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Photo via Philly.com
A sensational sophomore season put Maalik Wayns into the National spotlight and into the eyes of NBA Scouts. The small, but tough scoring guard is proving to be quite the leader over the years. He is not the above the rim athlete that recent point guard prospects are, more of a seasoned, classic game manager.
Wayns is a 6-2 185 lbs. pure point guard with natural instincts. This season, his junior campaign, Wayns has displayed more of a scoring knack with the way this Villanova Wildcats team is put together. His scoring ability is what separates him from other pass-first, but limited point guards. During his sophomore season he shared the play-making and scoring with Scottie Reynolds in 2010 and Corey Fisher in 2011, but this season the keys to the team are in Wayns grasp.
As a scorer Wayns is pretty complete. He has a solid jump-shot that extends to the NBA three and he hits it consistently. His shooting is most impressive from the mid-range which is a lost art in the game of basketball, but Wayns shoots it well. This year he has shown the ability to score on the catch-and-shoot as well as off the dribble. Wayns has solid scoring instincts as a point guard with the skill to get to his spots on the floor.
Off the dribble Wayns is a duel threat. When he is in attack mode Wayns he uses a “street dribble” to get to his spots with relative ease. He is crafty off the bounce while also utilizing pick-and-rolls well slipping into the lane. Wayns does not have elite size at 6-2 or the athleticism to finish over the defense, but is quick enough to get into the teeth of the defense. Playing in the guard-attack system has allowed Wayns to develop a nose for the rim and a scorer’s mentality when needed. He is an aggressive penetrator, which plays well off his shooting skills and sets up his teammates with his passing ability.
When he switches over to being a game manager he in his natural element. Wayns is a pure point guard that gets his teammates involved when not relied on to score the bulk of his teams points. He is an average sized point guard, but is not built for the wear-and-tear of a shoot first point. Getting in the lane usually calls for taking contact, which results in bumps, bruises and free-throws. Wayns is a great foul shooter, but the banging is an unnecessary evil. Wayns gets the ball to scorers in good positions to knock down shots. He has the creativity and speed to distribute the ball in the half-court and in transition.
Through the season to date Wayns has shown a polite combination of passing and scoring. He is the leader and most complete offensive player on his team requiring him to do more than he would be asked of at the next level.
On defense Wayns is a good perimeter defender. He has a good mixture of speed and quick hands that allow him to harass the opposition. His off-ball defense is quality masking offensive players and denying the ball. In man-to-man he uses his quickness (hands and feet) to move step-by-step with offensive players and creating turnovers. He is not particularly long, so his speed is the key to defend quick and big point guards.
Overall, Wayns is a very complete player and with three years in a major conference he is seasoned. Playing in the Big East subjected Wayns to playing against NBA players and in an NBA tough conference. Despite being mainly a scorer this year Wayns is one of the most complete point guards in college basketball today.
