What Do Marcus Smart's College Numbers Tell Us About His NBA
Future?  Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse more stories  One
of the most popular parlor games surrounding the NBA draft is
finding comparisons for this year's prospects. Is Andrew Wiggins
the next Kevin Durant or the next Corey Brewer? Which NBA player
represents the best-case scenario for Jabari Parker? Who
represents the worst-case scenario for Joel Embiid?  These types
of comparisons aren't about scouting as much as they are a
shorthand for true scouting. Comparisons can give you an idea
about the game of a certain player, but they can also leave out
a lot of information, missing nuance or inadvertently implying
things that simply aren't true.  Even with those flaws, looking
for draft-prospect comparisons is a useful tactic to begin
building context around a player's skills while starting to dig
into what type of player they might be in the NBA.  In an effort
to leverage these comparisons into their most useful form, I
borrowed a technique from