Video breakdown: Xavier Munford can be a quality role player for an NBA club
After two breakout seasons in the G League, an international stint and a successful AmeriCup showing, Munford should be high on NBA radars
At just 25-years-old Xavier Munford has seemingly done it all. He worked his way from junior college to the University of Rhode Island, went undrafted, worked from backup in the G League to breakout star, played 14 games with the Memphis Grizzlies, played with FC Barcelona in Spain and now earned AmeriCup gold with Team USA.
Clearly Munford has grown on and off the court during this development period, and he’s proven to be a standout player at each and every level of competition. Despite not starting any of the five games played during the AmeriCup, he was third on the team in scoring at 10.2 points per game on an efficient 45 percent from the field.
NBA teams now have a plethora of data and video to peruse on Munford, and ultimately decide if he can be the third point guard on their 15-man roster, or at the very least a two-way contract option. At 6-foot-2, 180 pounds he’s definitively a point guard and his quick handle, burst and vision are all traits teams are seeking out.
Quick burst and finishing ability
Prior to the 2016–17 season Munford was traded to the expansion Greensboro Swarm where head coach Noel Gillespie quickly handed him the reigns to their offense.
Early in the season he focused on attacking the rim, which would eventually allow easier jump shots and the ability to attract attention, leaving teammates open.
Here, he uses a slight hesitation on Boris Dallo, crosses from right to left and finishes very nicely with a high-arching lefty layup. The aspect to notice is really Munford’s ability to change speeds, ultimately keeping defenders off balance and unaware of their impending doom.
This one’s more subtle as he comes off the screen, has Egidijus Mockevicius guarding him on the switch, and takes full advantage with another slight change of speed which gives him the angle for this quirky finish. The fact he can get this shot off without having to gather is also important, because it allows him an extra split second to release before defenders catch up.
Here he works the give-and-go to perfection with teammate Mike Tobey, who makes a masterful pass between defenders for the big dunk. Munford has plus athleticism at the point guard position which allows him to finish over and around larger defenders at the rim.
Last season was a mixed bag for Munford in terms of efficiency. He was the number one option for the Swarm which means more double teams, more contested shots and harder lines to the rim. This hardship showed as his splits came in at 422/316/806 as opposed to his career splits in the G League of 459/351/800. He’s now played 119 games in this league so the latter line is more likely what teams can expect.
His shot selection wasn’t ideal last year as it seemed as if he thought he had to do everything offensively, instead of relying on teammates to help spread the load. He struggled in the restricted area, only finishing 54.2 percent (84-of-155) of those attempts — league average was 60.4 percent. However, in 2015–16 when he had more offensive weapons around him, he shot almost 64 percent in the restricted area, so shot selection is clearly key with him.
He really excelled when he went with a floater instead of going head-on at larger opponents. He made floaters at 78.9 percent efficiency, but didn’t use it as often as he should have (15-of-19).
Shooting ability
His overall shooting numbers dipped in 2016–17 as noted above. The jump shot data is a tad troublesome and though this is merely a 30-game sample, it lends to question marks around his shooting consistency.
Munford had the ball in his hands a lot and the Swarm used it to their advantage out of the pick-and-roll mainly. When he attacked inside the 3-point line and either pulled up for a mid-range shot or floater he was successful. When he instead penetrated all the way to the rim, or settled for a 3, he was less efficient.
This is the type of play Munford probably needed to do more often. He waits for the screen, gets the defender on his hip and uses his quickness to pull up for the mid-range jumper. Last year on these mid-range pull ups he shot 48.5 percent (16-of-33) whereas he shot only 33.3 percent (23-of-69) on non pull up mid-range jumpers.
Munford hits this 3 out of the pick-and-roll, but it’s not a great shot really. He uses a nice in-and-out crossover to lose Patricio Garino and instead of exploiting the switch with Cory Jefferson guarding him, he pulls up for 3. He hits this one, but shot an abysmal 27.8 percent (27-of-97) on above the break 3s last season. A more optimal decision would have been using his quickness advantage and driving past the 7-foot Jefferson for an easier finish or dump off to a teammate.
Though he struggled from above the break, this is an exponentially better shot to take. The situation is almost identical to the above one, except Marshall Plumlee drops back and doesn’t defend Munford at all, so he pulls up for an open 3 instead of a contested one. Chasson Randle fights through the screen to get a hand up, but its far too late to pose any kind of real affect on the shot.
Most of Munford’s struggles shooting last year can be traced back to decisions like these. The majority of his contested shots were missed, while he made a higher amount of uncontested ones — not rocket science, but noteworthy nonetheless. Unfortunately players cannot simply wait around for wide open shots, so taking contested shots is necessary in some situations, but those need to be few and far between for an already inconsistent shooter like Munford.
Overall, he shot 26.8 percent (63-of-235) on jump shots last year. The two areas he excelled were pull up mid-range shots — mostly out of the pick-and-roll — and corner 3s. He didn’t get many chances to shoot corners 3s as a primary ball handler but he knocked down 41 percent (16-of-39) with every single one being assisted. He’s a much better shooter off the catch as opposed to off the dribble, and that’s one area he will have to improve to succeed in the NBA, where guards are expected to hit open looks off the dribble.
Passing out of the pick-and-roll
Munford can accurately be depicted as a lead guard with score-first mentality at this point in his career. His assist ratio last year was 20.1 which doesn’t seem all that low, but when compared to the league’s top point guards it doesn’t stack up. Julyan Stone led the league (for players with at least 20 games played) at 44.9 and most of the league’s elite guards came in anywhere from 27–33 in this category.
Where it gets worse is when you factor in his turnover ratio of 13.6 which is less than ideal, to put in kindly. Last season there were 115 guards who played at least 20 games in the G League, and only 21 of them had a turnover ratio of 13.6 or worse. Take a step further and the NBA had 215 guards who played at least 50 games and only 10 had a turnover ratio worse than 13.6 (Hi James Harden).
The turnovers are definitely an issue, but one encouraging note is when Munford earned his call up to the NBA with the Grizzlies two years ago, he took care of the ball very well. In his 245 minutes played — over 14 games — he only turned it over 15 times. Again, with less usage and him fitting in as a role player instead of a star, some of these issues will correct themselves.
Munford displays quality patience and decision making on this play as he finds Chieck Diallo as the roll man after a solid screen. Diallo was magical for the Swarm last season, so getting him the ball where he could be dangerous was a very smart move by Munford. Rather than taking a contested shot or forcing a drive, he made the simple play for his team.
Here’s another great example of his patience as he lets the play develop. Tobey comes up and sets a solid screen on Gabe York, Munford has the advantage with Cliff Alexander in no man’s land and decides to drop a gorgeous pocket pass to Tobey who dives to the basket for the dunk. Plays like this just didn’t happen enough, but Munford has proven capable of making them just the same.
Of all the passes I saw while scouring film for this piece, this was the most telling play. Munford has the complete advantage here and could have easily attacked Charles Garcia as the last line of defense to get to free throw line or finish the bucket. Instead, he whips his head around and finds Perry Ellis with pinpoint accuracy which allows him to pull up and knock down the open 3. Passes like these make G League guards stand out and get noticed by NBA scouts. This is a next-level play.
Pest on defense
Munford isn’t a Briante Weber-level pest on the defensive end, but he has the quickness and awareness to make a real impact. His hands are lightning quick around the ball which allowed him to tally 1.1 steals per night among numerous other deflections.
Steals like the one above are commonplace for Munford as he’s deadly when guarding one pass away. He reaches with precision, knocks the ball free and is off to the races for the finish on the other end.
Forget the end result here. Even without a block at the end of the play, this a high IQ move by Munford. Rasheed Sulaimon gets caught on a nice screen and Thomas Walkup has a wide open cut to the hoop, so if Munford doesn’t quickly recognize this and make the switch it’s an easy bucket. Sometimes it’s a very small difference in terms of who gets a call up and who doesn’t and plays like this are noteworthy.
Though he’s active on defense and reaches a lot, Munford only fouled out of one game last season, and that was the first game of the season.
Xavier Munford’s development has been a joy to watch. He still has plenty of room to grow and improve in order to become a quality role player in the NBA, but the foundation is set firmly beneath his feet and minor fixes remain.
Playing well with Team USA during the AmeriCup will only enhance the amount of eyes on him and with 18 two-way contracts still up for grabs, don’t be surprised if his name surfaces in terms of interest.
Munford is the perfect type of player to use a two-way contract on. He still has plenty of upside while his floor has risen considerably over the past two seasons.
