Our Lefty Colin Sexton...ish?

The subject here is Elijah Kennedy... a player that a lot of you are excited about, and for good reason. I thought very hard about who I would choose as his comp and came up with Colin Sexton. I didn't really want to do it because at comparable points in their careers, Sexton was just... better. Kennedy is not as explosive, seems to be less intense, and overall doesn't jump off your screen the same way Sexton did in his senior year highlight film. I almost think it's a bit unfair to him to compare him to Sexton. But, enough about why they aren't similar.

Kennedy actually is similar in skillset to Sexton, and they both have the ability do almost anything with the ball. They play strong... meaning they aren't silky smooth players. He isn't going to dazzle a defender with beautifully executed series of crossovers and break their ankles. His dribble will be deliberate and powerful, with quickness. Just enough to create separation to drive past you or pull up quickly for the jumper. I should qualify this by saying that he could be very flashy if he wanted to. He does possess the ability. I think if he learns to use all his tools... every game, he could be a walking highlight reel. It's not his style right now, though, and it probably will not change. It doesn't really need to.

He has a physically strong frame, just like his comp, Sexton. Unlike Sexton, his vertical leap is just above average, but not elite... and the same can be said about his quickness. This is not a big deal, though. He has plenty athleticism to get the job done.

One thing I think he is more advanced than Sexton is his three point shot. He seems to be a much more capable spot up shooter. Something about lefties... their shot just looks sweeter for some reason, and Kennedy has a very nice looking jumper. He has somewhat of a wide base (his feet are spread a little far apart) on his jumper, and it's a little bit too much for my taste. Why does it matter? Well... a wide base will typically take some vertical leap off of your jumper and you won't get as high off the ground. It's not serious enough to warrant trying to change it at this point, however. Kennedy has no problem finishing at the rim or knocking down a contested jumper.

Defense seems good. Hard to tell without watching hours of tape, but he does at least have some spectacular highlight blocked shots and steals leading to dunks.

Passing ability is above average. He definitely has the ability to make the difficult passes that great passers make. I don't think it's his focus though. He's never going to be a Jason Williams type point guard. One great thing about him is that he keeps his head up when he's dribbling on fast breaks and will find the open man. That's what you need in order to avoid missing those easy transition buckets... something that Mike White's teams have struggled with. He's not going to walk the ball up and play slow unless instructed to do so.

In closing, Kennedy is a solid pickup with all the tools. I think he will be a great backcourt compliment to Kowacie Reeves if they end up staying together at UF.

 

Im not sure I understand where you are coming from. The way I write these little opinion pieces, I specifically talk about the player’s skill set... what they do well, what they can improve upon, and I try to give a comp based on playing style, not outright ability or absolute prediction of future success.

In fact, the very things you mentioned having an issue with, I addressed multiple times by making it clear that Sexton was the better player. I even said it’s slightly unfair to compare Kennedy to Sexton. If you watch tape on them, there are some real style similarities. When comparing the two, I only looked at Sexton’s high school footage, BTW.