Why Didn't Julian Newman Make it to the NBA?

By Edcel Panganiban March 22, 2024 03:22

Julian Newman was dubbed a basketball phenom at an early age and his path to the league has been highly-controversial.

Still, the combination of his youth and skill set meant that there were many hurdles placed in front him as he tried to reach a career on the hardwood.

We are going to explore some of the many reasons why Julian Newman did not make it in his quest to the NBA.

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Height as a Limiting Factor

There are various reasons why Julian Newman can't get to the NBA, but his height remains one of the most significant. At 5'5", he is almost near the average height of professional basketball players.

He struggled to play at the professional heights of a sport in which bigger, stronger football players forced him into near-extinction.

Shot Creation and Selection

The other major factor that hurt Julian in terms of NBA potential was his shot creation and selection.

He has drawn plenty of criticism for being a ball stopper, specializing in difficult, well-guarded shots too often at the expense of team play.

But Julian's ball-hogging ways and knack for taking deep, contested three-pointers has given some pause as to how efficient he can be. Additionally, his unconventional chest-pass shot mechanics have been considered a potential point of hindrance for him at the next level.

Versus Elite Competition

There has also been some debate over Julian and how he performed against elite competition.

Although he excelled in high school, his woes when facing top 20 prospects, particularly games versus IMG and Spire, may struggle to create scoring opportunities at the highest level.

Much of the doubt surrounding him goes back to his inability to show up in big games.

Behavior and Attitude Issues

Julian Newman's on-court demeanor and some behavioral concerns have also contributed to his inability to carve out an NBA pathway so far.

Julian has a reputation as the guy who is going to pick fights, argue with people, and be an all-out malcontent on the court, which is not exactly how NBA scouts/recruiters form a “good team member” mental model.

His ejections, skirmishes, and incidents of confrontation have led to a reputation that begs the question if he is someone you could even succeed in having on an NBA team.

In addition, Julian's father, Jamie Newman, has made some headlines of his own with off-the-court comments that have carried over to hurt the family name.

Relative Lack of D1 Offers

Although Julian Newman was arguably overhyped early and went viral throughout his highlights, he did not attract many college offers — a significant factor in preventing him from making it to the NBA.

That he received so little high-level college interest, to begin with, made plenty instantly wonder if his game would translate at the top levels of both collegiate and pro ball. That limitation of the recruiting landscape made it a roadblock to his NBA quest.

Dedicated Training and Passion

Hard work made it with his strict daily schedule from lots of shooting drills being done along with the passion and hard work to perfect him into a good shooter.

However, that pursuit of excellence, likely mixed with overtraining ambitions, might have come at the expense of other skills deeply involved in professional player success, such as understanding team play and a wider skill repertoire required for elite-level competition.

Summary

There are a number of reasons why Julian Newman went from high school basketball phenom to not making it in the NBA.

Although Homeboy could hoop and clearly worked his tail off to get better, at the end of the day, he was all-island when it came to shot selection. This, combined with his low-to-mid major-level height and big-show controversies, constituted enough to destroy his dream of attaining NBA status.

In the end, these are both complicated variables that reiterate how difficult it is to play professional basketball at a high level and show just what it takes NBA players to be effective in such an environment.