DJ Wagner

DJ Wagner made his mark in high school as an aggressive scoring guard who played in constant attack mode on both ends of the floor. He was an elite competitor, but played a high-volume style and had increasing questions about his shooting and ability to transition into more of a lead guard as his career went on.

Those questions only intensified this year at Kentucky as he seemed to lose his confidence and rhythm. He shot 29% from behind the arc and ranked in the 21st percentile as a spot-up shooter per Synergy Sports. While he put-up a better than two-to-one assist to turnover ratio, it came predominantly off the ball, and he was in just the 43rd percentile as a pick-and-roll ball-handler. As the season went on there were times when he looked noticeably reluctant to shoot, and yet over-eager to attack, all at the same time.

While he tends to get stuck in first-gear and could pick his spots more efficiently, he’s nonetheless capable of getting paint touches and a better than average finisher for someone who is primarily under-the-rim. He still competes with a very high-motor on both ends, is equally aggressive defensively, and able to pressure the ball.

Moving forward, Wagner needs to learn to slow down at times, better vary his speeds, and be more efficient with his on-ball reps in order to justify more volume as a pick-and-roll playmaker. He may even benefit from more latitude in the mid-range area, where he often utilized a wide variety of pull-ups and floaters in high school, after attempting just 16 shots in that range all season at Kentucky.

Wagner is a proven and versatile scorer, with numerous weapons at his disposal. He’s also an elite competitor who plays hard, has a way of raising the level of those around him, and doesn’t get enough credit for bringing a similar mindset to the defensive end of the floor. He plays in constant attack mode, accelerates right at his defender while mixing in some shake and shiftiness, scores around the rim with both hands, and is a legitimate threat to create his own shot at all three-levels. He’s not a true point guard, and yet has needed the ball in his hands to be effective to this point in his career, as he’s been the focal point of almost every environment he’s been in to date. He lacks great positional size and is a good, albeit not great, overall athlete. He also tends to be stuck in first ear and needs to learn when to slow down and pick his spots. Most of all, there’s no denying that he’s going to have to shoot the ball from long-range at a higher rate than he did this summer, and yet also no glaring mechanical deficiency that should prevent him from doing so.

More Evaluations

• Evaluated 10/13/2021 Eric Bossi National Basketball Director Read