2015 NBA Draft: Can Nebraska's Terran Petteway Land In The NBA?

Terran Petteway was the unquestioned leader of his team during his time at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers often were only as successful as their star, and unfortunately for Petteway, life got in the the this past season. Terran's percentages from the field and the line dropped and it seemed as if the driving force behind last year's emergence of Nebrasketball was trying to do too much. Then during a press conference in February we found out that his mother was battling cancer back in Texas. There is no doubt in my mind that this affected his game. Sadly, Joetta Petteway lost her battle with cancer after the season in April, but you can bet Terran is going to honor his mom and play his heart out everywhere he plays.

With Petteway, you get an aggressive scorer who knows how to draw contact. His stats were better last year, but Petteway still managed to finish fourth in scoring average in the Big Ten this season. Sometimes being leaned on so heavily can take a toll on a player and you can expect Petteway to do more with less as a professional. In college, Petteway was a high volume shooter and the first option on offense on a team without much firepower on offense. He isn't afraid to take any shot, but one area he has improved lately has been his distributing. A lot of his stats dipped this past year during a down season for Nebraska, but his assist number improved significantly from 1.6 to 2.8 per game.

Terran plays solid defense and puts in an impressive amount of effort for a guy who does so much on the other end of the court. Professionally, I can see him becoming more well-known for his defensive prowess since he won't be used as often on offense. He has a wingspan of 6'11", which allows him to be disruptive on and off the ball as a defender. He was able to average 1.1 steals per game as a senior.

Petteway brings energy and aggressiveness to a team. Few can match his consistent desire on every play. He is a great teammate and the kind of guy you want in your locker room and on your sidelines, even when he isn't playing. Terran played a bit of a superstar role in Nebraska's offense, but everyone I've ever heard talk about him raves about how much of a team-first guy he is and how he is loved by his teammates and coaches alike. Petteway should be ready to fulfill whatever role his team needs him to play. Even if he never leaves the bench you can expect him to make his team better with energy and hard work in practice.

At Nebraska he was the cornerstone of his team, but in the NBA Petteway has all the tools be a great role player. He likely won't ever be an NBA All-Star, and yet a willingness to do yeoman's work could land him a nice long career as a professional. Petteway brings a good set of tools on offense and defense and an incredible motor to the game of basketball. Plus, as an added bonus, you get an awesome dreadlock/headband combo. What's not to like?