The Alamodome was witness to a monumental upset in the Final Four as the Blue Devils were eliminated at the hands of Houston. The Cougars’ intimidating pressing led to errors on Duke’s part as Kelvin Sampson’s team ended the game on a 9-0 run. J’Wan Roberts had his fingerprints all over the action as he drew an over-the-top foul from national sensation Cooper Flagg towards the end of the game and sent Houston ahead 67-66. Roberts then took on the challenge of guarding college basketball’s best player without help defense and came up with a stop, stamping the Cougars ticket to the championship game.
J’Wan will now end his 6 years long college career and can hope his performances in March Madness could grab him attention from NBA organizations in the upcoming draft. While J’Wan’s current draft projections show him getting picked in the second round to maybe even going undrafted, a lot could change if the Cougars lift the National Championship in San Antonio.
Roberts is a 6’8″ undersized center who makes up for his lack of size with heart and resilience. A versatile defender who is ready to do the dirty work for the team, his role is becoming increasingly more appreciated in the NBA. Combine that with his ability to execute the right passes as a big and perform dribble hand-offs, there’s a lot of upside to the prospect if his perimeter offense can improve heading into the league. His NBA comparison could be someone like Draymond Green who is also undersized compared to the bigs he often guards and is also adept at making decisions on the offensive end for the Warriors.
5 teams where J’Wan fits into the jigsaw
1. Phoenix Suns
The Suns do not lack scoring options by any means featuring the trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, would surely benefit from a disruptor in their ranks. Having one of the worst defensive ratings in the NBA, it would benefit them to acquire a player who displays defensive versatility and is willing to do the dirty work for a team loaded with stars.
2. Nuggets
The Nuggets only have DeAndre Jordan behind Jokic to play the center spot and while Zeke Nnanji helps, a player like J’Wan Roberts would certainly help take defensive burden off of Nikola. With the Joker as his mentor, J’Wan would also have the opportunity to develop his perimeter offense, which has been a point of concern for the scouts.
3. Warriors
While the presence of Draymond Green alone make for a good destination for J’Wan to continue his development, the Warriors system makes the fit even better. The Warriors like playing small ball, often deploying Draymond as the center and benefitting by running the floor. Steve Kerr’s system also deploys a lot of dribble hand-offs and screening action, prompting even their bigs to make decisions on offense. All of the things J’Wan has been doing at Houston for a while now.
4. Jazz
Number one priority for the Jazz heading into the next season has to be their defense. Ranked worst in the league on defensive rating, they also have a lottery pick in the draft which they can surround with a hard-nosed defender in Roberts. With the presence of Lauri Markkanen and Kessler Walker, the Jazz don’t lack size by any means and J’Wan could benefit as his lack of size would appear less vulnerable along the two bigs.
5. Rockets
While Houston is already enjoying a good season on both ends of the floor, another defensive addition would help create depth on a young squad that is the second seed in the West. Valuing defensive versatility under Ime Udoka, Rockets could acquire J’Wan and have him develop alongside All-Star Alperen Sengun. A solid young core that is proving their mettle in the league, J’Wan’s development could be positively affected playing for a team that offers stability and patience in the long run.
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