Meet draft prospect Scottie Barnes
Andy Katz sits down with Florida State's Scottie Barnes ahead of the 2021 NBA Draft.
Draft Home | Draft Board | Teams | Prospects
About Scottie Barnes
• Scottie Barnes is a long, chiseled point-forward whose defensive versatility and unselfishness stood out at Florida State. Widely regarded as one of the top-10 prospects in the high school class of 2020, Barnes emerged as a prospect as an underclassman at the NSU University School (FL), was a key cog on the United States teams that won gold medals at the 2017 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, 2018 FIBA U17 World Championship, and 2019 FIBA U19 World Championship, and capped his prep career at Montverde Academy (FL) with McDonald’s All-American honors. Heading to Florida State to play for Head Coach Leonard Hamilton, Barnes carved out a prominent role in the Seminoles platoon-style, position-less system. Playing primarily point guard as a freshman, the Florida native averaged 10.3 points, 4 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game to earn ACC Rookie and Sixth Man of the Year honors while helping his team to a Sweet Sixteen appearance.
• Listed at 6-foot-8 with an impressive 225-pound frame to go along with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Barnes has good size for a small-ball center let alone a primary ball handler or even a wing. A solid all-around athlete with a good motor, his combination of length and energy stood out at times at the college level.
• An instinctual player with impressive passing ability for his size, Barnes served a primary ball handler off the bench for the Seminoles on the offensive end. Looking to push the pace and put pressure on the rim, he showed the ability to finish emphatically in the open floor, exploit his size against smaller guards, and has a natural unselfishness to his game. Doing his best to create for others and making hustle plays off the ball, Barnes has room to grow as a jump shooter to maximize his otherwise impressive versatility.
• An enthusiastic defender with the tools to guard multiple positions, Barnes was a natural fit in Florida State’s switch-heavy system. Able to slide with some guards and use his length to contest shots inside at the college level, he has the ingredients to contribute in a variety of ways at the next level defensively.
Advanced Stats
• One of the most unique players in college basketball last season, Barnes played primarily point guard as a freshman at Florida State. Generating nearly a third of his possessions in Transition while scoring 1.05 points per transition possession [56th percentile], Barnes showed the ability to grab and go off the glass and created as many shots for others as he attempted himself in the open floor. He is a long-strider in space who can play above the rim impressively with a head of stream, but will give the ball up early whenever the opportunity presents itself.
• In the half court, Barnes made his best contributions finding the open man. Possessing solid vision and the size to deliver some passes smaller guards cannot operating out of the pick and roll, he posted an impressive 2.8 assist-to-turnover ratio in the half court.
• Barnes found some success putting pressure on the rim when looking for his own shot against a set defense. With two-thirds of his shots coming inside, he averaged 1.29 points per finishing opportunity inside [76th percentile] and 0.61 points per floater [29th percentile] as he showed the ability to bully smaller guards off the dribble but has room to improve his touch away from the rim to score when he cannot create angles in close.
• Averaging 0.68 points per jump shot in the half court [18th percentile], Barnes still has significant room to grow as a jump shooter — particularly off the dribble
Defensive Analysis
• Making use of his energy at the top of Florida State’s press but still chipping in on the glass and in the passing lanes, Barnes did a lot of little things defensively last season as his tools and intensity give him intriguing versatility.
• Allowing 0.56 points per one-on-one possession [74th percentile], Barnes more than held his own as an individual defender at the college level. Willing to get low and slide on the perimeter, he had some very impressive moments being disruptive at the point of attack.
— Profile by Synergy Sports
