Admiral Schofield
Unlike both Grant Williams and Jordan Bone, Admiral Schofield didn’t participate in any scrimmages during the NBA Draft Combine. He did impress some with his testing, however, and his measureables were pretty much in line with what teams expected from him.
Overall, though, Schofield’s stock has been all over the place.
Some sites have elevated Schofield’s draft stock some while others have dropped him down their boards. There hasn’t really been a consensus with Schofield other than that he should definitely be drafted. Where will he end up? That’s anyone’s guess, apparently.
Here’s a look at where Schofield is showing up in NBA Draft big boards:
CBS Sports: 29th
NBC Sports: 32nd
ESPN: 36th
The Athletic: 38th
The Ringer: 42nd
Tankathon: 50th
For the most part, Schofield is viewed as a second-round talent. He’s right on the cusp of a first-rounder by some outlets, but he’s usually showing up around the 30-40 mark in rankings.
Most of the sites that list Schofield on their big board don’t have a pre-draft analysis of him. The only one of the six sites listed above that do is The Ringer.
According to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, Schofield’s main selling point are his toned muscles, and he states that Schofield “sports a physique that’d make bodybuilders blush and has the potential skill set of a 3-and-D forward.”
O’Connor further breaks down Schofield, saying that he “plays like he looks,” which is to say “tough, intense, and musclebound.” O’Connor also calls Schofield an “explosive finisher” in space and notes that he’s a capable three-point shooter in a variety of situations. He also states that Schofield is a good rebounder and gives great effort on defense and is effective guarding a variety of positions.
On the downside, O’Connor notes that Schofield takes a lot of mid-range jumpers because he “lacks the burst and the ballhandling ability to get all the way to the basket.” He also points out Schofield’s likelihood to go into an isolation mode rather than keep the ball moving and his lack of lateral quickness on defense.
As for where Schofield will be drafted, that’s even more all over the place than his rankings on big boards.
Here’s where Schofield has been projected in the latest mock drafts:
CBS Sports: 23rd to the Utah Jazz
NJ.com: 27th to the Brooklyn Nets
NBC Sports: 33rd to the Philadelphia 76ers
The Ringer: 44th to Atlanta Hawks
Tankathon: 45th to the Detroit Pistons
NBADraft.net: 58th to the Golden State Warriors
Surprisingly, not only is Schofield projected as a first-round pick by Gary Parrish of CBS Sports, but he actually has Schofield being taken two picks before Grant Williams.
“Schofield was just a 3-star prospect coming out of high school — a 6-5 forward from Illinois who wasn’t even considered a top-250 recruit in the Class of 2015, according to 247Sports,” Parrish says of Schofield. “Now he’s 6-6 with a sculpted body and reputation for being a tireless worker who is loved by his coaches, all of which helped him average 16.5 points and 6.1 rebounds this season for a Tennessee team that spent four weeks ranked No. 1. The fact that Schofield made more than 40% of 393 3-point attempts in the past three seasons suggests he’ll be a real threat from the perimeter when he gets to the NBA.”
NJ.com also has Schofield slated to go in the first round, but every other updated mock draft views the versatile wing as a second-round pick. But even there, he’s all over the board.
NBC Sports sees Schofield going in the early second round. Ben Standig of NBC Sports sees the former Vol standout as a perfect fit for Philadelphia early in the second round.
“If the 76ers keep both of their early second-round selections it seems reasonable to imagine they use one for immediate help,” he says as he predicts Philly to select Schofield with the 33rd overall pick.
Then, you have The Ringer and Tankathon that both project Schofield to go in the mid-second round, falling smack dab in the middle of the final round. That’s generally been the latest Schofield has been projected by most mock drafts throughout the last few months.
But NBADraft.net clearly doesn’t see all the hype around Schofield, pegging him as an extremely late second-round pick. Their projections have him being taken with the third-to-last pick in the draft by the Golden State Warriors.
In their analysis of Schofield, they point out his versatile scoring ability and plus-shooting strength from the perimeter. He’s also noted as a “decent playmaker” who rarely made bad decisions. His strength and exceptional rebounding ability also make him stand out.
On the other hand, NBADraft.net knocks Schofield for not drawing enough fouls despite being a physically imposing player, his lower assist totals than other players on the team and others at his position across the country, and his lack of elite quickness on defense.
It would be stunning to see Admiral Schofield go undrafted, but it’s clear that his value is all over the place among those who guage what NBA teams do in the draft. It’s unlikely that Schofield will be taken in the first round, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility. He’s more likely to hear his name called in the second round, though.
