Emanuel Miller Scouting Report
How real his shooting jump is will determine his NBA outcome
Name: Emanuel Miller
Birth date: June 19, 2000
Height/Weight: 6’6/212
Wingspan/ standing reach: 6’9/8’7.5
Hand size: 10
Position: Forward
Pre-Draft team: TCU
Tools: Defense, athleticism, length
Background: Brother of Leonard Miller. Transferred from Texas A&M in 2021. Have heard only positive things about his character and work ethic in the years I have been around TCU. Had the top standing vertical at last year’s G League Elite camp with a 34 inch standing vertical.
Season Stats: 15.8 PPG 6.1 RPG 2.6 APG 1.1 SPG 0.4 BPG 1.5 TOPG on 49/38/81.5
Pros:
Outstanding athlete
Versatile defender
Good cutter
Strong motor and plays with lots of toughness defensively; wins hustle plays
Improved shooter
Finishes well through contact
Great body control
Low turnover rate
Comfortable finishing with both hands
Runs hard in transition and wins in transition offense
Cons:
Lacks scoring off the dribble
Inconsistent base on 3 pointers
Needs to tighten handle. Fumbles the ball too often by speeding himself up into dribble moves
Not overly explosive on drives against contact
Swing Skills:
How real is his jump shooting leap?
How much does his cutting ability pop with NBA spacing coming from a crowded TCU paint?
Summary:
Emanuel Miller has taken a jump as a fifth year senior, putting his tools together while also better applying his understanding to the game every time he steps on the court.
The biggest jump in Miller’s game came in the area he most needed the leap: shooting. On a career high 2.4 attempts from 3, he shot 38.3%. Additionally, his foul-drawing improved to help him take an astronomically career high FTA, going from 149 attempts in his first two seasons to 157 attempts as a fifth year senior. This is clearly a testament to Emanuel’s work ethic, which now makes him a dirty-work wing that can defend, rebound, shoot, and use his explosive athleticism to his benefit in an NBA spaced court with faster tempo.
Miller projects to add value right away as a hustle wing. His ability to win off of cuts, putbacks, and turning defense to offense gives him a niche role for teams needing a Swiss Army Knife forward could use Miller right away due to versatility both positionally on defense and in role through different speeds of offense. Miller can run in transition, both as a ball-handler and filling the lane, and he can find holes in defenses by moving well off-ball into the gaps of the defense, both around the perimeter and within the 3 point line. Miller’s ability to embrace contact on both ends wins him more plays, both at the rim and with plays involving smaller players that want to win with speed over physicality.
Defensively, while not a lockdown defender, he is a positive defender due to strong physical tools, strong awareness, a good motor, and a low foul rate. His motor keeps him in many plays, but he can be separated from too easily for many scouts’ likings. He will have to make up for some shortcomings in that area through intelligence, creating more turnovers and defensive plays than his low steal & block rates throughout his career. With strong rebounding and a constant motor to win rebounds, Miller can easily close out possessions to make up for some areas he may lag on-ball. Miller was a key part of TCU producing back-to-back top 50 defenses in the country, and he will need to be creative in how he shows NBA teams his value in replicating that success in the NBA.
Miller should thrive with the faster NBA tempo. He was always the first one to run in transition, which helped steal easy points off of turnovers and long rebounds. In transition, Miller outruns defenses, and he is a crafty scorer near the rim in 2-on-1 situations while making good decisions. His body control in these transition opportunities is quite apparent, which helps make up for some lack of explosion in traffic. Miller is a good open court athlete, but loses a bit of ground on his functional athleticism in terms of above the rim finishing. This is again where motor comes into play, sprinting hard and always playing with determination while also going to the right spots and making the correct plays.
With NBA tempo, spacing, and surrounding talent, Miller can thrive as an off-ball threat, both cutting and shooting, allowing for easy offensive value early in his career. Emanuel Miller has gotten better every year of his career, adapting to different roles which makes a case for him being a late bloomer. While some of his work may not be conventional, he wins in hustle plays by beating opponents to plays they cannot match his intensity in. Miller’s effort fits well in places like Miami, where the culture of always playing hard and working hard are a staple and core value for players to follow. He makes his teammates better on both ends, he can play a variety of roles on both ends, being able to play inside and out, and he can be trusted to not make mistakes when tough situations arise.
Projected draft range: 45-undrafted
Expected role: Swiss Army Knife that can make opponents uncomfortable on both ends, while finding the holes in defenses to score through the nitty gritty plays.
Unplayable if: Jump shooting boost is not real, and lack of powerful explosion limits his rim scoring.
Exceeds expectations if: Jump shot cleanly translates, and with NBA spacing his athletic abilities can pop more easily, making him better defensively and offensively in space.
Videos:
Late movement leads to turnover
Shot chart:
