2019 NBA Draft: Breaking down R.J. Barrett live at the Pacific Rim Basketball Classic

2018 Gatorade National Player of the Year R.J. Barrett lived up to the hype in the second game of the Pacific Rim Basketball Classic. He led Canada to a win over China in Victoria, British Columbia.

If anyone in the Save-On-Foods arena in Victoria did not know of R.J. Barrett prior to the Pacific Rim Basketball Classic, they noticed him by the end of warm-ups.

The Duke-commit threw down some extravagant slams in the layup lines.

Barrett was no less impressive once the game started, finishing with 21 points on 5 for 10 shooting. While the 18-year-old obviously has room for improvement in some areas, he left a lot to be hopeful about.

Barrett’s biggest strength is his physical profile. He is a 6-foot-6 high-level athlete with a 6-foot-10 wingspan. He was handful for the Chinese guards to deal with as a point-of-attack defender. Barrett showed he is deceptively strong when switched onto the 6-foot-10, 250 pound Hanlin Tao. Tao was able to move Barrett’s teammate Dwight Powell in the post, but had trouble moving Barrett. He clearly has the potential to switch 1 through 4 at an NBA level.

Barrett also thrived as an off-ball defender. Twice he rotated from the weak side corner to attempt to take a charge under the rim. He is always alert and in the play on defense no matter who he is guarding.

While he usually made the right decision on defense, his technique needed improvement. Barrett over-committed on some closeouts and allowed a few layups. He probably did not have to worry about proper footwork as much at Monteverde Academy, given how much bigger and faster he was than most of his opponents. Hopefully better positioning will come soon.

Barrett displayed a similar blend of strengths and weaknesses on offense. He was able to think the game at a high level, but sometimes the execution fell short. More than once, China played off him from 3, and he did not do much with the ball. At one point, he took a dribble in and shot a long two. It looked rigid and mechanical.

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He saw the floor well from a standstill and made some nice passes, but his vision devolved when he attacked. He looked out of control on most drives and occasionally developed tunnel vision. 

He racked up three of his five assists off of drives, but they were all obvious reads, and he was not on balance when he made any of the passes. On one of them, he lost the ball and saved it out of bounds to Nicholson under the hoop for the bucket. It was both an amazing athletic play and a lucky break for Barrett.

Barrett looked good dribbling in a straight line going left, but appeared uncomfortable when he had to thwart a defender or dribble with his right. He neglected to finish with his right on a few layups. He still got to the line, but these plays could have been and-ones if he used his right.

He drained four 3’s since China packed the paint. Three of them were from a standstill and one of them was off movement to his right. His release looked comfortable, but is still too low. He will have trouble getting his shot off against even light contests because of this.

The base of his shot also needs improvement. He often started with his shooting arm too far to the left, resulting in a shooting motion that is difficult to replicate in off-balance situations. On one of his six three-point attempts, he received a pass that was too low, rushed his form, and bricked it off the back of the rim.

He was decent from the line, going 7 for 9. Free throw shooting remains a concern, however, given his ghastly percentage from the line in high school. He can be a foul drawing machine if he tightens up his handle. Continuing to improve his free throw accuracy will be vital for him to become an offensive weapon in the NBA.

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Despite these concerns, I am willing to bet on Barrett to iron out many of these kinks. The athleticism and smarts are there, and he is, by all accounts, a hard worker and high-character guy. 

Canada will take on the Dominican Republic in Toronto on Friday for FIBA qualifiers. R.J. Barrett will get another chance to test himself against professional level competition, and will likely continue to make strides.