An intriguing in-state prospect.
As a one-and-done prospect, Georgia’s Asa Newell has all of the tools to succeed at the next level, he just has to continue to develop. At 6’11, Newell played mostly center in college, but with his size and frame, there’s a chance that he could play both the 4 and 5 in the NBA depending on how his skillset grows.
Newell is an uber athletic big, and that helps in the paint when he’s getting thrown lobs or trying to go up for a rebound. He averaged 15.3 points per game, and most of those came from in the paint, where, outside of catching lob passes, he has a nice touch around the rim that could be hard to stop. What makes him more dynamic on the floor is his ability to run the floor, and he can handle the ball a little, so if he needs to start the break by himself and finish, he’ll do it.
A spot in his game where he’s shown that he could grow is his jump shot. Newell took 89 threes during his freshman season and only made 29.2 percent of them. Though that may not be a good number, it seems like he had the confidence to get them up, and Georgia encouraged him to take them. If he’s able to get that shot to around 35% in the league, he’d be a great fit on a team that’s looking for someone who can help them play small ball.
On defense, Newell has all the goods, as he’s a great rim protector and solid help defender. He averaged one block a game, but most of what he does won’t be shown on the stat sheet. This is where his size and athleticism come into play as well, and he can be a disruptive force on that side of the ball. Unfortunately, his size can come into question when he’s going up against traditional centers who like to get physical — which is why Newell could be looked at more as a 4 than a 5 in the NBA.
Another area where Newell has shown positive signs is his ability to defend in space, which is key in a league where switching has become more prominent.
Though Newell has a certain feel for the game on offense, one area where he’ll need to improve is his passing. He can make the simple pass, but when it comes to operating out of the short pick-and-roll, he can lose control and not make the best read. If a team doesn’t have much shot creation on the floor, it may be hard for him to be impactful in situations.
For the Hawks, Newell could be a piece that plays the 4 and 5, and he’ll be getting easy lobs when he’s on the floor with Trae Young. He could also open up the Hawks’ defense if he’s able to knock down perimeter shots at a consistent rate, and that’s maybe one area any team would love to see him grow.
With the Hawks having the no. 13 and no. 22 picks in the first round, and Newell’s draft projections between around that range, if they wanted to grab him, they could.