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As the Pelicans look for 3&D options in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft, there may not be a better name to look at than Aaron Nesmith of Vanderbilt. Though he missed half the season due to a stress fracture in his foot, the 14 games Nesmith did play for Vanderbilt this season were as impressive as any player in college basketball.
Nesmith would be an intriguing option for the Pelicans and a realistic one at that. CBS Sports’ Colin Ward-Henninger projected Nesmith to New Orleans in his latest mock draft with the No. 13 pick.
“The mission for the Pelicans is to surround Zion Williamson with shooting, and adding Nesmith, an elite 3-point marksman, is a perfect way to do that. His body, along with his jump shot, is NBA-ready, so he should be able to help the Pelicans in what they hope is a jump from intriguing young upstart to playoff staple. Nesmith isn’t ready to be a strong playmaker at the NBA level, but when it comes to hitting open shots and defending wings with that 6-10 wingspan, there aren’t many better in this draft.”
From a raw statistics standpoint, Nesmith’s numbers are impressive in their own right. Nesmith shot 52.2% from three on 8.2 attempts per game and 51.2% from the field on 14.6 attempts per game.
His advanced numbers pop off the page even more, though. Per Synergy, he was a 99th percentile offensive player in his 500 minutes this season, ranking in the 95th percentile in spot-ups, his most common action. On 83 catch-and-shoot opportunities, Nesmith ranked in the 100th percentile with a staggering 1.639 points per possession.
There was hardly a region Nesmith struggled in as a shooter this season. For a Pelicans team that lacked both consistent perimeter shooting and length on the wing, Nesmith could be the perfect choice in the draft.