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If there is one player who will be drafted high strictly on latent upside more than anything, it is Demar DeRozan. Scouts look at him and see Vince Carter, with how he can do spin moves in traffic that lead to monster dunks. Others see a lot of Rudy Gay in his combination of size, athleticism and skill set. But scouts also see a lot of Gerald Green in the freshman out of USC and the expectations for his career have been tempered from where they were a year ago.

Even though he didn’t test exceptionally impressive at the combine, the elevation and ability to do rare things in the air is extremely clear. He is dangerous in the air and will be one of the best finishers in the league. More subtly, DeRozan has remarkable balance and agility in traffic, especially when beating his man off the dribble and getting free to the bucket with a spin move in the lane.

DeRozan is inconsistent in his attempts to beat his man off the dribble. His halfcourt handle is fairy advanced for his size and age, but clearly needs improvement. He struggles to create separation when he is bodied by a defender that can keep up with him laterally. As much as anything, however, DeRozan seems to just need more reps against quality defenders in order to learn how to best use his strengths here.

If he can’t get all the way to the rim, DeRozan will frequently initiate contact in his lay-up attempts. He likes to bounce off defenders to create some separation and also draw a foul. DeRozan liked to get physical from the very outset of his collegiate career, using the savvy technique that some NBA wings don’t begin to do in earnest until their fourth or fifth season.

DeRozan will always be most useful and efficient offensively as a slasher.

The majority of his shot attempts at USC were jumpers, however. During his first few games of the season, DeRozan had a low arc to his shot caused by a horizontal follow-through. He made an adjustment around the time of the Georgia Tech game and had a much smoother release and better arc.

DeRozan was zero for his first 14 3-point attempts, spanning 12 games and finished the season shooting 16.7% in his 36 attempts. He also shot just 64.6% from the free throw line.

He will never be a great shooter, but there are enough positives (good lift, compact form, consistent mechanics) that suggest he will be a competent perimeter shooter when he gets open looks.

Many of his perimeter shots this season were off the dribble and clearly on the low-percentage/desperate side, which he’ll have to reel in immediately.

DeRozan doesn’t have or use much of a post game right now, but given how well he does on cuts to the basket and the couple of times he does post, this could be something that develops nicely if he’s encouraged to do so by the team that selects him. Few small forwards can effectively post-up these days, even those who win the MVP, so the bar is set at a level where DeRozan can exceed it.

Without the ball, DeRozan moves well within the structure of a motion offense where spacing is defined. His ability to get into the best space possible when the offense becomes more improvisational is lacking.

DeRozan is an active rebounder on both sides of the floor and particularly likes to crash the offensive glass. His lift and natural timing, plus massive hands, will make him one of the better wing rebounders in the game.

Defensively, DeRozan’s effort is consistent, but he sometimes gets a little absentminded. He will block some shots and get a fair number of deflections and steals because of his length and quickness. Like just about anyone his age, DeRozan’s help defense movement could use some improvement. One thing he does well defensively is how he closes out on perimeter shooters quickly and with a hand up, but also does so without doing the fly-by and leaving a potential 5-on-4 situation.

DeRozan’s game has flaws and limitations, but this year’s class of small forwards is decidedly weak and he presents nice value and potential for a team that doesn’t need to pick from the point guard glut.

Click here to read RealGM's draft reports on other members of the '09 class.