Dwayne Collins

Kyle Nelson

Steadily improving every year since arriving at Miami, center Dwayne Collins has established himself as a reliable presence in the ACC. Now that the ACC schedule is winding down and the post-season is rapidly approaching, Collins must take advantage of opportunities to show scouts that he is worth a look in the second round.

At 6’8 with a chiseled 232-pound frame, Collins has adequate height for an NBA power forward, but is severely undersized for his natural position of center. He is able to compensate somewhat with a tremendous wingspan (rumored to be 7’3), terrific frame and solid athleticism. Though he does not possess elite explosiveness or quickness, he is clearly above average and has the length and aggressiveness to compete at the next level.

On the offensive end, Collins has progressed slowly throughout his time at Miami, even if he still has a raw post game. He shows average footwork but looks more comfortable receiving the ball with his back to the basket these days, able to resort to a drop-step, a variety of hook shots, and even, at times, a turnaround jump shot. He is shooting a spectacular 60.4% from the field, which ranks him tenth among prospects in our database. This is indicative of the excellent position he’s often able to establish around the basket, as well as his very good finishing ability. Similarly, he continues to get to the line at a nice rate, averaging 8.9 free throw attempts per 40 minutes pace adjusted and ranking in the top 20 of our database in free throw attempts per possession, even if he shoots just 56.9% from the line.

Being on a team without a true point guard has not helped his progress, but his high level of activity and aggressiveness on the offensive glass has helped him find scoring opportunities. He ranks tenth among prospects in our database in offensive rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted, and has the motor and wingspan to suggest that he can translate this ability to the next level. As we have written before, scouts like to see such hustle from undersized collegiate post prospects.

The problem will Collins remains his inconsistency from game to game, as well as his very high turnover rate. He’s a fairly mechanical offensive player, and thus has problems creating shots for himself if he can’t simply overpower his matchup. Improving his ability to put the ball on the deck, particularly with his left hand, would help tremendously, but he also needs to work on developing counter moves and utilizing fakes more effectively. Collins’ basketball IQ appears to be just average, as he makes some questionable decisions from time to time.

As we have written before, he must also work on elevating more in the paint in order to more effectively utilize his length and score against taller and more athletic defenders. Projecting his offensive game to the next level, his ceiling remains limited, and it’s unlikely that he’ll ever develop into a terribly polished scoring threat.

Defensively, Collins has made significant progress and has emerged as one of the ACC’s better post defenders. He is still at his best close to the basket, utilizing his strength, above average timing, and low center of gravity to hold his own on the blocks at this level. Collins has continued to work hard on the defensive glass, as well, averaging 7.8 defensive rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted. He has gotten better defending big men away from the basket, but his just average lateral quickness will not set him apart at the next level. More perimeter oriented big men have given Collins trouble this season and he must prove to scouts that he will be able to adjust to better competition if he wants to play a role at the next level.

Dwayne Collins has had a solid senior campaign thus far, but he has not yet proven that he can compete against NBA-caliber athletes on a nightly basis. Miami’s last game of the season, against Florida State, will allow him the opportunity to match up against Solomon Alabi, Chris Singleton, and Xavier Gibson, three NBA-caliber athletes, and prove that he can produce. From there, the ACC Tournament, the NIT, and the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament will provide Collins additional opportunities to show scouts that he can successfully transition to the next level.

Joey Whelan

Largely overshadowed by the tremendous exploits of his teammate Jack McClinton, Miami forward Dwayne Collins put together a fine season, finishing second on the team in scoring and tops in rebounding. While his play was generally inconsistent at best, the Miami native did turn some heads with a couple of key performances, including a 16-point, 14-rebound showing on the road against Connecticut, and a 23-point game at home against Virginia Tech. With McClinton graduating, the Hurricanes will likely be leaning more heavily on the returning big man to help establish their offense inside, and that should also result in a jump in playing time as well from the 24 minutes he registered last season.

Physically, Collins definitely fits the mold of the undersized power forward at the NBA level. He stands roughly 6-8 but has a strong frame that carries nearly 240-pounds, a trait that allows him to establish position very well on the block, and appeared to be much more chiseled when we last saw him at the LeBron James Skills Academy this summer. Perhaps the best asset the senior possesses in his tremendous wingspan which allows him to finish over the top of taller post defenders and rebound well outside of his area.

Collins is definitely an above average athlete at the collegiate level, but he isn’t going to blow scouts away. He runs the floor pretty well for a frontcourt player and has decent quickness in the post, but is not overly explosive finishing around the rim.

Collins is very limited in his offensive scope and skill right now, attempting 91 percent of his shots in the post or immediate vicinity of the basket according to Synergy Sports Technology. While he has proven to be a strong finisher thanks to his strength, length and constant hustle, he will need to continue to develop his ability to score in a variety of ways in order to be successful against NBA-caliber defenders. Collins has two somewhat inconsistent moves he relies on right now, the first being a quick drop step to the baseline and the second being a hook shot to the middle of the paint. The touch on his hook waivers from time to time and due to the lack of elevation he gets with this move, it will be tough for him to execute is successfully against taller more athletic big men. The baseline move is solid, but again, a lack of handles often results in him turning the ball over or losing control just long enough to allow the defense to reestablish itself. When neither of these moves is working, Collins had a tendency to just bull his way to the basket –something he will not be able to do with the same level of success in the NBA.

The rest of his game is built almost entirely on sheer hustle. Collins ranks in the top ten in our database in offensive rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted as well as free throws per 40 minutes –a testament to his effort level. The senior is an absolute workhorse inside, hauling in plenty of rebounds that are out of his area thanks to his huge wingspan and tireless work ethic. He also does a tremendous job of creating contact with defenders and then finishing despite that contact, getting to the free throw line at an absolutely fantastic rate. These are the types of numbers and characteristics that will endear Collins to NBA personnel.

Where he needs to make strides now is developing the ability to score away from the basket. He runs the floor well enough in transition, but is not very fluid when it comes to catching the ball and finishing while on the run. He almost never attempts jump shots from outside of five feet, but when he does it becomes very obvious that he needs a great deal of time and space to do so comfortably. While there isn’t a tremendous amount of material to work from in dissecting Collins’ jump shot from, his 58.3 percent free throw shooting rate from last season is a pretty good indication of where his mid-range game stands. For a player who attempts 9.9 free throws per 40 minutes, a bump in his shooting from the charity stripe will do a lot for his scoring numbers.

Defensively, Collins performs exactly as you might expect a player with his physical and offensive makeup to perform – he is at his best close to the basket. His strength allows him to hold his position on the block without getting backed down often and his length allows him to alter more shots than he should given his size. Still, it is clear the forward struggles when he is forced to step away from the paint. Versatile big men can shoot over him from mid-range and while his overall speed isn’t terrible, Collins doesn’t appear to have the lateral quickness to defend the pick and roll consistently at the next level.

This is going to be a big season for Collins now that he has a chance to establish himself as a major factor in the ACC. While increasing his scoring numbers (10.6 points last year) will go a long way towards earning him more notoriety, increasing his versatility as a scorer will be paramount to his chances of being drafted. He will also need to improve his ability to defend quicker players away from the basket as this is something he will be expected to do if he should make an NBA roster. The first few games of the season should give us some indication as to whether or not Collins has started to add these additional nuances to his game, but certainly given his length and hustle the Miami forward stands a shot to hear his name called in June.