PJ Hall Scouting Report
Name: PJ Hall
Height/Weight: 6’8 ¼/241
Wingspan/ standing reach: 7’1.5/9’0
Hand size: 9 ¾
Position: PF
Pre-Draft team: Clemson
Tools: Shooting, feel for the game
Background: Injured his knee in the 2022 offseason. Clemson's system heavily revolved around constant post-up threats. Mr. Basketball in South Carolina out of high school. Comes from an athletic family; brother played college basketball and his sister played college volleyball
Season Stats: 18.3 PPG 6.4 RPG 1.4 APG 0.8 SPG 1.4 BPG 1.9 TOPG 3.1 FPG in 29 MPG on 49/31.5/78
Pros:
Quick jumper and able to get his feet set quickly
Has a high motor and has always showcased this, dating back to high school
Does a great job at getting his hands up into his rotations
Strong turnaround + post jumper
Consistently gets good box outs
Good touch around the rim and a plus finisher at the rim (exemplified by his post ability)
Sets good screens and quickly rolls or pops out of contact
Cons:
Limited post defender
P&R defense needs work; can be too late on making decisions
Finds himself in foul trouble against drives due to being slightly too slow on lateral rotations (see UAB game)
Awareness can be underwhelming at times; can be zoned in on what’s in front of him and not aware of what is happening behind him
Falls for head fakes and change of pace drives as a defender at the rim, leading to foul trouble
Swing Skills:
Sees the floor well and makes good reads, but has averaged more turnovers than assists for half of his college career
Needs to improve lateral quickness and prove defense on the perimeter
Summary:
As a scorer, Hall thrives with touch near the rim and as a jump shooter. Primarily a threat out of pick & pops, Hall can also locate himself well along the perimeter into open 3s, along with a good mid range game. While his shot diet won’t directly translate to the NBA, given how much of his game comes from flashing at the mid range and post-ups, there are takeaways from his skills in those areas that can be applied to other components of the game. His mid range game seems applicable to 3 point shooting, given how he can hit a wide variety of turnaround jumpers, fadeaway jumpers, and simply standstill jumpers over defenders. This showcases his shooting touch well, which can be instantly applied to his 3 point shot, and gives a great boost to his strong free throw percentage. Additionally out of the post, Hall’s post efficiency gives light to his touch near the rim, hitting shots that are similar in finishing degree and angles to the shots he will have in the NBA near the rim.
However, without much playmaking to offer, and not being an elite shooter despite strong free throw percentages, the question of how Hall can stay on an NBA floor are difficult to answer.
Hall’s awareness on-ball on both ends can be alarming. In the first half of the Alabama game in the NCAA Tournament, for example, he would guard P&Rs with the focus being on what is in front of him and not what could be going on behind him, which is a key trait for a player to have: awareness of the entire court. Offensively, he needs to be able to see two levels deeper into the defense and in general during post-ups. He can miss shooters behind defenders, which is a bit alarming given that he should be able to see over defenses. Additionally, he heavily prefers his post jump shot, which will have to be an adjustment to the NBA. This will help eliminate this inefficient spot of the court, as his post game can often lean towards a scoring mentality rather than prioritizing ball movement.
One of the strength’s in PJ Hall’s game surrounding awareness, however, is that he is great at tagging box outs, which does require strong general awareness away from the ball. Additionally, he sets good and strong screens, using strength and knowing where and when to roll vs pop. Understanding the ‘why’ of everything he does on the floor will go a long way in achieving his full potential.
Another example of the dichotomy in Hall’s awareness is that while he always uses strong fundamentals by rotating into the next play with high hands and a wide base, too often he blindly rotates without realizing the consequence of his action. If he rotates from the middle, will someone cut, for example? Another emphasis on his awareness is that he needs to become smarter when he is in foul trouble. In the NCAA Tournament game, he fouled out on a rebound near the end of the game, which ultimately put the game out of reach. In two thirds of his games this year, he was in deep foul trouble (3 or more fouls), which limits his playing time and thus his overall impact. He has to make up for some physical shortcomings at times, for example being only adequate as a perimeter mover on defense, which makes him more prone to fouling quicker players.
Awareness and fully understanding the context of the plays are some things Hall will have to evolve into understanding and dissecting every play through countless hours of film sessions. His work ethic and attention to detail will truly determine how this gets resolved and how quickly this changes. Another factor that goes into this is team scheme; were these issues related to instructions from coaches, or was this something that is entirely controllable that can, at times, go against the system’s goals? Again, this is where NBA teams’ intel will come into play.
Similar to: Al Harrington
Projected draft range: 35-undrafted
Expected role: Off-ball forward with the ability to isolate smaller defenders.
Unplayable if: Defensive concerns don’t get resolved
Exceeds expectations if: Jumper translates at a high level and the right team figures out how to hide his defensive woes while also cutting turnovers.
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