Morgantown, West Virginia – Miles “Deuce” McBride has it all. For NBA scouts and executives, McBride is a prototypical professional point guard – he’s big at 6’2, he can rebound, shoot from perimeter, can leap out of the building, is a tremendous defender and, most importantly, he’s a winner.
McBride, who is averaging 15.9 points, 4.2 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game in his sophomore season, is rising up the NBA Draft Mock boards and it’s unlikely that he will remain in Morgantown for four seasons; he’s too talented and he’ll have professional teams lining up for his services.
According to NBA Draft Room, “McBride is a compact, strong and hard-nosed point guard with nice athletic ability and NBA level tools.
He’s enjoying a breakout sophomore season for the Mountaineers, scoring the ball at a nice clip, hitting his 3 point shots and taking over a leadership role on the team. He’s a point guard who can really score – and he doesn’t need to be a ball dominant player to be effective.
McBride is a stout 1 on 1 defender who slides his feet well, has pesky hands and is a ball-hawk. He’s got a strong upper body and can body up to keep his man out of the lane and can guard up one or two positions thanks to his strength.
McBride projects as a backup at the NBA level but has some sneaky Kyle Lowry-esque upside.”
Miles McBride is not a backup. Once he is drafted and makes an NBA roster, he is simply too good and too much of a winner to keep on the bench. While Jevon Carter is undersized and not a prolific offensive player, McBride is the total package, both an offensive and defensive dynamo.
In Bleacher Report’s latest mock draft, McBride is projected as the 35th pick in the 2nd round of the 2021 NBA Draft: “McBride impacts games with his open-floor speed and pesky defense. But he’s returned with more skill and confidence for scoring and playmaking.”
But it’s not just McBride’s natural, physical gifts that will make him a great player at the next level, it’s his ability to put his team on his back and single-handedly win games. McBride’s dominant performance in the 2nd half against a really good Texas Tech team is something that NBA scouts and executives will look back and remember.
In a must-win game for the Mountaineers, Miles McBride refused to allow his team to lose. McBride not only has an opportunity to leave Morgantown as one of the greatest guards in program history, he may very well go on to be the most accomplished West Virginia player in the NBA since Jerry West.
