What Should Miami Expect With Houston's Jarace Walker?
Last March, Miami had the task of facing up against a plethora of NBA talent on their NCAA Tournament run. Most notably, they were able to limit now Houston Rocket Jabari Smith Jr. en route to an upset over the Auburn Tigers.
Coming up this Friday, Coach Jim Larrañaga and the Hurricanes will meet a highly regarded NBA Draft prospect in Houston's Jarace Walker. So who is this star freshman helping the Cougars to one of the best records in the nation?
Staring in high school at the illustrious IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL, Walker was a five-star recruit who had a plethora of offers from top programs. At the end of the day, Walker decided to join the Houston Cougars becoming their highest ranked recruit in school history.
He's continued to progress at the University of Houston, as the following video showcased.
I’m intrigued.
— V̷a̷t̷o̷r̷ (@VatorSports) March 19, 2023
Jarace Walker of the University of Houston showed off an interesting blend of size, speed, strength, defense, and shot blocking against Auburn. pic.twitter.com/RwKLRKM1qB
After falling short in the Elite 8 the previous season, Houston has been dominant all season and finds themselves as one of the two remaining number one seeds left in the tournament alongside Alabama.
While the stats don't jump off the board, Walker has been a vital piece to his team's success and will be an area of focus for the Canes this Friday night.
Touching on Walker as a player, he demonstrates the ability to score from all three levels of the court and defend at a high level. Shooting a pedestrian 34.7% from long range, Walker has shown the ability throughout the season to catch fire from beyond.
Below you can find a more detailed scouting report on Walker's overall game:
Evaluation
Walker demonstrates a wide-variety of skills that make him a problem to guard offensively and well as a stopper on the defensive end. In addition to his scoring at all three levels on the court, Walker possesses a solid handle for his size (6'8" 240 lbs) and great court vision.
However, Walker's handle is still a work in progress and shouldn't be viewed as a second ball-handler. While having a big build, he does at times fail to finish strong against contact. Additionally, while having a good shot stroke his release is rather slow and can suffer due to strong close outs.
On the defensive end, Walker has shown an ability to guard multiple positions but can suffer against quicker guards. Regardless, he has been a great rim protector and has shown the ability to recover and make stops. Furthermore, he finds himself in passing lines and converting in transition.
In terms of NBA players who compare to his style, imagine a mix of Boston's
Grant Williams
, New York's
Julius Randle
, and LA's
Jarred Vanderbilt
. All of these guys are proficient at ball-handling and are disruptive on defense.
At the end of the day, Walker will be someone Miami needs to hone in on. While Norchad Omier seems like he'd be the best fit to guard him, Omier will likely be fighting for boards against another Houston big man, 6-foot-7 and 230-pound J'Wan Roberts.
Miami will likely throw a combination of Jordan Miller and Wooga Poplar at Walker to pressure him on the dribble. That being stated, if Walker is able to get a good lane to the hoop, the Hurricanes will need to limit his passing lanes as that's where's he's at his best.
Despite a mediocre tournament so far, Miami will have their hands full defending Walker and the deep Houston Cougars roster.
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You can find Liam on Twitter @theleftyliam where he shares news on University of Miami basketball and football as well as opinions