Carl Krauser

Last year, as Pittsburgh surprised much of the Big East, the country learned the name of the gutsy junior guard for the Panthers, Carl Krauser. After an early tournament exit, the exciting 6-foot-1, 200-pound Krauser was tempted by the lure of NBA money, but wisely chose to return for his final season in navy and gold after playing poorly in Chicago and learning that he is more likely to go undrafted than be a 1st round pick.

Krauser is a bruising combo guard, more likely to scrap for a rebound -- he averages almost 5 on the season -- or pick your pocket than he is to finesse dribble his way into the lane or dazzle with a crossover. Hard-nosed and energetic, the Pitt senior has thus far posted nearly identical numbers to last season, but without the upperclassmen as his supporting cast he enjoyed a year ago. He always seems to come up big in the biggest games, often in the clutch, most recently in a win at home over a ranked Syracuse squad.

In that game, Krauser scored a career-high 32 points on 8-for-13 shooting and an eye-popping 13 of 14 free throws. More importantly, Krauser was the spark that helped them overcome a pesky Syracuse zone and some tired legs on the way to a Pittsburgh win. Krauser helped energize his teammates in the second frame by fighting for loose balls with his typical reckless abandon and turning a series of Syracuse miscues into easy points. In short, it was just the sort of gritty performance that Pitt fans have grown accustomed to, and Big East opponents have learned to hate.

As a pro prospect, Krauser doesn't wow anyone with his size (he measured out at just 6-1 in Chicago), body or shooting, but he does do a lot of things well. Krauser is a defensive hawk and rebound force, averaging over 4 rebounds and a shade under 2 steals a game, though numbers alone don't do justice to his tenacity and disruptive effect, especially in the half court. In addition, the senior guard leads the Panthers in scoring (16.8) and assists (4.5), not to mention effort, leadership and clutch shooting.

The biggest knock on the sturdy Krauser is that while he's a good shooter (40% on threes), he's not an NBA shooting guard, and while he's a good floor leader, he's not jet-quick enough on the drive or supremely accurate as a passer. Again, lots of things well, nothing mind-boggling. Moving off the ball this season has made Pitt a better team, but it doesn’t necessarily say much about Krauser’s ability to make teammates better. Being 25 years old in May doesn’t say much about his potential to improve dramatically either. That said, plenty of successful pro guards have learned what they needed to learn to overcome obstacles -- Charlie Bell and Maurice Williams in Milwaukee, for example.

Krauser is a second-round pick at best at this stage, if he's even drafted. But he's a winner with upside and a nose for the ball, something that can -- and often does -- transcend raw skill, athletic ability and size. Look for Krauser to try and prove his worth through summer league or training camp or go to Europe will he teams will live with his flaws and relish his ability to put the ball in the basket.

Strengths
Krauser is an extremely talented ball-handler; his ability to handle the basketball is easily one of his biggest assets. He is a very creative dribbler and knows all the little tricks to get to the hoop and get his shot off. He has a nice floater he uses against the big boys in the paint. He is very crafty around the hoop and is a strong finisher for a guard in the paint. He is not afraid of contact around the basket and is physically a well built PG. For his size, he is an effective rebounder and he can over power other PG's, be it through rebounding or posting them up on offense with his sheer desire.

At times, Krauser has shown to be a very good PG at the college level and knows how to be the orchestrator on offense when he is focused. He is a gifted passer; and can make passes most other PG's cannot make, thanks to his creativity with the ball in his hands. If there is an opening for a pass in the post or on the fast break, Krauser will usually find it, often in spectacular fashion. He likes to make the flashy passes and you could say that he has a flair for passing. He is good at finding the open man and using his first step off the dribble to penetrate to the basket and kick it back out to the open shooter. He plays the game at a high speed and is dangerous in the open court.

On the defensive end, he is very effective at times, and has shown that he can be a tenacious defender when he wants to be. He has good feet, plays intense defense on the ball and knows how to get into the passing lane to come up with steals.

For his size, he is a strong guard and has a solid wingspan that helps him on the defensive end. He has big strong hands and when the ball is in his possession it is hard to take it away from him. He also uses his strong hands to get he gets steals and grab loose balls.

Krauser is an emotional leader from the PG position, that is one asset that could set Krauser apart from the rest of the competition. Krauser is a true competitor and you can tell he always wants to win. He plays the game confidently and he has a certain swagger and an aura about him that is hard not to like. He communicates well with his teammates and is also not afraid to get into their face if they make a mistake. His Bronx New York background is shown in his game because he plays with the typical toughness and swagger that is associated with New York City PGs.

Weaknesses
Krauser is an improving three-point shooter who has added range to his outside shot. However, overall Krauser is a streaky shooter from the three-point line and could have trouble adjusting to the deeper NBA line. His technique on his jump is not very good, at times it just seems like he is throwing the ball at the basket instead of shooting the ball. He tends to angle his elbow outward and he does not have very good shooting form. However, the ball does go in at times, even when it looks like there is no chance it will after it leaves his hand. It would be nice to see him develop more of an in-between game as well, showing a better ability to pull up for jump shots off the dribble from the mid-range area and such.

His shot selection at times comes into question as well. He has the ability to be a very productive and effective true PG but at times, he sometimes gets out of that role and tries to do too much on offense in terms of scoring.

Krauser likes to be flashy and at times he tries to be too flashy and make plays that are high risk, but high reward in terms of getting on Sportscenter. Concepts like controlling the tempo and even making simple plays like the pick and roll are not places where he particularly excels at. That will deter some teams from drafting him because most do not want a careless PG who struggles to run a half-court offense.

Despite his exceptional overall ball handling ability, at times he gets complacent and makes turnovers. He has a tendency to be careless with the ball at times; he makes some very impressive plays on offense but can also make some major mistakes that stem from things that his team just does not need. His overall focus just isn't there at times; he appears to turn his concentration on and off depending on when he needs it most. By that point, his team is often already way behind. The first round of both the NCAA and Big East tournament would be great examples of this. Pitt lost to a lot of teams that they simply had no business losing to, like Bucknell and St. John's, and were wildly inconsistent throughout the year, so part of the blame for this has to fall on their PG. Its hard to blame his age for this considering that he is already older than almost every PG in this draft, so how much more mature will he get? As it stands right now, there isn't one particular area that he really stands out in, except maybe his ball-handling. The problem is no one drafts a player or brings him off the bench just so he can handle it for them.

In terms of physical attributes, Krauser is not the quickest or fastest guard around. He is very quick with the basketball in his hands and plays good defense, but he does not run the court that well or possess the type of explosiveness you would like to see out of an NBA PG. It would be ideal if Krauser had above average athletic ability to make up for his other faults, but he has about average athletic ability if not slightly below average.

Another issue that is brought up with Krauser is his age; he is not the normal age for your typical college junior. He will be 24 years old in May (3 years older than your typical junior) and some scouts will be not as high on him because of that.


Competition
As a junior this year he had 19 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds against Syracuse, 14 points, 15 assist and 8 rebounds against West Virginia, 21 points 7 rebounds against UCONN and 18 points 9 rebounds at Villanova. When he was a sophomore, he scored 24 points against at UCONN against Taliek Brown. He also has had quality games against Syracuse, Alabama and Notre Dame. His assist numbers have went up every year he has been in college.

2003-2004: In a game against Chris Thomas and Notre Dame, Krauser had 15 points and 3 assists as his team won the game, but Chris Thomas dominated him with 29 points and 9 assists.

2002-2003: Saw limited minutes, of little significance as a whole.

Outlook
Krauser has declared for this year's draft, without an agent as of right now in order to preserve the final year of his college eligibility.
"I'm going to leave my options open to come back to school," said Krauser. "I'm going to see if I can get invited to the Chicago camp and see how well I can do out there. I just want to put myself in position to compete against the best, just go out there and play to the best of my abilities and make the right decision for me and my family."
"The second round could be good enough," Krauser said. "But at the same time, if I come back and me and my teammates have a good season, then I could come out in the first round next year. That would be a no-brainer."
"Money is not an issue for me right now," he said. "I haven't had a passion to play for money. My goal is to play against the best and show my talents. I wouldn't go overseas or to the CBA. I'd come back to Pitt. I've gone 23 years without being rich. What's another year?"
Something that Krauser might be planning on doing is keeping his name in the draft and should he go undrafted, return next season to Pitt. NCAA rules state that he is allowed to do so, granted he does NOT hire an agent and notifies his school of his intentions within 30 days after the draft. He must also abide by all other NCAA rules regarding amateurism, like paying his own way to draft camps and workouts. This is risky business, though, because 2nd round picks have no guarantees, and he might be better off coming back for another year and elevating his stock by improving on the weaknesses stated above. The problem is that with teammates Chris Taft and Chevon Troutman gone, Pitt is going to have a tough time next year in a much stronger Big East.

Comments
Krauser is a tough aggressive guard that can defend, handle the basketball and make his teammates better though finding them with creative passing. I think he would make a good solid PG off the bench at the next level. One of his best attributes is his competitiveness and confidence; he has a similar mentality to the game that almost all the great ones have. Krauser is true a competitor.

On defense, he has the ability to be a very good lockdown defender but he does not always play aggressively on defense. He has the ability to really harass the opposing teams PG's, but his intensity in certain games is sometimes not there. If he brings his best defensive effort every game, he has the potential to be a fine defender.

The only thing in question about Krauser is his decision-making at times during games and his overall shooting ability. He has a 1.4 to 1 assist to turnover ratio, and that is not good considering he is a potential PG in the NBA. He shows flashes of brilliance passing the basketball at times, he makes passes not many PG's can make, and other times he is careless with the basketball.

In terms of shooting if he shows that he can consistently knock down a NBA three-point shot during workouts. I think he has the ability to be a late first round pick, although with how stacked this draft is already with PGs, that appears to be more realistic possibility next year with the impending age limit coming in. This year he is most likely a 2nd round pick with a decent shot at going undrafted. He is not an outstanding athlete at the PG position, but his toughness and ball handling ability make up for that. Personally, I think there are many similarities in terms of ball handling creativity between him and former New York PG and current NBA standout Jamaal Tinsely.

Krauser is a tough minded PG, he is not afraid of contact and has the ability to run a NBA team from the PG position.

This particular scout (although many at DraftExpress disagree) honestly believes his age is not really a factor, sure he is 2-3 years older than the typical college junior, but if he can play that is all that matters. I do believe Krauser can play at the next level and be very effective.

Facts
Nicknamed Black Magic.