DePaul Transfer Profile: N.J. Benson
DePaul Men's Basketball secured another transfer commitment in N.J. Benson last Friday, March 28th. The Missouri State Sophomore was the 2nd to commit to new head coach Chris Holtmann.
Benson is an Illinois product, playing his high school ball at Mt. Vernon Township, and having a productive career. Being named both conference and regional player of the year, scoring 21.9 points per game in his Senior year.
Benson would earn offers from Loyola Chicago, Bradley, Illinois State, and Murray State among others. As well as Southern Illinois and coach Bryan Mullins, who is now a part of the DePaul staff. SIU would make his final five, but N.J. would elect to go play for Dana Ford at Missouri State.
His Freshman season with Missouri State would start slow, seeing game action in 27 of their 32 games averaging 9.4 minutes per game. Totaling 2.8 points per game while shooting 54.3% from the field. Additionally going to the FT line 1.4 times per game and converting at a 35.1% rate.
His Sophomore season is when N.J. began to get more comfortable, increasing all of his Freshman year averages. Starting in 23 of their 32 games and averaging 8.6 points per game on 63% from the field. Adding 7.6 rebounds per game and 1.6 blocks per game in 21.8 minutes per contest. Benson would also rank 14th in the Missouri Valley Conference in BPM (Box Plus Minus), with a mark of 4.2. 10th for all players in the conference who are 6’6” or taller. 1st on his Missouri State team.
Stylistically, Benson does all of his offensive damage around the basket. Shooting 156 of his 184 shots at the rim, including 42 of those being dunks, per Barttorvik.
Benson is a bit undersized for a Big at a listed 6’8” 225 lbs, but he makes up for this by using his mobility to his advantage to get to the rim. Thriving as a roller in the pick-and-roll, scoring 1.36 points per possession in this play type, which ranks in the 87th percentile.
He also possesses an impressive handle for his size. Which allows him to create for himself and always be active within the offense. In a high school interview with Scott Burgess of Prep Hoops, Benson stated that he used to play a lot of guard growing up. He has been still able to showcase it as he grew.
Missouri State would often use him around the free throw line or three-point line to operate as a hub to the offense. With many dribble handoffs involved with the guards, and the ability to use his dribble to work both sides of the court. Here is an example of how he was utilized.
Defensively, Benson offers a lot of intrigue. Being able to use his athleticism and size to deter shots. In his Sophomore season, he had a 7.7% block rate, which ranked 3rd in the MVC, and 1.6 blocks per game would rank 2nd in the MVC. His ability to block and effect shots around the rim will be something to look out for in his role with DePaul, whether that is within the pick and roll or as a help side defender.
Time will tell where Benson will slot into DePaul’s rotation, as they still hold multiple open roster spots. Although, there is a lot to look forward to in N.J. Benson. His motor, size, defensive upside, and simplified offensive game will give Chris Holtmann and his staff a lot of reliability. He will have 2 remaining seasons of eligibility.