Strengths

Advanced and developed frame for his height, and with a 6-foot-10 wingspan has some positional versatility across at least two positions defensively.

Explosive leaper when he can load up off two feet, and has some one-foot explosion in space.

Fairly dynamic and deceptive first step off the catch/triple threat (above average off a live dribble) with solid burst in straight-line situations.

Compact, repeatable shooting mechanics with little input and NBA range. Has a high enough release point to shoot over contests and gets good arc.

Possesses shot diversity with the ability to rise off the dribble and off some movement fluidly. Footwork is inconsistent but catches on the hop and the 1-2 at times.

Looks to have the threat of his shot off the dribble and off the catch, the former in face-up dribble-drive situations with a threatening jab step (and a quick transition from his handle to his release) and the latter that should open up attacking closeout opportunities where he uses quick rip-throughs.

Shows body control as a slasher and craft to finish with either hand, along with midair contortion adjustment ability (up-and-unders, etc.), and the agility in advantage situations off closeouts to finish around bodies.

Flashes off-ball movement ability fanning out to the corner on drives going in his direction, hard-planting and cutting backdoor when his man overextends/turns his head, and relocating to creases in the defense to improve passing angles.

Unselfish passer who will make hit-aheads in transition as well as open court skip passes and move the ball via the extra pass.

Flashes pick-and-roll passing hitting the dive man and occasional pocket passes and skips.

Quick laterally with plus foot speed defensively in space. Contains dribble penetration on an island and has enough length to contest most NBA backcourt players.

Will physically battle bigs on switches/fronts and against bigger wings.

Possesses plus speed to chase and track NBA wings around screens (floppy sets etc.), and is improving his ability to chase over the top of picks.

Flashes team defense ability off-ball seeing both man and ball and making rotations, including tagging the roll man and recovering.

Has sub-elite speed and range to close out quickly in recovery situations to shooters.

Weaknesses

Lacks purpose as a dribbler, self-creator and passer. Will aimlessly kill his dribble with driving lanes present, take pull-up jumpers on switches with better options available and a lot of his passes don’t bend the defense.

Not an anticipatory passer and doesn’t read the entire floor on drive-and-kicks or pick-and-rolls consistently.

Has a functional handle via basic hesitation, crossover, and in-and-out dribble moves, but is not an advanced ball-handler. Lacks shake in the half court without dynamic change-of-direction ability to create consistent separation, relying mostly on step-backs.

Palm-dribbler without plus control. How much can he handle the ball in traffic at the next level?

Stops short of getting all the way to the rim too often in advantage situation attacks and doesn’t get into the teeth of the defense in self-creation situations.

Average at best touch around the basket despite some ambidexterity.

Lacks plus instincts on both sides of the ball. Not a highly instinctual team defender and ball-watches too much. Average court sense on offense.

Late to react to off ball rotations. Prone to drifting and getting back cut.

Gets dislodged and knocked off his spots by bigger guards and wings trying to contain dribble penetration on drives or closeout attempts.

Athleticism doesn’t translate functionally on the glass.

Hard to see him becoming anything more than an average NBA defender. Lacks the size to switch onto bigger combo-forwards consistently and the instincts to be a dynamic weak side decision-maker. Best avenue is as a point of attack defender while still providing some switchability

Bottom Line

Working back into form from a right knee meniscus injury and struggling to acquire a defined offensive role with higher usage due to Miami’s guard-heavy rotation at the beginning of the season, we might not have seen Walker’s best this year. His NBA frame and athleticism, projectable shooting stroke, burgeoning craft as a finisher and agility on defense presents an appealing package. However, the fact that the light never fully went on for Walker is disconcerting. He looks better as a prospect when you look at the micro projectable components of his game such as his shooting and on-ball defense, but when you step back to look at his game in a macro-sense playing within a team construct especially contributing to winning, his lack of instincts on both ends and dicey on-ball creation dynamism paints a more skeptical picture. The reality is Walker is going to have to become a knockdown high volume 3-point shooter to justify him going in the lottery area, and while he has some sneaky Donovan Mitchell mechanics upside that isn’t buttressed by the stats (emphasis on only the shooting mechanics element here), that aspect of his game also isn’t a shoe-in. In the 20s range Walker has some two-way appeal, especially if he goes to the right development situation, but as a riskier shot-dependent prospect, he has a low floor.

— Cole Zwicker, 5.3.18

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