Once heralded as the top point guard in the nation, Cole Anthony’s stock has suffered a hit after a rough freshman campaign at North Carolina. Which teams make the most sense for the divisive scoring guard?
One of the expressions that will assuredly be hammered to death throughout the 2020 NBA Draft cycle is that the fit between player and organization will determine everything in this year’s draft, with an assortment of talented-if-flawed prospects littered at the top of the board. This sentiment is especially true for North Carolina point guard Cole Anthony, perhaps more than his fellow lottery-level compatriots due to the electric strengths and alarming weaknesses that he displayed in his lone college season.
Anthony is quite difficult to pin down. Though we believe that his pull-up shooting, finishing touch and underrated passing make him a top-10 player in our recent mock draft and big board, other sites aren’t so bullish, citing his inconsistent vision, spotty defense and underwhelming efficiency. Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman estimates that Anthony could fall into the 10 to 13 range, based on the varied opinions among NBA front offices. If recent mocks and boards from ESPN and The Athletic — two publications whose experts incorporate intel in their projections — are to be indicative of Anthony’s floor, then he’s in real danger of falling out of the lottery entirely, with both publications having him 13th or 14th. Considering that Anthony was pegged as a top-3 prospect before the season, his stock has seemingly plummeted.
Where would Cole Anthony be set up to succeed in the NBA Draft?
This isn’t the most elegant way to phrase it, but Anthony landing in a situation that is completely antithetical to what he played in at North Carolina is vital to his success at the professional level. Roy Williams’ dual-post scheme proved to be a poor fit for a 6-foot-3 guard that feasted pre-college as a spread pick-and-roll creator who utilized ball screens to get to the basket. Though Williams did his best to accommodate his point guard’s preferences, a dearth of secondary creators and perimeter shooters (non-Anthony players shot 29.1 percent from 3) led to clogged driving lanes and a heavy diet of difficult shots.
Finding an optimal destination for Anthony is tricky when taking into account the roster construction and personnel needs of teams in the late lottery. The ideal situation would offer him a capable pick-and-roll partner, wing insulation to make up for his defensive shortcomings, and perhaps an existing primary creator that could lessen his playmaking load. He would be a poor fit operating alongside RJ Barrett in New York, given their combined lackluster decision-making and the team’s poor spacing, and teams like Portland, Minnesota, and Washington have enough established scoring guards as is. Since Anthony’s draft spot could be anywhere from early- to late-teens, we’ll look at the best fits in that range for the draft’s most divisive prospect.