The scouting world was able to see Malcolm Lee tested in a close basketball game sooner than they expected. Lee, a 6'5'' sophomore combo guard, didn't have a chance to log extended minutes in any relevant games last year, but that hasn't kept scouts from projecting him in the 2010 NBA lottery (Draftexpress has him listed as the 11th best prospect).
Watching Lee play, it doesn't take long to start comparing the similarities between two other combo guards who played off-ball in college for UCLA - Jrue Holiday and Russell Westbrook. Both became first round picks and now are on their way to being successful NBA players. Westbrook immediately came to the Thunder and took control of the PG spot, and while Holiday is less developed, he's drawing high marks from his head coach Eddie Jordan (Jordan is on record saying the Holiday will be the best guard ever to run the offense - hello Jason Kidd?).
A staple to Lee's predecessors was defense. It has only been one game, but its clear that Lee is following in their footsteps. He fought through screens, rebounded, and showed plenty of effort defensively. His long wingspan and quickness makes him tough on point guards and wing players alike. Ben Howland would agree with that, as he told the press that he has some "Westbrook" and "Afflalo" in him defensively.
On the offensive end he showed his versatility. When Anderson was running the point for the Bruins, Lee did a great job getting open. This is something that Holiday struggled with some last year - Lee looked more like Afflalo with his ability to get open. Lee was able to run off screens to set him up for mid-range jumpers and get in position for offensive rebounds (he had four in the game).
His 3-pt shot has good form and arc, but is still inconsistent (7-28 career). Holiday was much of the same way last year. In my unprofessional opinion, I'd rather have a bad looking stroke and make shots then the other way around. If you have perfect form and still struggle making threes there is only so much you can do. Its only a small sample size from his limited playing time the past two years, but he's also struggled shooting free throws (12-27 career). Anyway, after air-balling his first from behind the arc, he only managed to hit one three after taking eight total.
Often a UCLA guard's play-making ability can get unnoticed in their offense that likes to work the ball around the arc and into the post, but when Lee was asked to make plays; he came through. He made a few nice drives into the lane and converted an "and one" play. His ability to get off the ground quickly proved useful when he got offensive boards and finished among the trees before they could jump again after trying to get the initial rebound.
When talking about so-called intangibles, the guy is top-notch. He's the kind of guy who impacts the game way more than is shown on the stat sheet. Reading his draftexpress profile, they rave about him defensively and how he even played defense in high school all-star games. They also referred to his body being very frail a few years ago, but now, at least on TV, he looks like he's put in work to change that. He apparently had hurt his ankle in practice the day before the Cal State Fullerton game, but there was no question to whether he was going to play (although it didn't seem serious at all, it may have effected his play slightly). During the game, he fought through cramps - twice having to sit out after being lifted off the floor. That didn't stop him from playing in crunch time and taking big shots in the overtime periods (Howland even trusted him to run point in the 2OT as Anderson rested).
Overall, Lee is a guy who scouts will rave about while stat junkies question why he's rated so high. It may be cliche, but Lee is a guy who will do anything to win. He'll do whatever is asked of him while playing great defense. The NBA can't have enough of talent yet unselfish players like him. He's definitely going to be on the AlmostTournamentTime radar for the rest of the year as a potential lottery pick.
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