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SALT LAKE CITY — Taylor Hendricks has the type of measurables that NBA front offices fawn over.
The Jazz rookie is 6-foot-9 with a long wingspan; he's got an 8-foot-11 standing reach with explosive jumping ability. Add in a confident-looking jumper, and it's easy to see why Utah took a swing at him with the No. 9 pick in June.
"Taylor, in theory, is a rare player," Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
In theory …
If everything breaks right, the Jazz see Hendricks as a defensive menace. He has the length and athleticism to turn into a rim protector, and he's long and quick enough to be a pest on the perimeter.
"His ability to guard the ball is what we're going to ultimately be evaluating him on, because it's something that is hard to find in the NBA," Hardy said
Right now, though, he's mostly a raw player, which is why he and fellow first-round pick Brice Sensabaugh have started the season with the Salt Lake City Stars.
Hendricks went on a meteoric rise during his freshman season at UCF. As NBA executives saw his length and athleticism, he went from barely being a top-100 recruit coming out of high school to suddenly being a top-10 NBA draft pick.
But he needs basketball reps to continue to develop, especially after being hampered by injury this summer that caused him to miss summer league. Those reps weren't going to come with the Jazz — at least not yet. They are with the Stars.
On Monday, during the Stars' home opener, Hendricks had 19 points on 7-of-15 shooting, five rebounds, three blocks and three steals as the Stars rolled to a 59-point win. There were glimpses of what makes him such an intriguing prospect.
He elevated for soaring blocks, dunked over defenders, and even hit a couple 3-pointers. There were ample mistakes, too, and he was significantly less effective during the Stars' 43-point loss the next, but there are signs of growth.
"Every day that Taylor has been with us, he's gotten better," Stars head coach Steve Wojciechowski said "I think, defensively, his understanding of defense and how he can use his God given gifts to impact the game has been high level."
The Jazz have made it clear that defense is where Hendricks will earn a role in the NBA, and he's embraced that. He knows he's not going to take 20 shots per night with the Jazz, so he caters how he plays — both in practice and in games — to that.
"Just me having that mindset and just thinking, 'How can I help this team and then the Jazz?'" he said.
Hardy said the Jazz are hoping Hendricks can become a better communicator within the defense, and learn how to use his natural traits to become a more physical player, as well. There's confidence that will all come in time.
The Stars should help fast track that development. Instead of sitting on the end of a bench and not getting much practice time, Hendricks is playing starter minutes and going through two-hour training sessions where he's one of the focal members of the team.
"One of the best ways to get better is to play," Wojciechowski said.
The Stars coach has already seen that help Hendricks.
"He saw the game with his back to the basket a lot in college, and now he's facing the basket," Wojciechowski said. "That may not seem like a huge thing to the average fan, but he's learning another language, and he's learning at a really fast rate, and primarily because he's such a willing learner and he's so coachable.
"He's gonna be really, really good. And this experience will be one of the steps in doing that."
