Summary: Stirtz is a savvy shot-creator with high-level feel who carried Drake like a one-man band, showing the playmaking and shooting touch to fit into a modern offense. If he adjusts to the physicality and speed of the NBA, he could thrive as both a floor general or off-ball connector. Stirtz is transferring to Iowa, if he chooses to stay in school.
Comparisons: Ty Jerome, Andrew Nembhard
Strengths
Point general skills: You would think he wrote the playbook the way he reads the floor. At Drake, he ran the second-most pick-and-rolls in the country, per Synergy, and milked every possession with poise, patience, and creativity. He showed such a surgical feel for manipulating defenders by keeping his dribble on a string, toggling speeds, and using advanced footwork to get where he wanted. He can make any pass and could be even better as a playmaker operating with NBA spacing.
Creativity: Stirtz has utilized a floater 3-pointer on a few occasions, including in the first round of the NCAA tournament. It's emblematic of his overall creativity using pivots and pump-fakes to generate space for his own buckets or to open passing windows to find his teammates. Whether it's a wraparound bounce pass in traffic or a late lob after freezing the big, he can be the orchestrator.
Shooting off the dribble: Most of his 3s came off the bounce, and he made 36.8% of them. He has deep range and an ability to dribble comfortably into his shot going in either direction. He also hit a ton of end-of-clock jumpers and clutch shots.
Role-player qualities: Even though he was ball dominant in college, Stirtz has excellent instincts cutting and moving off-ball. He also has a knockdown 3-point stroke off the catch, showing an ability to hit 3s off movement or standstill no-dip 3s from the corner. In three college seasons, he made 44.4% of catch-and-shoot 3s. If he doesn't end up as an on-ball engine, he has more than enough traits to scale down his usage and still make a positive impact.
Conditioning: Stirtz played 39.4 minutes per game, nearly 99% of all possible minutes for Drake this season. That's because the team was hopeless without him: Drake had an excellent 115.7 offensive rating with Stirtz on the floor which sank to 89.7 without him — the greatest differential in college basketball, per CBB Analytics. Perhaps with a lower usage on offense, he'd be able to excel more on defense.
Concerns
Defense: He's listed at 6-foot-4 and quite lean, plus he lacks great quickness and above-the-rim athleticism. He could be attacked and targeted on defense.
Lack of experience: Stirtz played Division II for Northwest Missouri State before transferring to Drake, a mid-major in the Missouri Valley Conference. While he continued to excel, so many of the shots he had to take were tough or contested. He made them, but will he have the same success against NBA length? Or will he get swallowed up due to his lack of great speed and athleticism? Regardless, he will need to learn how to thrive in a far more condensed role.
