Northwestern Basketball Player Review: Isiah Brown

Over the next few weeks, I will review each player on Northwestern's basketball team and go over what they need to improve  for next season. Up next is freshman guard Isiah Brown

Brown was always looking to score,
no matter the situation

Season Review: Isiah Brown's role seemed to change from game to game. For example when Maryland came to Evanston, Brown scored 19 points and almost single handedly won the game for Northwestern; then 4 games later, when Michigan came to town, he recorded a "Did Not Play- Coach's Decision." Brown has supreme confidence in his ability to score. He was never afraid to shoot or or attack the basket, no matter the situation. This often lead to him finding himself in Chris Collins' doghouse. When he was hitting his shots, he was a force; when his shots weren't falling he was a liability. Brown averaged 6.3 PPG, which is good for a true freshman coming off the bench. The most telling stat; however, was Brown averaging 1.2 APG; this is a pitiful number for a point guard. This just further shows Brown's narrow-mindedness on the offensive end. Overall, Brown's tremendous talent was marred by his tendency to shoot without any discretion.
Off-season: Brown needs to learn how to play team basketball. As I have already mentioned, he is both extremely talented and extremely confident. Because of his talent, if he can learn to play as a part of the offense, I could see him starting at shooting guard next year. Playing within the offense will also help Brown's numbers because he will get higher percentage shots and will get more opportunities to showcase his abilities. In the end, Brown is probably the most confident Northwestern basketball player I have ever seen. Most previous Northwestern players have been timid and afraid to attack, but the words timid and afraid are not in Brown's vocabulary. If Brown can play more mature basketball, the sky is the limit for his offensive numbers.