Jon Scheyer - Professional Career

Professional Career

Doug Gottlieb of ESPN opined in early January 2010 that Scheyer "is probably not an NBA player, but his Jewish faith allows him to get an Israeli passport, and he would be a highly coveted player for a team like Maccabi Tel Aviv."

David Thorpe, ESPN's resident expert on NBA rookies and noted trainer of NBA prospects, differed with Gottlieb. He noted most NBA teams would benefit by having Scheyer on their team as a sixth man. Chad Ford, ESPN's draft expert, rated Scheyer within the top-60 NBA prospects. Asked in March 2010 whether he feels he can make it in the NBA, Scheyer said he was confident he can.

By early April, most NBA draft analysts had him going somewhere in the second round, but Larry Butler, his former AAU coach with the Illinois Warriors who has also coached Andre Iguodala, Quentin Richardson, and Dwyane Wade, said:

Talking to all my NBA resources in the last couple of weeks, he's moved up the ladder. He could be a late first-round pick. He's shown his toughness, his will to win. He brings all those little intangibles to the table that the elite players do. He's always making the right pass, always making the big shots, always making the big plays, always making his free throws.... The kid is a winner. He's always been a winner.

Eamonn Brennan of ESPN announced the results of his College Basketball Production-Only Mock Draft in late May, meant to indicate how NBA teams would draft if they focused only at how college basketballs players played in college. He ranked Scheyer 6th, saying that as a college player, Scheyer was "ruthlessly effective".

The Chicago Sun-Times opined that coaches Phil Jackson of the Los Angeles Lakers and Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs might value Scheyer's ability to move without the ball, pass, and spot up for jumpers. And one scout pointed to his poise, leadership, feel for the game, threat from the perimeter, smooth stroke, textbook form, and the vital role he played in the championship run, saying Scheyer can hold his own in the NBA and could be a solid backup point guard/no-stats-All-Star similar to Shane Battier.

Scheyer signed with Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports. Scheyer missed the NBA draft combine in late May and lost 10 pounds as he battled mononucleosis, which had him out for approximately three weeks and also forced him to miss his graduation. In June he participated in pre-draft workouts for ten teams, including the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, New Jersey Nets, San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, and Phoenix Suns. "I've spent more time at airports than with teams", said Scheyer, "but it's such a great opportunity."

The Dallas Morning News reported in May 2010 that a NBA draft projection of NBADraft.net had the Dallas Mavericks selecting Scheyer with their first pick of the draft (the draft's 50th overall pick). Bleacher Report carried a mock draft article predicting him being drafted 51st by Oklahoma City, and Yahoo carried one predicting he would be drafted 53rd by the Atlanta Hawks.

Draft Express compared 19 top shooting guards in the draft, on the basis of detailed points-per-possession statistics generated by Synergy Sports Technology. It found that Scheyer ranked as the most efficient overall scorer (at 1.054 PPP). His jump shooting ability when open gave him success in spot-up situations (1.16 PPP), but he also ranked well above average in isolation (.938 PPP; 3rd), and was the most effective pick and roll player on the list (1.16 PPP).

Duke Coach K said he could be a second-round pick,

but I'm not sure if that's even the best thing for because when you're a second-round pick, you belong to a team.... I think it would be better to go to the team that really wants because there will be teams that want going to be good pro.

He was not drafted, however, in the 2010 NBA Draft. Coach K elaborated on what he had said before the draft: "In the second round, it's better not to be drafted. As soon as the draft is over, if you are good enough, you will be invited by five or six teams, and you will have a chance to choose who you will play summer league ball with. I would be a little bit surprised if not on an NBA roster playing next season."