5 reasons why Julian Newman will make it to the next level

Julian Newman is a very interesting character to say the least. The kid has definitely displayed his talent all throughout his career. NBA scouts were very intrigued with what they saw and wondered how this kid will be able to blossom into a future NBA superstar. Many experts projected him to be the dynamic player to make it in the NBA with his skill. As time went on though, opinions of Newman started to gradually decline for a plethora of reasons. Before we analyze about why he won’t make it to the big leagues, let’s start with some background information on him.

Julian Newman is a 5’7 point guard at the Downey Christian High School in Orlando, Florida. Newman averages ridiculous numbers of 32.3 ppg (points per game), 6.9 apg (assists per game) and 5.4 rpg (rebounds per game) while shooting 47% from the field and 47% from 3 point range. All of these numbers are what true NBA superstars put up, not a senior in high school. However, there are reasons why he is putting up insane numbers at this level. Let’s take a closer look at 5 reasons why Julian Newman will not make it to the next level

1: Alpha dog mentality

Julian Newman has a tendency to play for the spotlight and be the only person running the show. An example of behavior like this would be his game against Bella Vista College Prep (Scottsdale, AZ). Newman put up 45 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists in a 84-115 loss. While these are still impressive numbers, there is a trend that follows here. In 20 of his losses, he is averaging 30.2 ppg and leading the team in shot attempts. Also, Newman’s father, Jamie is the head coach for the team. So, with that, he gets the green light to make any play he needs to make because of how talented Julian is. Julian will shoot as much as he wants because he believes he is, but the ultimate expense here is caring too much about individual accolades instead of the team’s priority, which is to win games.

2: Defensive Liability

Defense wins championships, is not always true. Defense does have a huge impact on the game and can determine who will ultimately win the game. Proclaimed prodigy Julian Newman, according to his film, does not seem that interested in playing defense. First, it does not that help that he is 5’7 and playing against people that average about 6 feet tall. But, that gives no right to not try at all on defense. There is no effort present during his games in an attempt to play defense. Many of his efforts on defense are often just hard fouls because a defender gets by with ease. The thing is that he has good movement with his body. NBA players like Chris Paul and Rajon Rondo were great defenders, despite being undersized while having more of an offensive repertoire. Julian will need to at least give his best effort on defense in order to be on a professional team

3: Making Teammates Better

The best point guards in the NBA are found making their teammates better. Players like Stephen Curry, Chris Paul and John Wall are often found making the players around them better and even turning them into all-stars. Scouts in the NBA take a close look at if a player makes his teammates better. Julian Newman unfortunately does not have the facet of his game present. His assist numbers are not bad at all, averaging 6.9 apg. This is due to simply finding a teammate open if he is doubled. Other than that, Newman does not offer anything special when he runs the offense. It turns into an isolation, which either ends up being a contested three pointer or a contested finish at the basket. The numbers are good, but numbers do not tell everything about Newman making his teammates better.

4: No consequences

High school athletes are usually given a cushion to play within themselves. Whenever they make a mistake, they are told what they did and how they can improve. Most athletes do this, unlike Julian Newman. Jamie Newman, his dad is the coach of his high school team. Because of this, Jamie gives his son the green light to do whatever needs to be done on the court. More times than not, this leads to a one man show. Since Julian is getting publicity and people coming to his game, that seems like a win. So, he gets no word of how he can improve his game as a whole, only how he can improve the individual accolades. Jamie should act more like a coach to grow his son into the most complete player for the next level. At this rate though, this seems slimmer and slimmer.

5: Ego, Ego and more Ego

During basketball games, players talk trash all the time. Part of it comes from being competitive, part of it comes from wanting to antagonizing a player and getting under their skin to get an advantage. With Julian Newman though, it is a different story. As I mentioned before, he has an alpha dog mentality which can be dangerous in a team setting. For example, Newman played against IMG academy which had some of the top recruits like Josh Green and Jeremiah Robinson. He scored 16 points, which is not bad by any means but here is where things get flipped upside down. Julian picked up two technical fouls. Furthermore, he was ejected for trying to start a fight. If he wants to be a star NBA player, his ego will need to be pushed aside and embrace the team aspect of the game.