NBA Draft: Analyzing Emoni Bates’ subpar pro day measurements

Collegiate pro day and NBA Draft Combine measurements are far from the only factor in determining the value and potential of a basketball player, but they do matter, especially in this most recent case of Emoni Bates where nearly every measurement underwhelms. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony gives us a list of official measurements for Emoni Bates from Memphis’ preseason pro day:

The most glaring numbers are his height and wingspan, which come in at 6-9 and 6-7.25, respectively. Not only would that give him a negative wingspan, but it would also give him the largest disparity in height and wingspan of any player this century.

The good news is that “roster height” likely refers to his height with shoes on, meaning that Bates’ wingspan, while still potentially negative, would fall much closer to average. With his height and guard skills Bates will almost always see defenders much shorter than him, meaning that even with a slightly shorter wingspan he should have no problems getting his shot off consistently with a proper release point.

With hand width and length of 8.25 inches, Bates would have clocked in third from last of all players at the 2021 NBA Draft Combine. That would have put him behind players like Davion Mitchell and Carlik Jones. Whether or not this actually affects his ball control—dribbling, passing, shooting—should be fairly obvious when he faces the more stout competition on Memphis’ schedule this year. Again, hand size is more valuable when evaluating the upper end. Players on the lower end almost always find ways around it.

Key measurements and stats for Bates

Vertical leap (standing vertical) is one of the more discussed numbers during pro days and the combine. Bates came in at 24.5 inches. For comparison, Iowa’s Luka Garza, who many have criticized for his seeming lack of athleticism, had a standing vertical leap of 24.0 inches at the 2021 Combine. Dead last. Bates would have been next to last. His approach vertical (max vertical leap) of 31.5 inches would have put him fourth from last.

A three-quarter court sprint time of 3.72 would have earned him last place by a decent margin at the 2021 Combine. Garza clocked in at 3.51 with Alabama’s John Petty next to last at 3.35.

A 4-way agility time of 12.882 would have put him dead last at the Combine. A shuttle run time of 3.472 would have put him fifth from last. We were given eight new measurements for Bates from Memphis’ pro day. All eight would have put him in the bottom five at the most recent NBA Draft Combine.

Perhaps most importantly, Bates is 17. That means that he has two years until he actually has to measure in officially for NBA Draft purposes. Bates is a special talent who has plenty of time to build up some of these strength and agility categories, starting that process on a Memphis team that should be incredibly fun to watch.

Measurements for Jalen Duren

Despite almost all in-person accounts describing Jalen Duren as 6-8 or 6-9, he continues to clock in at 6-11, although this time with shoes on. A wingspan of 7-5¼.25  would have given him the longest reach of any player at the 2021 Combine. If Duren truly is 6-8 or 6-9 without shoes, that makes him slightly undersized for a true center—a 7-5.25 wingspan would help offset that.

To round out the physical measurements, a hand length of 9.75 would have tied him with Duke’s Jalen Johnson for the top spot in last year’s Combine.

On the strength and agility front, standing and max vertical leaps of 30.5 and 37.0 would have put him in the middle of the pack. His 4-way agility would have put him towards the bottom and his three-quarter court sprint would have put him next to last.

Having said that, his shuttle run would have been the fastest of any center in the 2021 Combine. While his top speed might not be the fastest, his agility and acceleration are already quite impressive.

Duren is also 17 years old but, unlike Bates, will be eligible for the 2022 NBA Draft.