MORGANTOWN — If you’re fortunate enough to spend four days in the Bahamas, it’s universally expected you have to come back with more than just a suntan.
You’ve got to have some stories, too.
WVU point guard Javon Small came back from the Battle 4 Atlantis with a whopper of a tale: He just may be the best collegiate point guard in the country.
No, seriously.
“I thought he was incredibly good at both ends of the floor in controlling the game,” WVU head coach Darian DeVries said. “He’s just a winner. He can recognize when some other guys have it going. He’s a very willing passer. He’s all about the right things all the time.”
We do need to summarize here what we’re talking about in saying best collegiate point guard. We’re not talking about NBA projections, as Small’s name is absent from any mock draft you want to look at.
That may change in the months to come, but what NBA general managers will tell you about drafting point guards is you get them young, and you also take a hard look at foreign-born players.
Case in point, the six most popular point guards in mock drafts right now are all under the age of 19. Small turns 22 on Dec. 19.
Four of those point-guard prospects weren’t born in the U.S., including Nolan Traore, who is playing professionally in France right now.
As far as the top-rated American point guards, Boogie Fland (Arkansas) and Dylan Harper (Rutgers) are both true freshmen.
So, what we’re really talking about here is more of a pound-for-pound type of deal, minus NBA potential.
Among all collegiate point guards in a college game only, who do you want running your offense?
In that type of setting, Small’s name is higher up on that list than most would realize.
The proof was found right there in the Bahamas, where Small went toe-to-toe with some pretty good guys.
Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard may be the most accomplished passer in the NCAA. He averaged 13 assists per game in the Bulldogs’ three games in the Bahamas.
Small outplayed him, finishing with 31 points and seven rebounds in the Mountaineers’ overtime upset.
Louisville’s Chucky Hepburn carried the Cardinals to a win over WVU in OT with 32 points and six steals. Small’s game was still better, going for 26 points, seven assists, seven rebounds and four steals.
Arizona’s Caleb Love just may be the most accomplished collegiate point guard, having spent three years at North Carolina and the last two with the Wildcats. He’s got 2,226 points, 530 rebounds and 481 assists over his career.
Love was the Pac-12 Player of the Year last season, and he scored 24 points in the overtime loss against WVU. It took him a season-high 20 shots to get those 24 points. Small had 14 points and eight assists.
“I mean, if 14 and eight is a bad night, I’ll take that every single night,” DeVries said.
Who wouldn’t?
There are a number of other interesting comparisons, too.
Alabama’s Mark Sears was the preseason All-American at point guard. He’s averaging 16 points, 3.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds so far.
Small is averaging 19 points, 4.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds, while also shooting 41.3% from 3-point range, which is 12.5 points higher than what Sears is shooting beyond the arc.
If you simply want to go by stats, Harper may be the tough beat right now, going for 23.8 points per game on top of his already solid NBA projections.
BYU’s Egor Demin — born in Russia — is shooting 56.9% from the floor, 44.1% from three, while averaging 14.3 points and 6.3 assists per game. He’s also 6-foot-9.
He is a projected NBA lottery pick, but I’ll bet anything when the Cougars travel to Morgantown on Feb. 11, Small will outplay him.
Just a hunch.
The overall point here is, NBA mock drafts aside, Small is right up there among the elite of the elite among point guards.
When was the last time that could be said about a WVU point guard?
Jevon Carter was in that discussion six years ago. Before that, you may have to go back some 40 years ago with Greg Jones.
“He’s a tremendous player,” DeVries said. “Javon is one of those guys I’d take on my team any day, anywhere at any time. He’s a high-level player. He’ll play at the next level. He’s about winning. He’s about the right things. He would make any team better.”
