Alec Peters

Valparaiso power forward Alec Peters is interviewed following a light workout he conducted in Chicago. Video produced by Matt McGann.

DX Pre-Draft Workout Circuit 
-Jarrett Allen Interview and Workout
-Justin Jackson Interview and Workout
-De'Aaron Fox Interview and Workout
-Zach Collins Interview and Workout
-Ike Anigbogu Interview and Workout
-Harry Giles Interview and Workout
-Jonathan Jeanne Interview and Workout
-Tyler Lydon Interview and Workout
-Bam Adebayo Interview and Workout
-Thomas Bryant Interview and Workout
-Johnathan Motley Interview and Workout
-Frank Mason Interview and Workout
-Kyle Kuzma Interview and Workout
-Cameron Oliver Interview and Workout
-Damyean Dotson Interview and Workout
-Dominique Hawkins Interview and Workout
-Wesley Iwundu Interview and Workout

Scouting Report by Josh Riddell. Video Analysis by Ryan Thomson
 
After testing the waters for the 2016 NBA Draft before ultimately choosing to return to school for his senior season, Alec Peters was rumoured to be a possible graduate transfer for several high major programs, as his head coach Bryce Drew had left for Vanderbilt. Instead, he choose to return to Valparaiso for his final season and has become a strong example of NCAA player development by increasing his production each of his four seasons, culminating in averages of 25.6 points and 11.3 rebounds per 40 minutes on a 60.4% true shooting percentage as a senior.
 
His senior season ended unceremoniously, with Peters missing the final four games of the season with a stress fracture in his right leg, resulting in his team losing in the first round of their conference tournament. The injury robbed casual fans and NBA scouts of seeing him in the NCAA Tournament, and will likely prevent him from partaking in the pre-draft process. Still, NBA teams have plenty of film to properly evaluate Peters, with Valparaiso playing a strong out of conference schedule this year against the likes of Kentucky, BYU and Oregon, among others. He also had an outstanding showing at the Nike Academy last July, where he was matched up against many of the top players in college basketball, in front of a horde of NBA scouts.
 
Here's a closer look at the strengths Peters displayed throughout his time at Valpo:

 
Peters' clear cut NBA skill is his shooting potential for his size, as he made 2.7 threes per 40 minutes at a 41.2% clip in his four year career. He's an excellent catch and shoot player who is also capable of knocking down shots on the move, as he is able to square his feet and release his shot in one fluid motion off the catch, giving him added value as someone who can come off screens or pick and pop, in addition to spacing the floor as a spot-up shooter.
 
What will be crucial for Peters in his development is finding ways to score beyond his jump-shot, despite his average physical tools and athleticism. Measured at 6'9 with an average 6'9.5 wingspan, Peters will have a transition to make in getting his shot off against long-armed NBA athletes, especially around the rim. He doesn't possess a high level of quickness or explosiveness and combined with his average length, Peters has struggled to be productive around the rim when matched up against NBA caliber defenders.
 
With that said, Peters was much more than a jump-shooter for Valpo this season, with 44% of his shots coming from post-ups or shots around the basket as logged by Synergy Sports Technology. While he has finished at an impressive rate of 56.1% on these shots for the entire season, he hasn't converted as easily when matched up against frontcourts that possess NBA length. He will need to be craftier with his finishes around the rim to overcome his relative lack of explosiveness and length to find ways to score efficiently around the rim at the next level. He is comfortable drawing contact and getting to the line. as he averaged 7.6 free throw attempts per 40 minutes, which helped him generate points at the college level, especially with how accurate he is from the line, converting 85% of his free throws in his career.
 
There are question marks about how this will translate to NBA settings, though. Peters became increasingly comfortable putting the ball on the floor and shooting off the dribble as his college career moved on, even if he still has some strides to make in this area, converting 32.8% of his 64 pull-up jumpers according to Synergy Sports Technology. He can get to his spots with one or two dribbles before getting his feet under him to get off a good shot from inside the arc, but will need to prove he can be effective against quicker, longer defenders.
 
Peters improved his passing considerably as a senior, posting a career high 2.6 assists per 40 minutes last season and 15% assist percentage, displaying his unselfishness and feel for the game as someone who can see the floor and is willing to distribute within the flow of the offense. Many of those assists came from a standstill position, and if he can become a better passer on the move, he will have several ways to break down the defense when attacking a hard closeout.
 
Here's a closer look at the weaknesses Peters displayed throughout his time at Valpo:

 
While Peters' offensive value is crystal clear, the biggest question marks scouts have revolve around his ability to hold his own defensively. He may struggle to overcome his lack of elite physical tools defending in one on one situations, as he lacks a degree of lateral quickness staying in front of athletes on the perimeter, and doesn't have great size or length defending bigger players around the basket. He was a non-factor as a rim protector (0.4 blocks per 40 minutes this season) at the low-major level, and has never generated many steals, raising questions about which position he will guard and how he will fare against NBA level athletes.
 
On the bright side, he does play well within team defensive principles, and is undoubtedly a competitor. He works hard, knows where to be on the court, rotates well, and has a good nose for the ball to help him be first to loose balls and rebounds that fall below the rim. His average athleticism may prevent him from being a lockdown defender, but he should be able to pick up team concepts quickly and find ways to contribute on that side of the court with his competitiveness, activity level and solid IQ.
 
Peters has been an offensive force at the college level throughout his career, ending his senior season by being the second highest scorer in our top-100. NBA teams will surely covet his ability to make shots along with his feel for the game, which will give him an opportunity to carve out a role at the next level. Peters is lauded for his outstanding work ethic and has improved each of his four seasons at Valparaiso, which gives him a great chance to stick on an NBA roster long term if he continues to make strides defensively.

Mike Schmitz takes a closer look at Valparaiso forward Alec Peters's 24-points performance against Oregon. The Horizon league preseason Player of Year Peters faced a host of long and athletic frontcourt defenders in this game, making it an ideal evaluation setting for NBA scouts to observe the potential first round pick.



Mike Schmitz is the video analyst for DraftExpress. Follow him on twitter and check out the DraftExpress Video section. He will be breaking down the NBA draft in digital format all year long for us.

Ryan Thomson continues our coverage of the top NBA draft prospects in the rest of the NCAA, with a video scouting report of the #3 prospect outside the power six conferences, Valparaiso's Alec Peters.

---

More DX Conference Previews
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Big East
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Pac-12
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Big 12
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the SEC
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Big Ten
-The Top NBA Draft Prospects in the ACC

---

Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Rest of the NCAA
(#1) Shake Milton (Scouting Video)
(#2) Cameron Oliver (Scouting Video)

---

Strengths:


Weaknesses:


Ryan Thomson is a scout and video analyst for DraftExpress. Follow him on twitter and check out the DraftExpress Video section. He will be breaking down the NBA draft in digital format all year long for us.

Derek Bodner

After being named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer Team during his freshman season, Alec Peters responded by taking another big jump as a sophomore. Peters finished his second season at Valparaiso with averages of 16.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game, which earned him All-Conference First Team honors.



When Peters arrived at Valparaiso, his primary contribution was as a jump shooter, where Peters made 38.3% of his 149 three point attempts during his freshman season. That shot continues to be Peters' calling card, as he built upon that strength to become an even more dangerous shooter, knocking down 46.6% of his 178 three point attempts. To put in perspective just how prolific of a rate that was, only three players in all of college basketball who attempted at least 150 three point attempts last season did so more efficiently than Peters did.

Getting Peters open corner threes was an offense in itself for Valparaiso last season, as they did an excellent job of using screens and movement to get Peters shots from this extremely efficient part of the court, and Peters was virtually automatic from the corners. Peters moves extremely well off the ball, has impeccable footwork to step into the shot, and has a short, compact, and extremely repeatable shooting motion that allows him to get his shot off quickly and accurately with very little space.

According to Synergy Sports Technology, Peters shot 42.7% on jump shots overall, which included 44% in catch and shoot situations, 39.4% when shooting off screens, and 35.7% when shooting off the dribble. The points per possession those situations yielded (1.307, 1.149, and 0.857, respectively), were all quality marks, with both the catch and shoot (92nd percentile) and screen (84th percentile) ranking extremely high among college basketball players despite how heavily utilized they were within the Crusaders offense, and thus how much opposing defenses game-planned to take it away.

While Peters continues to make strides as one of the more diversified shooting forwards in the nation, he also added a few wrinkles to his game to make him a more diverse offensive threat.

According to Synergy, Peters posted up on 17% of his offensive possessions and was fairly efficient when doing so. His post game isn't all that advanced, consisting mainly of a jump hook over either shoulder and the occasional drop step to try to get to the basket, but for a player who Synergy logged only 27 post-up attempts during his freshman season, the diversification of his offensive game was a welcomed addition, even if his lack of lower body strength and poor lift in the lane put into question how much, if any, of it would translate to the next level.

Some driving lanes naturally open up for Peters as a result of his shooting, and he has just enough ball handling to make use of that, even flashing the occasional spin move to gain separation. Peters isn't a quick or explosive athlete, with an average first step even for his position. Once he gets into the lane, he has good touch and was able to score efficiently in the Horizon league, but seemed to struggle at times against the rare tough out of conference games Valparaiso had on their schedule. Whether or not he can score with any efficiency in the paint when he makes a jump up in competition is uncertain, but games against the likes of Rhode Island, Oregon and Oregon State this season (as well as any post-season competition) could offer some insight into this area.

Another area where Peters made some strides is as a decision maker. While the frequency with which he operated as a catch and shoot player limited the amount of decisions he had to make with the ball, his 1.9 turnovers per 40 minutes pace adjusted (and miniscule 9.8% turnover rate) was a very low number for a player who used the amount of possessions Peters did. With his offensive game expanding and seeing the occasional double team in the post, Peters seemed to make good reads out of these situations. While Peters doesn't project to be much of a shot creator at the next level, being placed in a position where he has to make decisions with the ball is always a skill that's worth being developed.

The NBA is always looking for 6-9 forwards who can stretch the floor, and Peters should be able to do that at any level. Where the biggest concern is going to come is on the defensive end, where his physical limitations present themselves with concerning frequency. He's engaged on this side of the court, but he's slow to change directions, doesn't move his feet well overall, needs to add considerable strength to hold his ground in the NBA, and isn't quick enough off his feet or with good enough shot blocking instincts to alter shots at the rim. These problems are compounded by an upright stance, a habit of biting on pump fakes, and a frequency to find himself off balance on misdirection moves. The fact that he's accumulated just 47 steals and 14 blocks in nearly 2000 minutes of action at the college level is a red flag that NBA teams will likely scrutinize.

Furthermore, Peters isn't a particularly great rebounder on either end of the court, hauling in just 2.5 offensive rebounds and 6.4 defensive rebounds per 40 minutes, pace adjusted. Valparaiso was a good defensive rebounding team, with a number of wings who could pinch down and contribute on the defensive glass, which could have impacted Peters' defensive rebounding opportunities. Peters does do a pretty good job of putting a body on his man and keeping him off the glass, so this is a concern that could fade over time, but it would be nice to see Peters rebound outside of his area with a little bit more regularity.

Peters has one certifiable NBA skill in his jump shot, and it's one that absolutely has significant value in today's NBA. The diversification Peters showed in his offensive game bodes well for his ability to continue to improve as a player, but improving his strength, quickness, and ball-handling, while continuing to make a stronger impact on defense, would go a long way to increasing the chance that Peters hears his name called on draft night when he does put his name in the mix. Valparaiso has a much tougher out of conference schedule this season, so Peters will have the chance to prove his worth against a higher level of competition.