Draft Profile: Ben Bentil

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For our Celtics fan base in Rhode Island, the name Ben Bentil should ring a bell. The strong-bodied forward helped lead Providence College to the NCAA Tournament this spring, while posting a Big East-leading 21.1 points per game. The First-team All-Big East member was named the conference’s Most Improved Player, as he upped his scoring average by 14.7 PPG from his freshman to his sophomore campaign. Bentil has also proven to be one of the strongest players available at this year’s Draft; he recorded an NBA Combine-best 20 bench press reps at 185 pounds.

Possessions Scouted from 2015-16 Season:
OFFENSE: 18.7 percent of possessions
DEFENSE: 20.4 percent of possessions

Ben Bentil is blessed with a big, strong, NBA-ready body. He’s long and agile. He’s a very confident shooter with a quick release. He is a strong pick-and-pop threat. However, he relies too heavily on his jumper. I’d like to see him use his body and strength to his advantage; this should be a weapon, not an afterthought. He is capable of taking the ball off the dribble but the majority of his turnovers are a result of doing so. Bentil moves well off the ball and is even capable of running off of screens. He will become a respectable 3-point shooter once he cleans up his shot selection. Bentil has a nice little jump hook, but he must refine his back-to-the basket game. His go-to move – the ball-fake-and-drive – won’t work in the NBA. His repertoire must expand. Defensively, he knows the scouting report and has good feet. He shows good recovery speed on pick-and-rolls. He has good instincts and fights for position down low. He must learn to play with active hands at all times. When he does, he will be a very reliable defender. Bentil is an OK rebounder but is not overly active in boxing out. His reads on the ball are average, and he lacks supreme size and leaping ability.

Benjamin Bentil was born on March 25, 1995 in Ghana. He moved to the United States when he was 15 years old and attended St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, Del., where he played soccer and starred on the basketball team. He served as captain of the hoops squad during his junior and senior seasons (2013-14), and made the All-State team during both of those years. Scout ranked him No. 86 overall for the high school class of 2014, and Rivals ranked him No. 89. As a freshman at Providence College, Bentil started 23 of the Friars’ 34 games, while averaging 6.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 21.5 minutes per game. He began to come into his own toward the end of the season, as he posted five double-doubles during his last 12 games, including a 21-point, 10 rebound performance on March 4 against Seton Hall. Bentil then broke out during his sophomore campaign, and he and teammate Kris Dunn – a consensus top-10 pick in this year’s Draft – became one of the top one-two punches in college basketball. Bentil led the Big East in scoring (21.1 PPG), field goal makes (246) and free throw makes (194). He also finished fifth in the conference in field goal percentage (46.2 percent), sixth in free throw percentage (78.2 percent), fourth in rebounds per game (7.7) and third in win shares (3.8). He started 32 of Providence’s 35 games, scored in double-figures on 31 occasions, notched at least 20 points 21 times and tallied at least 30 points five times. Bentil recorded 31 points and a career-high-tying 13 rebounds on Jan. 24 during an overtime win on the home court of eventual NCAA champion Villanova. Two and a half weeks later, he scored a career-best 42 points during a double-overtime loss at Marquette. The effort included a 14-for-17 clip from the free throw line and 12 rebounds. He hovered right around his season averages during the Friars’ two-game NCAA tournament run, posting 20.0 PPG and 6.0 RPG. He played all 40 minutes of Providence’s first-round effort against USC, recording 19 points and nine rebounds during the 70-69 win. The Friars then lost in the second round to eventual NCAA runner-up UNC, despite a 50-point combined effort from Bentil and Dunn. Bentil earned a spot on the First-team All-Big East and was also named the conference’s Most Improved Player. He and Dunn declared for the Draft in late March within two days of each other.