Isaiah Jackson: 6'10", 206 lbs. 19 years old

There’s something to be said about drafting for defensive needs: it’s one thing to find a player who excels at locking down one positional group, it’s another to run into a talented, switchable forward who in time could possibly guard 1-5 depending on the situation.

Isaiah Jackson is of that ilk because of his combination of size, length and speed. 6’10” guys with his natural gifts don’t grow on trees, and was a reason why someone like Precious Achiuwa out of the 2020 class was valued as a first round talent.

Both prospects are raw offensively but have offered enough glimpses to suggest offensive skill development, and their ability to guard multiple positions and patrol the paint defensively is rarer than some evaluators might care to admit.

Despite not having an overly muscular build or superb strength base, what Jackson doesn’t have is made up for in his lateral quickness and mobility, and in some cases his straight-line speed allows him to cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time. Jackson’s even shown the unusual ability to swat shots behind the arc.

How many bigs actually have the speed, length and verticality to close out on a shot like that and secure the block? Even past his physical tools, there’s timing and anticipation that plays into actually pulling it off. He may not look like a lottery talent from the surface, but give Jackson time to further develop some of his offensive skills and he could turn out to be one valuable weapon in the NBA.

So what does he have to work with already? How does he earn minutes and keep himself on the floor offensively? Any play that gets Jackson moving to the basket is a winner, as he can cut and make defenses pay for playing off of him or not putting enough of an emphasis on blocking him out.

All Jackson needs is a little bit of space, and he’s gone. I wouldn’t consider him the quickest twitch big by any means, but when you combine his first step and long strides, all he needs is recognition of a small window and he can get to the rim in a hurry. Whether it’s off of cuts in half court sets or rim running in transition, Jackson creates advantages against the defense because there just aren’t many players of similar stature who can keep up with him.

He also has a sizable advantage when going for put backs off of offensive rebound opportunities. Jackson’s more than able to corral his own miss in traffic and go straight up on his second jump quicker than the defense can properly contest.

As long as he’s engaged and running the floor like he’s capable of he can snare boards that the opposing team doesn’t even expect him to be in the vicinity of. Jackson’s verticality and leaping ability are game changers on both ends of the floor when rebounding the basketball.

What a lot of this conversation sums up is that as long as Jackson is aware and giving effort, his athletic prowess can make up for deficiencies and allow him to dynamically impact the game on both ends. That’s not a normal statement to utter about any player coming in as a rookie.

One area I’m very intrigued to see if he can make immediate strides in is with his jump shot. While he never showcased a shot from behind the arc, he did make a concerted effort to start taking more mid-range looks when he had them, and even showed a few examples of making contested pull-ups off of a few dribbles or a jab move.

Anything that Jackson can look to do off the dribble is a plus because he can draw so much defensive attention with one move. If he can make a jab step a more consistent move to go to along the baseline or off a quick catch, as I already outlined he’s too quick off the bounce for some bigs to contain on their own. Forwards who have the talent to draw a double team and set up other guys for open perimeter looks are all the rage in today’s NBA, and if he can make progress as a pull-up shooter that only adds to his case as an emerging offensive threat.

Normally players are judged on how credible their jumper is from a breakdown of their mechanics and consistencies from the charity stripe. When looking at Jackson’s free throw stroke, it’s clear that there is considerable room for improvement on his perimeter shot. Fluid follow through, one motion, no hitch whatsoever. Everything about his motion looks natural.

And if this turns out to be another one of those situations like Bam Adebayo where Jackson could actually shoot all along and he just didn’t get the reps to build confidence, then some team is going to get a steal.

Obviously he’s not a ball handler or major creator in isolation, and his playmaking awareness is below average up to this point given what was seen in high school and college settings, but the skills and physical abilities around those two things are there which gives me hope that he can expand his game like other versatile forwards have of late.

There’s no questioning the talent for Jackson. He has a lot going for him and even more promise with the right development. But there are plenty of things for him to work on, and they’re all generally tied to his lack of strength.

Jackson displayed poor technique boxing out on both ends of the floor, and his post-up game needs work depending on how far out from the basket he establishes himself. I don’t think he’s weak or generally plays weak, but there are times he could’ve absolutely gotten lower and done a better job fighting for position on the block.

And it’s not like Jackson doesn’t have ability to score on a hook shot should he have control in the post. His foot work is serviceable and he has soft touch on those shots. But being able to put himself in position to even get a good look on a runner or hook like that over his shoulder or on the move starts with sealing his man off with proper technique. And it’s not there for him right now. As he adds to his lower base and fills out a little more, that can be something that improves with proper coaching.

Now again, I attribute a weakness in his game like that to not having the same lower body strength to work with as some of the matchups he’ll likely go up against in the league. Others may argue that if he fixes what I outlined from an approach standpoint, that he can make up for some of those other concerns and pull off a seal and scoring move just fine. But one possession I can recall against Auburn exemplifies my concerns perfectly.

Jackson came up to set the screen at the top of the key, rolled but couldn’t shake his man and got pushed off his spot. He found a way to post up, but his man got to exactly where he needed to be to contest straight up and force the miss. Jackson had no leverage to further back his man down and get a better look on the hook, and that comes from the fact that he never had proper position to begin with all because he couldn’t pop off the screen with the force necessary.

He’s still 19 and physically maturing, so these concerns hopefully will wipe away with enough years playing professionally and being part of a well-rounded strength and conditioning program.

But as I mentioned above, the effort and hustle have to be there at all times for him to maximize his potential on the floor.

Plays like I saw towards the beginning of Kentucky’s game against Kansas are unacceptable.

Jackson didn’t sprint out to get back on defense, but instead jogged up the court, and even when he was near the basket didn’t put forth the effort to box out the opposing big and prevent the easy deuce.

I can almost assure you someone from the Kentucky staff reviewed that play and called him out on it because Jackson is much better than that. His runouts need to be of the same quality of Isaiah Stewart of the Detroit Pistons for example on a consistent basis.

If Jackson can move up and down the court like THAT and not let anyone get the edge on him in transition, then he puts himself in position to make so many plays that other dream they could make. And he can do it just by putting in the effort! Truly special stuff.

That’s why I can’t sell stock on Jackson as a lottery level talent. He got better from the start of the season, showed more promise on the offensive end and took advantage of more of his physical talent on the defensive end with the right attention and awareness, which is a dangerous proposition for all of the teams that don’t take him on draft night.

Jackson has a long way to go in terms of processing and understanding the NBA game. There will be times during his rookie season where he’ll get on the court and things will just happen quicker than he can initially anticipate. It happens to EVERY rookie.

But give him time and seasoning with the right coaching staff who’s willing to be patient with him similar to how the Miami Heat have operated with Achiuwa, and there could be quite the reward at the end of the tunnel.