NBA 3-pointers followed, and over
the course of the workout Morrison shot 5/8, 5/8 and 5/8 from the left
corner in 3 separate shooting contests, 5/6, 5/10 and 5/8 from the left
corner-wing, 5/8, 5/5 and 5/5 from straightaway, 5/8, 5/11, and 5/7
from the right corner-wing, and then 5/8, 5/5 and 5/5 from the right
corner, for a total of 90/110 - or an absurd 82%. In NBA private
workouts, 50% is considered average for a wing player, 60% is considered
good, 70% is excellent and anything over 80% means you might have a
future in the NBA 3-point shooting contest. What's truly scary is that
Morrison looked quite disappointed in his effort for the most part when
he wasn't knocking every single shot down. Some players throw a hissy-
fit when their shot isn't falling in a workout, but Morrison just quietly
scolded himself with a confident aura of disappointment, knowing that he
is capable of better than that. What this tells us is that no one can
question the fact that Adam Morrison brings consistent NBA 3-point
range to the table right off the bat for the team that drafts him, and that
the 45% he shot from college 3 this year is a lot more indicative of his
perimeter shooting ability than the 31% he shot as a sophomore.
Morrison's shot is technically perfect from a mechanical perspective. In
the drills he shot it identically every time, with an incredibly quick release
and a super high release point that makes it extremely difficult to block
or alter when taking his size and the elevation he gets on his shot into
consideration.
Shooting 3-pointers while training by yourself in a gym is one thing, but
getting it off in a competitive setting is another matter altogether.
Morrison was matched up with a 6-10 and fairly long power forward in
Kibwe Trim who had the unenviable task of defending him. While some
might say that this is a matchup that Morrison would eat up all day long,
which is true, Trim actually did a very nice job of getting a hand in his
face on almost every single shot, moving his feet well, trying to anticipate
what he'll do next, using his body and strength to challenge him, and
generally doing everything humanly possible to stop him. And while it
might be hard for some to believe, Morrison actually shot the ball better
while being defended than he did when he was wide open, which tells you
a little bit about the type of competitor he is.
Morrison started most of the competitive 1 on 1 possessions from behind
the college 3-point line, and used an incredibly wide array of offensive
moves to put the ball in the basket nearly every time. His ball-handling
skills are phenomenal and he possesses a wonderful arsenal of shot-
fakes, jab-steps, hesitation moves, change of speeds and other crafty
moves that made him the toughest player to defend in college basketball
throughout his career. He mixed up his mid-range game with plenty of
slashing, taking the ball strong to the rim and finishing with either a
dunk, or a pretty floater or finger roll. When Trim would deny him the
angle to the basket, Morrison would calmly and quickly pull-up off the
dribble for an incredibly difficult fadeaway shot off one foot. The type of
crazy floaters from 14 feet out on the baseline, one handed step-
throughs off one foot from 18 feet and other ludicrous moves are things
that would get most NBA players benched immediately, but these are
things that Morrison practices everyday until he's reached perfection and
made it an art form. Those are shots he's made throughout his career and
he knows exactly what he's doing when he's taking and making them. His
footwork and touch are off the charts and he can release the ball with
consistency from a half dozen or more different release points, which
again makes him a nightmare to defend.
The best thing to come out of this workout might have been the work
MacLean and Morrison's strength and conditioning coaches have been
doing with his agility. Morrison has more bounce to his step right now
than we remember from college, possessing a quicker first step and
vertical leap and just much more overall mobility than we've really ever
seen. Much of this workout was focused on conditioning, and this is
something that Morrison himself says has been the biggest improvement
he's seen in his game over the past month or so. Full-court sprints,
baseline to baseline, plenty of dunking drills to work on his lower body
strengthâ€â€Morrison's body seemingly has no choice but to respond with
the work he's been doing here over the past month or so. He's still as
skinny as he was during the season, but according to him, the majority of
his work in the weight room will be done during the offseason, not before
his private workouts.
One thing that we certainly did not come away impressed with from this
workout was Morrison's defense. He is likely to put a lot more effort in on
this side of the floor in a real NBA workout rather than in front of us, but
with this being one of the top weaknesses we came to look at, Morrison
didn't do much change our mind here. Getting banged around in the post
by the much bigger and stronger Trim was more than understandable,
but he did not do a great job of getting out to contest the mid-range
shots he took on the perimeter.
All in all, though, Morrison backed up the hype and then some in this
workout. Watching him play in a setting like this, it's hard not to come
away with the feeling that his impact in the NBA will be almost immediate.
Granted he lands on the right team (Toronto, Charlotte or Portland, for
example), he has to be considered the early favorite for Rookie of the
Year honors. That isn't saying that he doesn't still have room to continue
to grow as a player and improve upon his weaknesses, though, as a new
dimension to his slashing game will be opened up as he improves on his
strength through work in the weight room.
Talking to him off the court, it was surprising to see how humble and
good natured he seems to be. From his on-court demeanor and swagger
there is a certain impression left that he might be quite an arrogant
person off the court as well. After having the chance to sit down with him
after the workout and conduct a candid and wide-ranging conversation
with him over lunch, that was not the impression at all. He seems to
realize that there will be an adjustment period from the NCAA to the NBA,
but is confident enough in himself and his work to know that he'll be fine.
Perhaps the most telling sign of his personality to come out of this entire
day came after we first met in the parking lot before we both walked in.
While I was signing in to the gym as a guest, he caught wind of a big-
screen TV on the other end of the room showing an old NBA finals series
from the 80's between the Celtics and Lakers. Morrison was in a trance
for a few moments as he watched the players on screen go at it. Already
done signing in, I stood next to him wondering which direction I needed
to walk towards. Morrison snapped out of it all of a sudden and smiled
sheepishly..."sorry, that happens to me sometimes."