Duke Blue Devil Derryck Thornton at the Pangos All American Camp exclusive interview

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• published: 12 Jun 2015
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Derryck Thornton Class of 2016 (Point Guard/6’1 160lbs) Derryck Thornton is a top flight high school point guard with skills that can carry him a long way. His court awareness and willingness to compete at a high level every possession separates him from mostly every other point guard in the country. Thornton’s best attribute comes with his creative dribbling and knack for getting everyone on his team a comfortable shot. He can get in the teeth of the defense with excellent variations of speed to catch his defenders off balance. He handles ball pressure very well dribbling with either hand and keeping his head up the floor. His quickness allows him to get a step on defenders and find pockets to drop passes for bigs and slashers in the lane. His ability to dribble in traffic is elite as he can continue to make decisions off the dribble during congestion and defenders with active hands. Thornton has high ability to make passes with either hand off the dribble while seeing teammates out of his peripheral vision. Derryck’s ability to escape trouble with his dribble is exceptional (especially in tight spaces). He has a great command of his dribble in half court settings. He handles the ball very well in the pick and roll as he finds angles in the defense to make a play for him or a teammate. Derryck keeps his head up and his dribble alive as he comes off the pick and roll while orchestrating what he sees developing. Thornton’s biggest weakness is finishing in traffic and through contact at the rim. His slight frame can be mostly attributed to the lack of consistency when finishing. Finishing consistently in traffic for him will improve through growth and commitment to getting stronger in the weight room. Shooting : Derryck has a very smooth jumpshot with fundamental mechanics. He seems most comfortable pulling up from 15-17 feet. He has a quick and confident release but needs to have slightly more arch with explosion off the floor. Derryck can knock down shots as a threat from the perimeter but he needs to become more consistent. Thornton seems to shoot better coming off the dribble to his right as he uses his quickness to make defenders backpedal. He is capable of shooting the three ball but it’s not a big part of his game. His confidence is not shaken by missed shots as he will take open shots coming off the pick and roll. He can get his shot off whenever he wants to but looks more to get his teammates involved. Derryck’s free throw shooting is slightly above average but it will need to improve because of the amount of time the ball is in his hands. Perimeter Defense (On/Off Ball): Derryck has very quick feet and competes on the defensive end. This is vital because the point guard is usually the leader and the person to set the tone, which he does well. He picks up the ball as soon as it is inbounded and makes his presence felt the entire length of the court. His stamina to stay disruptive for consecutive possessions at a time is impressive as he makes it tough to thoroughly initiate opposing teams’ offense. He has active hands and makes opposing players really prove they can handle the basketball. When Derryck is off the ball he anticipates very well as he understands other team’s tendencies. He tends to get steals and deflections because of his good anticipation and overall high basketball IQ on defense. He fights through screens consistently; however he can get caught up in screens when the picker is physical. His ability to move his feet quickly allows him to push up on ball handlers when they try to use screens and try to be disruptive. Thornton does a good job at seeing the ball and his man which also allows him to shoot through passing lanes. He has a high motor for defense and really takes pride in that end of the court. Intangibles/Summary Derryck Thornton is clearly one of the top guards in the country as he stands out with strong floor presence. Thornton competes at a high level on both ends which could be his most impressive attribute. Derryck is a slightly above average athlete but has top level speed and quickness with the basketball. He can definitely improve his overall athleticism by getting in the weight room which I’m sure he will. His ball handling ability is second to none and really allows him to orchestrate any offense his is running. He makes it very comfortable to play alongside him because of his ability to make everybody else’s job easier. He is a true floor leader and gets players to follow his lead by his contagious competitive spirit. The main area of improvement for Derryck is continuing to develop physically. He really has to focus on increasing his physicality so that he can absorb contact and finish plays at a higher rate. Derryck is packed with potential as one of the premier point guards in the country.