2019 NBA Draft scouting report: Terance Mann

Before the 2019 NBA Draft arrives, Peachtree Hoops will break down more than 70 available prospects with an eye toward what the Atlanta Hawks may look to do in late June.

This edition takes a glance at Florida State’s Terance Mann.

Terance Mann is an experienced, 22-year-old wing out of Florida State University. Mann started 101 games for the Seminoles across four seasons with the program, logging over 3,600 minutes in his college career. The 6’7, 215 pound senior posted a true shooting percentage of 60.2 across his four seasons, with the one clear weakness being a lack of repetition from behind the three-point line.

Mann shot only 165 threes in his career at Florida State, never shooting more than 77 (senior season) in an individual season. He did seem to take a marginal leap forward in from behind the line as a senior, however, making 30 of those 77 attempts, putting him right at 39% from three-point-range.

It may be reasonable to expect Mann to be able to sustain his efficiency from three-point range, as his 1.16 points per possession on threes in 2019 ranks him towards the top tier of his draft class. As a career 55.2% shooter from the floor, on shots mostly inside the arc, Mann showed he was also capable of shooting an acceptable percentage from beyond the arc on 2.1 three-point attempts per game as a senior.

This is likely the key to Mann making it in the NBA, as he struggles to create his own shot, so if he can’t hit the three-point shot at a consistent rate, he will really have to be elite to hang around on defense alone. Mann can battle on the defensive end, but if he’s going to become a solid rotation player in the NBA, he’ll need to replicate what he did as a senior and shoot the three at ~35% or above on a higher volume of attempts. If he can do that and compete on defense like he did in the ACC, there will be a spot for him on an NBA roster.

Mann really does finish really well inside for his size, with 1.27 points per possession at the rim in 2019, one of the highest marks of any wing in the class. For reference, DeAndre Hunter ranked 26th in points per possession at the rim, Mann ranked 29th, and Jarrett Culver ranked 37th among the top players in this year’s class.

Mann was a staple in the lineup for Leonard Hamilton from day one because of his length, physicality and competitiveness on the defensive end. The wing often drew the tougher assignments, and managed to hold his own on a number of occasions. He was first on the team in overall win shares (5.1) as well as offensive win shares (3.2), and second on the roster in defensive win shares as a senior. He was also first on his team in BPM and OBPM. Mann’s 5.1 total win shares ranked 10th overall in the ACC in 2019.

Here’s Mann using his length to pick off an inbound pass then taking it the distance for the slam:

Mann doesn’t have the most jaw dropping stats defensively from a steals or blocks perspective, but he’s usually in the right place and has the length to contest. Here he is with a clutch, game-winning block:

He doesn’t profile as an impact guy at the next level, but Mann has played in several big games at the highest level the NCAA has to offer, winning in many cases, playing 30-plus minutes in nearly all of them. He may not be in play for Atlanta at 41 or 44, but someone should definitely take a look at Mann if they want to take a flier on a potential 3-and-D type player.

If he’s brought to Atlanta as an undrafted free agent, the path to playing time would be obviously be muddy at best with Taurean Prince, DeAndre’ Bembry and Kent Bazemore currently in the fold on the wing, along with starting shooting guard Kevin Huerter. With Atlanta likely set to take an additional wing in the top 10 of this year’s draft, Mann would just be a pickup for depth and/or a two-way guy for the club.

This is his most likely role with any club initially as an older guard (he’ll turn 23 in October) who hasn’t shown much in the way of three-point shooting so far. It will be somewhat surprising if Mann is drafted (barring an obscene combine performance), but less surprising if he ends up being an NBA player in a year or two. The ifs are pretty big, but if Mann can play defense like he did at times in the ACC and shoot the three ball like he did as a senior with an increase in volume, he has a shot to carve out an NBA career for himself.

Collegiate stats courtesy of Synergy and sports-reference.com.