OKC Thunder NBA draft profile: Day’Ron Sharpe – a bruising big man

Day’Ron Sharp strengths and weaknesses

Strengths:

Defense is Day’Ron Sharp’s calling card yet there are hints he can improve offensively. First, his 265-pound frame naturally will afford him the size to battle bigs inside. In spite of his size, his agility and ability to move quickly suggests he could add to his offensive arsenal. He demonstrates nice touch on the interior and runs the floor well.

Although his ball-handling and dribbling skills need work he thinks quickly and with work could become a better passer.

Defensively as noted, he can be a presence against any opponent big and has shown a propensity to be a solid screen setter, is capable at disrupting passing lanes plus rebounds well.

Weaknesses:

The wide range of where analysts project Sharp will be selected has to do more with where the current trends of the NBA live. Big men who can create for others or spread the court out to the perimeter are highly coveted. In contrast, a player like Sharp who doesn’t shoot the 3-ball and is still working on developing others areas of his game gets less attention.

His poor free-throw shooting (50.5 percent) doesn’t offer optimism that he’ll be able to make simple fundamental tweaks to expand his range. Nor does he possess quality ball handling skills even with simple elbow or dribble handoffs.

While he brings energy, has the size and athletic physique he’ll also need to become an elite defender to warrant getting extending playing time.