Let's talk about Jamil Sheriff
I will no longer go into detail about JFort's game, so let's talk about what you might have missed in case you haven't been watching the Tigers this summer. As previously stated in this blog, Jamil's defense is impeccable. A combination of strength, agility, fast hands and seemingly endless energy, he excels both in man-to-man and off ball defense, which is quite rare. Stronger than most guards, he can keep up with just about anybody in a foot race and he has great defensive instincts to boot. He's shown great anticipation of passes and doesn't gamble too much. Even if he isn't a lock down defender (yet), he can tire anyone out with his relentless hustle and those fast hands of his.
On the offensive end, he is a very good conductor of the offense, although he doesn't necessarily rack up the assists. What he gives the team is a calming presence, similar to the one by Fortuna (and to a lesser extent, Daquioag). I don't know how exactly to put it, but the team just looks more relaxed and confident when he's on the court. He is also good in pushing the ball up in transition, although his finishing skills at the rim can use more polishing. For his scoring, his handles are adept enough to probe the defense for openings before attacking either with a short pull-up jumper, or a lay-up. However, his best trait on offense is possibly his decision making; Jamil rarely forces up a shot outside of his comfort zone, and he doesn't pick up his dribble in inopportune times.
Of course, Jamil still has to work on some things in his game, specifically his outside jumper. While reliable from mid-to-short range, he will greatly benefit if he can stretch his jumper out to the three-point line. This can play out in a number of interesting scenarios;
It can stretch the opponent's defense, giving both Sheriff and the four other guys on the floor more room to operate. Opposing teams will have to think twice about sending a double team to the likes of Teng, Mariano and Abdul when Ferrer and Sheriff are waiting and capable to hit from downtown.
Once the defense has been stretched, the lanes will open up and allow Sheriff to probe his way, either for a layup or to find other players who are cutting to the basket.
Finally, it will allow Jamil to further take advantage of his size and strength advantage over the typical UAAP point guard. Whereas some teams or players just dare him to shoot from the outside, they will now have to play him man-to-man in order to cover his outside shot, which will allow him to bully opposing PGs by attacking them off the dribble.
That is just the tip of the iceberg, as the possibilities of what Jamil can do with a decent three-point shot are really endless. Not saying that this guy is the second coming of Chris Paul, but he is an important player for the Tigers and his play at the point will be a good barometer for how well the team will do this year. As for his place among the UAAP's elite PGs, who knows? Coach Pido is known for getting the most out of his players' potential, and aside from UE's Roi Sumang, there really isn't any other point guard in the UAAP who stands out. Jamil Sheriff could be that guy.
