I took an in-depth look at 2022 signee Jett Howard to get a better feel for what Juwan Howard is getting from his wing of the future. The younger Howard suits up for IMG Academy (FL) of the prestigious NIBC League, so the evaluation comes against the very best competition in America. 

The first contest came in early December against top-5 ranked Sunrise Christian Academy, with two subsequent games against top-5 ranked Montverde Academy. 

 

Catch + Shoot Jumpers

This is the most translatable facet of Jett's game at the moment. He went 5/9 on catch and shoot attempts, with the majority being shots coming off movement while being contested or semi-contested looks. 

There are some mechanical flaws present, and the first shot attempt in the clip above is in slow-motion to provide a better visual. In the upper body, the ball placement is too close to the right side of Jett's face and the right elbow does cock out a bit. In simplified terms, its a bit of a push shot, but nothing extreme.

There is knee valgus present in the lower body and there is some twisting motion from right to left, which results in Howard's right leg/foot extending forward with a bit of a scissors kick.

Whatever he may lack in terms of balance/mechanics, he compensates for with a quick release. Jett gets his shot off very fast and that is a consistent theme. He can get shots off in tight spaces given his combo of size/length/release time. 

I'm fairly confident Howard will be a good catch + shoot option at Michigan. He's already hitting jumpers on the move via screens and relocations in a way that Caleb Houstan was not able to do with regularity as a freshman. That bodes really well for projecting, as he's likely to get better quality looks in Ann Arbor that don't involve as much movement, but has the ability to connect on those shot types when necessary. 

 

Pull-Up Jumpers

Jett went 1/6 on the pull-up jumpers in the clip above and its easy to see why. Those shots were generally off-balance and not high probability attempts for anyone in the world exclusive of the truly elite shotmaking guards at the NBA level. 

I've often suggested that Jett's percentage from deep may not necessarily be indicative of his true shooting prowess because it doesn't capture shot difficulty. He takes a lot of tough, stepback jumpers off the bounce from 2-3 feet beyond the NBA three-point line. Howard is a fine shooter, but he doesn't have the shotmaking ability of a Damian Lillard/Stephen Curry/Trae Young type just yet.

I'd expect Poppa Howard to mitigate this to a certain extent, but he's going to take some headscratching, low probability attempts that lower his shooting percentage. On the flip side, because of his experience taking tough shots, Jett may be a candidate to get some opportunities as the late-clock option since his combination of size + shotmaking ability makes it a bit easier for him to get off a contested look. 

 

Self Creation

The scouting here is relatively straight-forward. In isolation, the younger Howard can be effective creating his own offense when he's matched up versus a big or a wing that lacks good agility.

As you can see in the clip above, Jett is generally to limited to straight line-drives. He lacks the necessary shiftiness and acceleration to be a guy you can rely on to get good looks in isolation situations against defenders with size + agility.

When he does attempt to change direction/speed or string together combo-moves, he becomes vulnerable as seen below.

 

Howard is better creating for himself when he gets a ballscreen. He likes to split the screen and that allows him to get all the way to the rim. Don't know that I'm a big fan of him splitting ballscreens at Michigan, as his handle probably isn't tight enough and it's hard to "get skinny" against defenses in the B10 given how big Jett is. 

In simple terms, he's doesn't project to be a primary on-ball option at Michigan, but does look to have some promise as a secondary creator that can exploit mismatches or a scrambling defense. 

 

Playmaking For Others

I'm a bit higher on Howard's ability to create shots for others. He consistently finds teammates with kickouts after drawing a secondary defender with dribble-drives as depicted above. Those type of possessions generate open catch + shoot triples or driving lanes against a wild close-out. 

Jett is also a good playmaker when attacking a closeout himself. Against a scrambling defense, he projects to be really good in 4-on-3 and 3-on-2 scenarios. This is a bit of stretch, but I wouldn't be opposed to seeing what he can do as a playmaking big in pick + roll situations on the short roll in small spurts. 

The one consistent flaw I've noticed over the last year is that his passing arsenal generally lacks the bounce-pass. It's usually not an issue, but he can put too much air on his passes and/or telegraph at times. As seen below, those possessions can result in turnovers.

[Hit THE JUMP for the full breakdown.]

Finishing

Jett is much better as a bully-ball finisher that gets into the chest of the defender to initiate contact and draw fouls as the clip above shows. His combination of size + strength is the biggest asset when attempting to convert at the rim.

As you can see below, Howard struggles a bit when he gets cute jumping off the wrong foot or fading away from the rim. He simply lacks the elevation/twitchiness to be a finesse finisher against high-major size/athleticism.

In general, he converts at a much higher rate when he elevates with forward momentum and gets all the way to the rim. He optimizes his size + leaping ability when doing so and it allows him to contort his body if necessary as seen below.

 

Free Throws

Not much analysis here, Jett hit 10/12 at the charity stripe. He projects to be 75%+ shooter at the free throw line for Michigan. 

 

Defense

Howard is an above-average defender when tasked with defending the SF/PF position. He has a solid combination of size + agility to stay in front of bigger wings that aren't supreme athletes with great acceleration. He displays active hands and contests jumpers well.

I've seen enough of Jett over the last two years to know that he can struggle a bit when defending legit guards with speed on the perimeter. The agility is not poor by any means, but he's not gifted in that regard either. 

I project Howard to be a solid defender at Michigan, he should be semi-switchable at the 2-4 spots. I don't necessarily think he'll be a disruptive defender, but he's a considerable upgrade to Caleb Houstan athletically, while already possessing more muscle mass at a similar height. 

The other consistent item on my notes throughout the years has been the lack of effort as a rebounder. Jett hasn't really attacked the glass in the manner he should given his size/mass. That is one item that I'm quite sure Poppa Howard will address, as Coach simply doesn't tolerate lack of physical effort.