Dominic James is 5’11, 177 pounds and will be a junior at Marquette. He is an explosive player with very good PG skills, he can handle the ball well, he has good passing abilities, and he is a good decision maker.
Dominic has sweet crossover moves, he likes to use his quickness to blow pass defenders and drive to the basket, and then kick it back out to a perimeter player, creating shots for them. He has a very quick first step, and enough strength to back down other guards. Even though he is 5’11, he has great leaping abilities and hangtime to throw down dunks and blocks shots like Nate Robinson, his long arms help him out as well. On defense he is a ball hawker and can easily get a couple steals a game. He is good full court presser, and good at anticipating what the offense might do to get defensive stops. He has an average mid-range shot. He hustles hard, he uses his athleticism, and his solid basketball IQ to outplay opponents. He is a very good rebounder for his size.
Dominic can be very inconsistent in many areas of his game and it’s becoming more frequent. Somtimes his attitude can be a little bit too cocky, but it is nice to see him play with good confidence. His outside shooting and free throw shooting could use some improvement. Sometimes Dominic can play a little wild and start forcing shots and shooting off balance. He still needs to work on playing a half court offense, his game is better suited for an up-tempo transition style. In the NBA his size could be an issue and he might not be able to do some of the things that he gets to do in college. Sometimes he can get out of control with the ball in his hands and he’ll turn the ball over. Although his perimeter shot is decent sometimes, it could still use some more work.
Honestly for me and for scouts I have talked with, we feel Dominic is a tough player to scout at times. Sometimes he shows flashes of being a potential star and a lottery pick, then other times he looks like he’ll go undrafted and bounce around many teams and leagues for his career. I do feel however that it was a smart choice for him to come back and play another year in college to polish up his game and get his stock back up. I will keep a close watch on him this season to see if some of his weaknesses are improving. As a best case scenario he could be like Jay Williams, and as a worst case Sebastian Telfair.
