School: St. Joseph’s
Year: Sophomore
Height/Weight: 6’7, 197 lbs
Strengths:
Charlie Brown was one of the most underrated scorers in college basketball this past season. The 6’7 wing from Philly can fill it up in a variety of ways, and that scoring ability was on display often, as he eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark in just two seasons. His ability to create his own shot in a variety of ways makes him a tough cover, and he plays with extreme confidence on the offensive end.
He can knock down threes, use his handle to slash and get into the lane, has a deadly mid-range jumper, and knows how to use his size to take advantage of smaller defenders in the post. Brown showcases a tremendous amount of skill and craftiness every time he’s on the court, and always keeps defenders guessing thanks to the wide array of moves he has in his bag.
A big part of what makes Brown an intriguing prospect is his size and athleticism. At 6’7, Brown has the height and quickness to guard the 1-4 positions. On the offensive end, he’s skilled enough to be a shooting guard at the next level. That height will give him a size advantage over most defenders, and he’s proven in college he knows how to take advantage of size mis-matches.
Charlie Brown is an excellent ball handler. He’s also incredibly shifty, and that combination allows him to get by his man to create shots for himself or teammates. A couple times a game, Brown will wow you by showing off some flashy handles and leaving a defender in the dust. It’s a rare trait for a player his size, and while he isn’t really a strong playmaker yet, his handle and ability to get into the lane give him the potential to become one down the road.
On the defensive end, Brown is a strong on-ball perimeter defender. He can stay in front of guys due to his quickness, and he does a nice job of using his length to pressure and bother ball handlers. Another impressive part of his game is his rebounding ability. He has great instinct and reaction time, allowing him to track down shots quicker than opposing players. His height obviously helps him collect boards as well, and he did so at an impressive clip for a guard, averaging over 6 per game his sophomore season.
Weaknesses:
Perhaps the most glaring weakness in Charlie Brown’s game is his tendency to take bad shots. He often settles for contested jumpers early in the shot clock, a poor habit that he’ll have to shake if he wants to make it at the next level. While he is capable of knocking down an occasional contested shot, you’d like to see him pull it back out or attack the rim more often. Though Brown is a solid three point shooter, he can be very streaky. He started off the 2018-19 season shooting lights out in November and December, but really cooled off when A-10 play started. The form and release are both there for him to be a productive shooter from deep, but he’ll have to put in some work this offseason and improve his shot selection to make it happen.
Another big concern about Brown is that he disappears at times on both ends of the floor. He seems to check out of games mentally for several minute stretches, especially on the defensive end. It’s most notably seen with his off-ball defense, where he will make half-hearted attempts to help or sometimes even just watch as an opposing ball-handler drives right past him to the rim.
Offensively, he sometimes stands around too much off ball and doesn’t work very hard to get open. You’d like to give him the benefit of the doubt and write these tendencies off as frustration for how disappointing St. Joe’s season was, but NBA teams won’t take any excuses for laziness, and this will definitely be a major concern for him going forward.
Future Outlook:
Brown is a relatively unknown player to the casual basketball fan. To put him into perspective, he kind of reminds me of a mid-major version of USC’s Kevin Porter Jr. While Brown was more productive in college and doesn’t have as big of an upside as Porter, they both are incredibly skilled and can display various skilled moves to get their shots off. Additionally, they both also have questions about their laziness/focus.
When it comes to the NBA Draft, it is very unlikely to hear his name called. However, his skill and potential won’t be ignored by NBA front offices, and he’ll likely land on a summer league team and have the chance to prove himself on the court.
