Mark Payne

Mark Payne is a guy I've been watching this year. He's a 4th-year junior at UC-Davis. As a soph he put up some impressive efficiency numbers, but did so taking fewer than 6 shots per game and with little in the way of a perimeter game. What was impressive is he did this while running the point for the Aggies and posting a 2.4 A/TO. Another trait of Payne's that stands out is he's a 6'7" PG. This season Payne has become the Agggie's leading scorer while maintaining excellent efficiency and has put himself in the draft discussion in doing so.
With any small college player there are some issues that need to be discussed and analyzed. The first question is: How many ridiculously good numbers does Mark Payne put up and what are his weaknesses? Small college players must dominate their level. Stephen Curry did and he was able to make a smooth transition to NBA player. Payne has a couple of numbers that stand out. His career 2-point pct. is over .600 and he's averaging 2.9 steals per game. The other numbers are good enough, but fairly ordinary. The next question would be whether he is a PG, SG or SF. At 6'7" Payne brings some scary potential as a PG. At 6'7" we also have to wonder about his quickness. As a SG, he is still in the early stages of proving his scoring prowess. Early signs are encouraging enough to make me think that this is his most likely position. As an SF he's a little undersized, but has good athletic ability, so he might be able to make it work.
Payne is still somewhat of a longshot. The size/athleticism combo is there, but he's a late bloomer just arriving on the prospect scene at an age when most players are seniors. He's also at a small college that right now appears to be a longshot to make the tournament. In his favor is the guard crop is pretty thin this year.