Jared CohenIf any NBA team has had the chance to see what Brandon Ashley is capable of over the last three years or so, it’s the pro team from up the road where he attended college, the Phoenix Suns.
On Wednesday, Ashley participated in a pre-draft workout in Phoenix looking to show his value and how he believes his game will translate to the next level.
“I think a lot of teams want to see is how hard you play,” said Ashley after the workout. “They want to see if you are going to compete or not. They want to see whether you’re going to give it your all on every play and for a guy like me who considers himself a stretch four, one of the things that I definitely need to show is that I can shoot the ball pretty well from the outside.”
“Brandon is very skilled,” mentioned Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough. “Good shooter at that size, he has a good feel for the game. He and Rakeem Christmas (Syracuse) matched up for the most part today although we crossed some of the matchups. So we had some good battles. I think he has a true position in the NBA at the four. That stretch four or play making four is in vogue now. That’s the way a lot of teams playing with the floor spread, a guy who can shoot off the catch or make a play.”
McDonough may have just been allowed to have contact with Ashley during the NBA Scouting Combine and again during this workout, but Ashley is a player he says he knows well with the amount he and his scouts have seen him.
“He’s a guy we’ve seen a lot,” stated McDonough. “We’ve scouted him a lot, we have scouts at their practices constantly, we have scouts at most of their games, especially the big games. So, it was good to see him come here today.”
Ashley has been busy now having worked out for Chicago, San Antonio, Memphis and the LA Lakers and has his home town team Golden State, Cleveland, Washington and Boston coming up. He knows where people are saying he should end up in the draft despite some believing it might not have been a smart decision for him to declare.
“I just want to be picked up,” Ashley explained. “What I am hearing is that I can go anywhere from the late first to mid second. So hopefully I can be a first rounder but if not, I am just looking forward to the opportunity to play, the opportunity to showcase my skill set and to prove myself at the next level.”
“Regardless of where I go, I will look to make the most of whatever situation I am in,” he added.
