2014 NBA Draft: So Your Team Drafted Michigan's Nik Stauskus?

Nik Stauskus heads into Thursday Night’s NBA draft with much talk that he could be drafted in the top ten. Anyone who says they would have predicted that coming when Stauskus came to play college hoops from Canada, not even ranked in the top 100 out of high school. His quick release, dead-eye shooting and rapid development makes Stauskus incredibly appealing to any NBA franchise. So what does a team who’s looking at the Michigan product getting if they select him? Let’s take a look.

What Nik Stauskus is:

2014 NBA Draft Story Stream

BTP's breakdown of the Big Ten prospects in the 2014 NBA Draft

Stauskus first and foremost is a shooter. It’s what he is YouTube famous for, it’s what he lit up Big Ten gyms for the last two years doing and it is primarily what he will be selected for as an NBA prospect. However, Stauskus provides a lot more than just this.

First off, he has elite size at the shooting guard position. He is a full 6 foot 6 inches, nearly three full inches taller than MSU’s Gary Harris, according to the combine testing. He provides size in the backcourt no matter what position he plays as Stauskus can run point guard in a bind. Many don’t think of him in this combo guard type of way, but he showed the ability to make plays and distribute in the absence of Trey Burke on Michigan this past season.

Because of his size, Stauskus can rebound more than the average guard as he usually is guarding and being guarded by a smaller guard. However, his quick release allows him to get off shots against bigger players as well if he gets matched up on a switch. Stauskus used his reputation as a lights out shooter as a freshman to force many defenders to overcommit, allowing Nik to showcase his athleticism driving to the basket and either finishing or passing to an open shooter. He recently showed off a 40 inch vertical at one of his team workouts, a very impressive number that opened many eyes.

Lastly, as a team you’re getting Nik Stauskus the ultimate competitor. This kid wants the ball in his hands in the big moment and showed numerous times he has no quandaries about taking and making the big shots at the ends of games. The more hostile the environment, the more Stauskus came to play. He walks the very fine line between cocky and confident but in the NBA the line doesn’t really matter. If you don’t believe you can compete at the highest level then there is no need to step on the floor. Any team that drafts Stauskus will never to worry about this and he should be a good to great professional player before his first rookie contract is up.