Although the
height and weight measurements from the NBA draft combine are interesting and relevant, NBA general managers and scouts also spend a lotof time dissecting the results of the NBA physical testing.
For the sixth straight year, Insider has obtained this confidential report from a league source.
Take these numbers with a grain of salt, as no one gets drafted solely on his test scores. But teams do take these reports seriously. Most scoutingdepartments believe that there are minimum athletic hurdles that players need to clear to show they can be successful in the NBA. Although the "bestathlete in the draft" has never been the best player in the draft, this is the first objective testing that we have on the top prospects.
What are the drills?
Players are asked to bench-press 185 pounds as many times as they can, test their vertical jump in two ways (no step and maximum) and run several drills tomeasure speed and lateral quickness.
Syracuse's
JonnyFlynn shocked everyone by recording the biggest maximum vertical with an impressive 40 inches. He was the only player to crack the 40-inch mark.(Last year, six players did.) Four other players scored 38 or more inches in the maximum vertical jump: France's
Rodrigue Beaubois (39), USC's
DeMar DeRozan (38.5),Arizona's
ChaseBudinger (38.5) and UNC's
Wayne Ellington (3
. Meanwhile, Gonzaga's
Austin Daye (2
andMaryland's
GreivisVasquez (26.5) had the two worst scores in the camp.
Notre Dame's
LukeHarangody and Oklahoma's
Blake Griffin tested as the strongest athletes in the camp. Harangody bench-pressed 185 pounds 23 times, and Griffin did 22 reps. Oneother player, Xavier's
DerrickBrown, got the bar up 20 times. Daye followed in Kevin Durant's footsteps by being unable to lift the bar once. Vasquez was able to get the barup only once, and Israel's
OmriCasspi got the bar up only twice.
In the lane-agility test, Miami's
Jack McClinton had the best score, finishing the drill in 10.44 seconds. UCLA's
Darren Collison was a closesecond at 10.45 seconds. Arizona's
Jordan Hill finished dead last with a score of 12.23 seconds. Daye wasn't much ahead of him at 12.11 seconds.
In the three-quarter-court sprints, Florida State's
Toney Douglas led the way with ablinding 3.03-second run.
DamionJames was second at 3.09, and Daye was last at 3.55.
Here's a look at how each player in the draft performed in every category:
[h4]NBA draft combine results[/h4]
| | | | | | | |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19097Jeff Adrien, UConn | 27½" | 31½" | 11-3 | 11-7 | 16 | 11.34 | 3.32 |
| Rodrigue Beaubois, France | 29½" | 39" | 10-9½ | 11-7 | 3 | 10.49 | 3.15 |
DeJuan Blair,
Pittsburgh | 26" | 33" | 11-½ | 11-7½ | 18 | 11.5 | 3.45 |
| Derrick Brown, Xavier | 30½" | 35½" | 11-6 | 11-11 | 20 | 11.26 | 3.13 |
| Chase Budinger, Arizona | 29½" | 38½" | 10-10½ | 11-7½ | 10 | 11.08 | 3.24 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19277DeMarre Carroll, Missouri | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Omri Casspi, Israel | 25½" | 32½" | 11 | 11-7 | 2 | 11.15 | 3.28 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19336Dionte Christmas, Temple | 27" | 33½" | 10-9½ | 11-4 | 3 | 10.83 | 3.21 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19050Earl Clark, Louisville | 28½" | 33" | 11-6 | 11-10½ | 5 | 11.17 | 3.35 |
| Darren Collison, UCLA | 30½" | 33½" | 10-7 | 10-10 | 9 | 10.45 | 3.1 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19347Dante Cunningham, Villanova | 28" | 35" | 11-2½ | 11-9½ | 18 | 11.18 | 3.26 |
| Stephen Curry, Davidson | 29½" | 35½" | 10-6½ | 11-½ | 10 | 11.07 | 3.28 |
| Austin Daye, Gonzaga | 25" | 28" | 11-3 | 11-6 | 0 | 12.11 | 3.5 |
| DeMar DeRozan, USC | 29" | 38½" | 10-11½ | 11-9 | 5 | 11.88 | 3.31 |
Toney Douglas,
Florida State | 28" | 32½" | 10-5½ | 10-10 | 15 | 10.63 | 3.03 |
Wayne Ellington,
North Carolina | 31½" | 38" | 10-11½ | 11-6 | 13 | 11.14 | 3.2 |
| Tyreke Evans, Memphis | 28½" | 34" | 11-½ | 11-6 | 7 | 11.81 | 3.17 |
| Jonny Flynn, Syracuse | 33" | 40" | 10-8½ | 11-3½ | 10 | 10.86 | 3.23 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19121Taj Gibson, USC | 25½" | 30" | 11-2½ | 11-7 | 12 | 11.56 | 3.41 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19232Danny Green,
North Carolina | 29" | 33" | 11 | 11-4 | 15 | 11.3 | 3.3 |
| Blake Griffin, Oklahoma | 32" | 35½" | 11-5 | 11-8½ | 22 | 10.95 | 3.28 |
Tyler Hansbrough,
North Carolina | 27½" | 34" | 11-1½ | 11-8 | 18 | 11.12 | 3.27 |
Luke Harangody,
Notre Dame | 27" | 31" | 11-1 | 11-5 | 23 | 11.15 | 3.33 |
James Harden,
Arizona State | 31½" | 37" | 11-3 | 11-8½ | 17 | 11.1 | 3.13 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?playerId=19028&draftyear=2009Gerald Henderson, Duke | 31½" | 35" | 11-2 | 11-5½ | 8 | 11.17 | 3.14 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19080Josh Heytvelt, Gonzaga | 28½" | 34" | 11-4½ | 11-10 | 15 | 11.67 | 3.38 |
| Jordan Hill, Arizona | 31" | 35" | 11-7 | 11-11 | 11 | 12.23 | 3.3 |
| Jrue Holiday, UCLA | 28½" | 34" | 10-9 | 11-2½ | 6 | 10.64 | 3.21 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19282Joe Ingles, Australia | 26" | 31" | 10-11 | 11-4 | 3 | 10.66 | 3.3 |
| Damion James, Texas | 30" | 37" | 11-4 | 11-11 | 14 | 11.23 | 3.09 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19309James Johnson,
Wake Forest | 30½" | 35" | 11-4 | 11-8½ | 18 | 11.21 | 3.23 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19171Gani Lawal,
Georgia Tech | 30" | 34½" | 11-4 | 11-8½ | 17 | 11.93 | 3.34 |
Ty Lawson,
North Carolina | 29" | 36½" | 10-3½ | 10-11 | 14 | 10.98 | 3.12 |
| Eric Maynor, VCU | 28½" | 31½" | 10-5½ | 10-8½ | 8 | 10.78 | 3.19 |
| Jack McClinton, Miami | 30" | 36½" | 10-6 | 11-½ | 13 | 10.44 | 3.21 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19281Jerel McNeal, Marquette | 31½" | 36½" | 10-11 | 11-4 | 10 | 10.61 | 3.25 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19339Jodie Meeks, Kentucky | 28½" | 37" | 10-6½ | 11-3 | 14 | 10.96 | 3.1 |
Patrick Mills,
Saint Mary's | 27½" | 33" | 10-2½ | 10-8 | 8 | 10.87 | 3.1 |
| B.J. Mullens, Ohio State | 28½" | 32½" | 11-7½ | 11-11½ | 10 | 11.1 | 3.45 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19164Jeff Pendergraph, Arizona State | 31" | 35" | 11-6 | 11-10 | 15 | 11.98 | 3.14 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19039A.J. Price, UConn | 26" | 31" | 10-3 | 10-8 | 11 | 10.99 | 3.22 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19093Tyler Smith, Tennessee | 29" | 33½" | 11-1½ | 11-6 | 10 | 10.69 | 3.24 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19172DaJuan Summers, Georgetown | 29½" | 34½" | 11-4 | 11-9 | 15 | 10.94 | 3.17 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?playerId=19353&draftyear=2009Jermaine Taylor,
Central Florida | 34" | 37½" | 11-3 | 11-6½ | 16 | 11.54 | 3.32 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19334Jeff Teague,
Wake Forest | 30½" | 36½" | 10-9 | 11-3 | 13 | 11.05 | 3.18 |
| Hasheem Thabeet, UConn | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19351Marcus Thornton, LSU | 31" | 33" | 10-0 | 11 | 14 | 10.73 | 3.28 |
| Greivis Vasquez, Maryland | 24½" | 28" | 10-5½ | 10-9 | 1 | 11.13 | 3.48 |
| http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19220Terrence Williams, Louisville | 30½" | 37" | 11-2 | 11-8½ | 9 | 11.15 | 3.18 |
http://insider.espn.go.com/nbadraft/draft/tracker/player?draftyear=2009&playerId=19234Sam Young,
Pittsburgh | 27½" | 33" | 11-1 | 11-6½ | N/A | 11.47 | 3.45 |
[th=""]
Player
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No-Step Vertical Jump
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Max. Vertical Jump
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No-Step Jump Height
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Max. Jump Height
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Bench Press, 185 lbs
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Lane-
Agility Drill
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3/4-Court Sprint
[/th]
[h3]Winners[/h3]
• Beaubois probably put up the best numbers across the board, as he showed great leaping ability, speed and quickness.
• Flynn confirmed why he has been such a hot name, as his scores were strong across the board.
• Arizona State's James Harden also proved to be a pretty impressive athlete. His numbers didn't quite measure up to what Brandon Roy did a fewyears ago, but he bested Roy in the lateral quickness and sprint drills. He's definitely not the bad athlete a number of NBA teams thought he was.
Harden also measures up fairly close to Roy, who is only an inch taller. Harden has a longer wingspan and bested Roy in standing reach by two and a halfinches.
• The same holds true for UNC's Tyler Hansbrough, who put up better numbers than many of the bigs who were considered more athletic in college (read:Louisville's Earl Clark, USC's Taj Gibson and Gonzaga's Josh Heytvelt). In fact, his numbers look better than those of Jordan Hill of Arizona inevery area but vertical jump.
• The draft's top prospect, Blake Griffin, represented. His 35.5-inch vertical was far from historic but it put him on par with Amare Stoudemire. Hislane-agility drill was excellent, putting him in the top 10 percent for power forwards. Others with similar scores include David Lee and Danny Granger.
His sprint score was in the middle of the pack and put him in the same league as Nick Collison and Mike Sweetney and just hundreds of a second offStoudemire. However, a sore back may have contributed to this.
Overall, Griffin's numbers were good, but not great. But when you watch him in a game, you can tell he's still going to be a monster.
[h3]Losers[/h3]
• Daye looked great in drills, but he was terrible in the athletic testing. However, I wouldn't read too much into it; Kevin Durant looked terrible twoyears ago but turned out OK.
• DeRozan was supposed to be one of the best athletes in the draft. Although his vertical jump score was impressive, what's up with those very poorlane-agility and sprint scores?
• Memphis' Tyreke Evans didn't really help himself, either. His vertical jump score was decent, but his lane-agility test was just awful for someonewho's supposed to be a point guard in the pros. As his sprint score shows, he's great going north and south. But when he has to move side-to-side? Ugh.Of course, Derrick Rose's score of 11.69 last year wasn't much better, and he turned out OK.
[h3]Other[/h3]
• Lots has been made about the speed of this year's point guards, with many teams debating whether Darren Collison, Patrick Mills or Ty Lawson wouldtake the prize in the three-quarter-court sprint. None of them did.
Toney Douglas had the fastest time at 3.03 seconds. Collison and Mills were tied for second at 3.1, Lawson was fourth at 3.12, Beaubois was fifth at 3.15,Evans was sixth at 3.17, Jeff Teague was seventh at 3.18, Eric Maynor was ninth at 3.19 and Jrue Holiday was 10th at 3.21. Surprisingly, Flynn didn't makethe top 10.
How do those numbers rate historically? Douglas had the sixth-best time in combine history. The most successful NBA player to beat him is Nate Robinson at2.96 seconds. The 3.1 score of Collison and Mills puts them on par with Kirk Hinrich, Jay Williams and Russell Westbrook.
• UCLA's Jrue Holiday often gets compared to his teammate Russell Westbrook. How did they fare in the athletic category?
Westbrook measured 36.5 inches on his vertical jump, while Holiday hit 34 inches. Westbrook also got the best of Holiday in the sprint, measuring a blazing3.08 seconds to Holiday's solid 3.23 seconds. Westbrook also benched the 185-pound bar 12 times to Holiday's six times.
However, Holiday bested Westbrook on the lane-agility drill with a pretty impressive 10.64-second score. Westbrook's score was 10.98 seconds.
Overall, it's pretty clear that Westbrook is a better athlete, but Holiday isn't too shabby either.
• Want a good NBA comparison for DeJuan Blair? Try the Warriors' Ronny Turiaf. Turiaf is taller, but both players have the same standing reach. Theyalso have the same lane-agility score, same vertical jump and similar sprint and bench-press scores
