Top Performance Series: Keyonte George

Breaking down the freshman guards 32-point performance vs West Virginia in January.

The idea behind the top performance series is to go back and watch the best, or one of the best, box score games of each prospect's season to see how they looked when they were performing at their highest individual level and what that might show us about their ceiling as a prospect.

Baylor freshman guard, Keyonte George, had an inconsistent season in Waco but the highs were really high and none more so than this January game vs West Virginia on the road where he put up 32 points on 18 field goal attempts.

Offense

You simply can not deny the nuclear scoring ability of the 6-foot-4 guard and his ability to do so in a multitude of ways. In the first five minutes alone he used the refusal of a ball screen to attack the rim and get to the free throw line, knock down a ridiculous mid range jump shot and hit a catch and shoot 3-point shot running off a baseline stagger.

Those three possessions alone show the high scoring ceiling that there is for George and the mid range make in particular also highlighted his ability in isolation with an interesting handle and really nice start and stop ability.

The versatility with the 3-point shot making continued throughout the game as he would knock down five total including in isolation, using a ball screen and effectively using a shot fake to get a clean look in a catch and shoot situation.

The major concern with the scoring package is the inconsistency and what looks to be a reliance on being a high volume attempt offensive player to get, and stay, in rhythm. Scoring was not all the IMG Academy alum showed on the offensive end of the court, though.

He had some really nice passing flashes including a perfectly on time and on target pick-and-roll possession and a beautiful lob pass in the second half.

George also possesses some sneaky good vertical pop and this combined with his willingness to attack the offensive boards makes for an intriguing package to be impactful on the offensive boards.

Defense

George’s point of attack perimeter defense was very intriguing coming into college and he continued to show those same flashes during his freshman season and in this game. While he lacks the same type of versatility as other prospects due to his size he is a sturdy 6-foot-4 and projects to at least be able defend both backcourt positions.

The other aspects of his defensive game is a little tougher to judge because of the way Baylor plays defense and how much zone they play overall.

George was extremely impactful on the defensive boards in this game which was an added value compared to the season numbers. One can’t help but wonder if his overall offensive involvement in this particular game helped increase that engagement.

The off the ball defense was a little bit of a mixed bag but usually is for college freshmen. He had some really nice low man and x-out rotations but could also be found out of position at times.

One area of concern was how prone the 19-year-old was to run right into, and die, on screens. Yes, Baylor is switching many of these but you still want to be aware of the screen and not get completely engulfed by it where you are eliminated from the action.

Overall, George is a prospect that has shown some real potential as a defender and there is no doubt that is still there.

Ceiling

Offensive No. 2 scoring option combined with good perimeter point of attack defense.

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