FAYETTEVILLE — This is the last of a 12-part series reviewing the 2016-17 season for each of Arkansas’ scholarship players.
MANNY WATKINS
Position: Guard
Class: Senior
Height: 6-3
Weight: 222
Stats: 6 points, 4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 steals, 0.6 turnovers
56.4 FG%, 46.4 3PT%, 56.7 FT%, 22.3 MPG, 23 starts
Per 40 stats: 10.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 2.2. steals, 1 turnover
SEC stats: 6.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.9 steals, 0.6 turnovers
57.8 FG%, 45 3PT%, 43.8 FT%, 22.5 MPG, 9 starts
Offensive rating: 129
Defensive rating: 102.2
Net rating: 26.7
Best month: February, 7.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.1 spg, 0.4 topg, 60.5 FG%
Worst month: January, 5.3 ppg, 2.5 rig, 1 apg, 0.9 spg, 0.6 topg, 58.1 FG%
STRENGTHS
— Arguably the team’s best leader. A coach on the court who was vocal and demanding of his teammates when needed, but encouraging and nourishing too. Consummate teammate.
— Very good role player who brought a lot to the table. Wasn’t flashy but checked a lot of boxes and filled a lot of needs. Glue guy who was all about the greater good. His lack of shooting made him somewhat of a polarizing player to fans, but Arkansas averaged 129 points per 100 possessions with him on the court, a sky-high number that was the best on the team among regular rotation players.
— Capable primary ballhandler. Could grab a defensive rebound or take an outlet pass and go. Possessed solid floor vision and was a willing passer, head always up for a hit-ahead pass in transition or trying to find an open player in the halfcourt. Was a solid playmaker over the course of his career, averaging more than 3 assists per 40 minutes in each of his final 3 seasons. Ranked second on the team with 6 games of 4 or more assists as a senior. Rarely turned the ball over. Had a 3:1 assist-turnover ratio.
— Rarely, if ever, took a bad shot, which is why he shot 56.4 percent from the floor even while branching out a bit and taking more jumpers. Shot 58.4 percent inside the arc. Mastered a soft floater that he was able to release quickly, like a mini shot put. Ranked in the 80th percentile nationally by shooting 46.8 percent on those runner-type shots, according to Synergy Sports.
— Had the floater to fall back on, but was much improved attacking the basket as a senior. As a junior, he shot just 44.4 percent around the rim, but that number skyrocketed to a borderline obscene 71.7 percent this season, placing him in the 94th percentile, an impressive feat given his size and relative lack of a vertical. He often finished with touch off the glass, even off odd angles over would-be shot blockers.
— Rarely stopped moving in the halfcourt, a key in any motion offense.
— Showed off a 3-point shot that had been absent from his game prior to his senior year. Not a big sample size, but he knocked down 13 of 28 (46.4 percent) 3-pointers, all from mid-January on. Had a slow release but it didn’t matter because of the openings opposing defenses gave him. His 3 of 3 showing at Texas A&M played an integral role in earning a crucial road win. He hit 3s in half of the final 20 games and each made shot beyond the arc felt like a huge boost for the offense.
— Arkansas’ best perimeter defender, hands down. Regularly served as the primary defender on opposing teams’ wings and held up well despite mostly being undersized. A big part of the reason the Hogs held 6-7 Seton Hall forward Desi Rodriguez (4-17) and 6-8 North Carolina future lottery pick Justin Jackson (5-14) to 9-31 shooting in the NCAA Tournament. Not an overly gifted athlete, Watkins made an impact defensively with want-to and exceptional instincts. Even if opposing guards scored on him, the shot was contested most of the time. Great at using his 6-3, 222-pound frame to wall off drives. Opposing players shot 21.4 percent against him in isolation situations. Arkansas allowed 102 points per 100 with him on the floor, the best number for a guard on the team.
— Easily Arkansas’ best rebounding guard, averaging 7.1 rebounds per 40. Showed a good knack for finding the ball off the rim. He grabbed 14 percent of available defensive boards when he was on the court, a number on par with the team’s 4s (not necessarily a great endorsement of those guys).
WEAKNESSES
— Didn't command much defensive attention. While he started hitting 3s late in the year, opposing defenses were (understandably) content to cede that shot to him for the most part, sagging off him and thus cramping spacing for the rest of the offense, whether it be digging down on Moses Kingsley or sinking in to clog the paint against the threat of dribble penetration from other guards. It would not have been a big deal if any of Arkansas’ 4s posed a semblance of an offensive threat, making Watkins’ lack of a shooting threat less glaring. But that was not reality, which often left Arkansas playing 4-out basketball with 2 non-shooting threats hanging around the perimeter.
— Mostly limited to being a straight-line driver. Not many counter moves if the defense cut off his initial burst.
— Not a good free throw shooter. Shot 56.7 percent as a senior and was 58.8 percent for his career.
— Held up fairly well against taller players but could struggle against quicker guards at times. Sheer effort helped make up for some of that.
LOOKING AHEAD
Watkins played a grand total of 27 minutes as a freshman in 2014. If he had redshirted that year, he would have been an uber-valuable fifth-year senior next season. It’s pointless to assign any blame for him not redshirting. Who knew he would turn into what he did? Alas, he still had a great 3-year run.
He will most likely be remembered for his game-winning floater at Ole Miss as a sophomore and his flailing bank shot late in the win at South Carolina this year, but more important were all the little plays he made, the shots contested, tough rebounds snagged and on-time passes delivered. As important as those were all the times he led, both by example and vocally. Watkins was a great teammate and a great piece to have on a good team. He will be missed by the Razorbacks.