Keon Ellis: 2022 NBA Draft Scouting Report
The prototypical 3-and-D prospect, Ellis can make an impact early in his career with his underrated on-ball defense
Ah yes, the quintessential 3-and-D prospect mold.
A fad that is on its way out, the last decade has been marked by the easy explanation of valuable role players as possessing the ability to drill shots from the perimeter and hold their own on the other end. The game is shifting, more towards size on the wings and the combination of size and skill. Bigger guys are better shooters, drivers and passers than ever before.
Guarding up, therefore, is the new fad among 3-and-D prospects. The blurred lines between a 3 and a 4 require strength and physicality to defend both. Truly switchable defenders who guard 1 thru 4 need both that physique and lateral quickness.
Enter Keon Ellis from Alabama, a tremendously quick lateral defender with good length at 6’6”. He’s a 36% 3-point shooter with a very high volume of spot-up looks. Nate Oats, head coach of the Crimson Tide, placed Ellis in the corners around a very pro-based action and had him space the floor. The pro-level translation of his offensive role is clear, and checks the box of the typical 3-and-D role player.
The defense, surprisingly, is where our hangup is. Not in terms of impact: Ellis is actually quite good on-ball. But the versatility that typically comes from that position seems to be lacking a bit. For a guy who is already 22, Ellis is not very strong physically and doesn’t like to bang with bigger drivers. He was best-utilized on that side of the floor cross-matching against point guards, chasing them over screens and harassing them away from the rim.
There is clear value in what he brings to the table on that end. He isn’t an elite on-ball defender, but he’s very good and has a plus motor. Simply put, there are fewer wings who can get away with logging playoff minutes while not guarding the most physical guys in the league. So many NBA Playoff teams have elite-scoring wings: Jayson Tatum, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jimmy Butler, Luka Doncic, even Cade Cunningham or Anthony Edwards someday.
The litmus test for being a positive 3-and-D option is to match up well with those guys in a physical playoff series. What Ellis excels at is different than what is on that checklist.
The quick-twitch nature of Ellis’ defense could give some of those guys trouble. He could crowd their dribble, undercut their moves and has the quickness to beat them to spots. But as soon as the guy gets his momentum downhill, we’ve seen a lack of chest-up physicality from Ellis that is concerning.
The way to offset that is to think of Ellis as more of a 2-guard, a guy who doesn’t really play the combo spot but is allowed to cross-match onto point guards defensively in a non-switching scheme.