Standing 5-foot-9 and weighing 180 pounds soaking wet didn't prevent former dunktastic guard Nate Robinson from carving out a memorable 11-year NBA career.
Robinson - who will star as Boots in the upcoming "Uncle Drew" film - was the little engine that could, overcoming his small stature to hold his own against giants with his elite athleticism and fearless approach to the game.
Alabama's Collin Sexton, the eighth overall pick in the 2018 draft to the Cleveland Cavaliers, registered as the fifth-shortest prospect with shoes (a touch under 6-foot-2) out of those who partook in this year's combine. He's not as tiny as Robinson, but he'll likely experience many of the same challenges Robinson had to play his way through being a smaller guard, though Sexton has a ton more upside.
As was the case at the collegiate level, the SEC Freshman of the Year will likely be tasked with running an offense as a professional, despite not being a prototypical pass-first point guard. Sexton needs the rock in his hands to be his best self, but that's not going to translate to a lot of assists (1.3-to-1 assist-to-turnover rate of ) barring a transformation.
Perhaps he'll get lucky and LeBron James will choose to remain with the Cavaliers this summer, thereby taking pressure off the youngster to execute as a playmaker more so than he probably should.
Robinson was never one to facilitate. He didn't have it in him, as he was an off-guard stuck in a point guard's body, reaching at least seven assists per-36 minutes just once - 2011-12 while with the Golden State Warriors. When the ball hit his hands, his instincts told him to create for himself or chuck it up from behind the arc where he was a respectable 36-percent shooter.
The streaky Sexton, on the other hand, took four 3-pointers per game with the Crimson Tide at a 33.6 percent conversion rate. Those numbers should be on the rise as he becomes more and more comfortable from distance, but range was certainly a weak point in college.
While shooting from the perimeter didn't come easy to Sexton, his explosiveness in getting to the rim did wonders for his stock. He was consistently aggressive, and was difficult to contain once he turned on the jets, getting to the free-throw line the seventh-most times of any player in the nation.
Collin Sexton vs. Nate Robinson (College)
| MP | PTS | TS% | TRB | AST | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collin Sexton (Freshman) | 29.9 | 19.2 | 56.7 | 3.8 | 3.6 |
| Nate Robinson (Junior) | 31.5 | 16.4 | 58.7 | 3.9 | 4.3 |
Perhaps we'll one day see Sexton take to the skies at All-Star weekend in the annual Slam Dunk contest, which is where Robinson gained notoriety as a three-time winner of the event. He's already won the McDonald's All-American Dunk Contest, so we've seen his creativity in the air on display before.
Truth be told, Sexton probably won't need that platform to put himself on the map like Robinson did, but a strong showing on such a stage could still go a long way.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)
