Jahmyl Telfort Scouting Report
Positional size, strength, and creativity are must-haves for today's wings. That's where Jahmyl Telfort's game translates to the next level. Here's why I believe he can carve out a role in the NBA:
Jahmyl Telfort (#11, Butler): Senior, 6'7"
Small Forward — Born: April 30, 2001 (23 years old)
Introduction
Durability is the name of the game when it comes to Telfort. He played in all 66 games during his two-year tenure at Butler, ranking sixth in the Big East in minutes per game. While scoring sixteen per game, he earned All-Big East honors despite an underwhelming season by the Bulldogs. As a fluid self-creating scorer, Telfort offers secondary playmaking duties. He fits the mold of NBA coaches seeking skill and handles in all positions. The physical aspect of his game feeds the versatility that’s needed for today’s wing to succeed.
Carving out a feasible role is the sole purpose of this scouting report, and I’ll describe his long-term potential. The NBA readiness and recent invitation to the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament will lead him to generate more buzz as we get closer to June.
Physical Profile
At 6-foot-7, Telfort is built like a rock. He has a strong upper body and a well-filled frame. His broad shoulders and strength-based game helps him to be versatile on both ends of the floor. He lacks true burst but has tight enough handles to create separation off the dribble. He is a good athlete, with his core strength being the main selling point of his physical profile.
He has big hands and long arms. There is no official measurement available, but he should measure out at about 6-foot-11. He’s coordinated and uses his strength when defending, with his strength being the switchability to play physically against taller wings while he’s fluid enough with his feet to stop smaller guards.
Telfort has an NBA-ready body at 225 pounds, which helps him to get accustomed to the next level compared to his peers.
Offense
Catch-and-shoot
At 36.1%, Butler has the best shooting year of his five-year career. He’s not a volume shooter but can develop into one in a role with fewer ball touches. He’s quickly adapting from ball-heavy responsibilities to being the recipient as a weakside option in the corner. He’s decently quick to set his feet but has a slow release. The arcing point is high enough, especially considering the extra length. His process is characterized by a strong pivot foot that keeps him flexible to use jab steps to potentially attack closeouts. For the NBA, he has to continue to increase his volume to build up his shot leverage.
In the first play below, Telfort does well to actively demand the ball in the corner, strongly pivoting with his left, which helps him to position himself well for the quick trigger after the catch. But he’s losing time in lowering the ball, as Telfort is strong enough to keep the ball high. He again demanded the ball in the second possession, but lowering the ball put Telfort in a difficult position as he didn’t position himself well to attack the closeout. That forced him to jab before the contested three. Working on keeping the ball high to create a quicker release is a must for NBA coaches. That puts him in a much better position to leverage his shots with shot-fakes rather than jab steps against quick closeouts.
Passing, ball-moving and playmaking
At over three assists per game and an assist-to-turnover ratio greater than 1.5 in back-to-back years, Telfort shows a positive impact with his decision-making as a passer and playmaker. He’s thriving in his role to serve as a secondary creator outside of his scoring-heavy role. His size and good handles help him to create advantages and punish incoming help after dribbling penetration or schemes where teams hedge or blitz him. His strength advantage in his downhill is his leverage to ensure more than two eyes on him from opponents.
In the first play, he sees over the defense. He’s actively chasing cutters before dishing the side pass to the elbow. His strong pivot keeps him flexible to either attack the closeout or make the pass. His strength also helps him to create out of the post, as shown in the second possession. He’s using post-entry passes to draw help while having the size to punish mismatches. As a quick decision-maker, Butler shows his ability to make tough passes, with the third play as an example. His instincts and positional awareness feed his positive playmaking as a wing.
The separating part for NBA scouts is his creativity. He’s using his footwork and strong pivot to ensure flexibility. In the last play, he’s selling the defense that he’ll use the weak side ball screen before rejecting it and exploding the rim while immediately punishing the forced rotation with the wide-open corner as the recipient of his side pass. I expect Telfort to continue to serve as a secondary playmaker at the next level.
Closeouts
Telfort’s best in punishing closeout defenders with his physicality, but the other side of the coin is that due to a lack of burst and his strong build, he lacks the speed to generate paint touches at will. That’s the main reason why his below 55% rim-finishing and low volume around the rim are what they are. Regardless, Telfort has an excellent floater game in his arsenal. That’s his main trait and a vital part of what the numbers won’t show you. He’s good at aggressively attacking a defender’s chest to ensure separation to get off his quick floater.
In the first play, he’s creating space from a standstill by using his tags and good handles to keep the ball away from defenders. That’s his weapon to generate enough room with his chest attack to get his floater off. He’s a right-hand dominant scorer, but his touch is consistent and reliable. The area of concern is the lack of balance on Telfort’s last step. In the first and second play below, he needs too much time to ensure his balance before releasing the floater. But that’s not an issue for the NBA as his strength is the main separator.
But his one-handed finishing might get in his way. In the third play, Butler shows a decent burst to punish the mismatch, but instead of finishing with his left, he has to bring the ball back to his right for a more difficult finish. That’s another reason for the below 55% rim-finishing, as the chart above shows. But that’s mostly compensated by his great touch and fluid hips. In the fourth play, he shows a smooth spin move, keeping the ball on the weak side, and ensuring his dribble penetration to get two feet inside the lane. Creativity and skill are vital parts of what NBA scouts seek to add to their depth of wings.
Pick-and-roll
Long-term potential to evolve as a scorer is a vital part of the evaluation of wings. For Telfort, his strength is a plus, but that’s mostly taken away by his lack of speed. Despite averaging around two fouls for the majority of his career, he can be too aggressive against smaller defenders. His must to attack a defender’s chest makes him more vulnerable to commit offensive fouls, with the first play as an example. Another area of concern is Telfort taking his time to decide how he’ll create out of the pick-and-roll. That’s partially on Butler’s slower pace, but Telfort has a share in that. His decision-making has to be quicker, considering how much NBA teams want to maximize possessions and play at a faster pace compared to what Telfort’s used to in college basketball.
A positive is Telfort’s ability to generate fouls. He’s averaging five attempts from the charity stripe, finishing these at a 77% rate. Another positive is Telfort not wasting dribbles when creating shots. He’s mostly a midrange-oriented scorer but has added a one-dribble three as a pullup shooter, with the third play as an example. It’s not feasible to expect Telfort to become a volume ball handler in the NBA, but his effectiveness as a closeout attacker will lead to him generating more self-creation opportunities. Despite the right-handed dominance, Telfort’s touch and strength are two aspects NBA scouts will appreciate.
Next up: Defense
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