NBA general managers are stimulated by versatility.
Aroused even.
Every year, teams seek players who can make an impact in multiple areas of the game.
As we delve deeper into the NBA playoffs, it becomes increasingly apparent why team builders are so infatuated with well-roundedness.
In the regular season, it’s a bit more acceptable to be a specialist. Maybe you can knock down 3s or defend the ball, but what else?
Can you limit turnovers, drive a close-out, take advantage of mismatches or make a connective passing read?
Coaches and their strategies are smarter than ever. Teams build game plans to attack their opponent’s weaknesses and limiting those pressure points has been the key to success (see last year’s NBA champion)
If you need any evidence of this idea, look no further than the two teams duking it out for the Larry O’Brien.
The Thunder and Pacers have rosters with players who move the ball, get out in transition, knock down 3s, attack shifting defenses and defend.
Basketball fans have created the term “16-game player” for those who cannot only survive but thrive in high-leverage playoff environments.
There’s a prospect in the 2025 NBA Draft who has a chance to fit the billing.
His name is Nique Clifford.
At six feet six inches, the Colorado State product checks a lot of boxes. He dribbles. He passes. He shoots. He defends. In a lot of ways, he’s the embodiment of what NBA teams are looking for — a versatile wing who can stay on the floor in any context.
He’s a Swiss Army knife, and he can cut you in different ways.
Clifford averaged 18.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists, while knocking down 37.7% of his 3-point shots on 8.3 attempts per 100 possessions.
For the analytics lovers who look past raw box score numbers, Clifford has you covered there as well. In his fifth year, he posted a 10.3 box plus-minus (BPM) and the Rams had a plus-15.8 adjusted net rating with him on the court.
With his combination of production and efficiency, he profiles as a sure-fire lottery pick, yet mainstream outlets have him being selected between 15 and 30.
The driving force of the discrepancy between his statistical profile and his placement on big boards is age and level of competition.
Clifford will turn 24 during his rookie year and will be rapidly approaching 30 years old when he inks his second contract. He began his career at Colorado, where he averaged just 6.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists in the two seasons he played a significant role.
Clifford didn’t start building his draft profile until he was 22, having transferred from a high-major program in Colorado to a mid-major program at Colorado State.
Players like Clifford don’t usually hear their names called in the lottery.
Not because they aren’t good, but because they’re seen as closer to finished products.
Older prospects are often labeled as having a “low ceiling,” viewed as safer bets with limited upside.
But sometimes, chasing upside means ignoring the guy who can help you win right now.
For all the talk about potential, there’s real value in a player who’s already polished, productive and prepared for the NBA.
Sure, the 19-year-old with raw tools might have theoretical star power. But Clifford could bring tangible impact — the kind that translates early on.
Let’s break down exactly what a team will receive from Clifford if they decide to select him in the first round.
Strengths: Diverse shooting, passing feel, defensive versatility, rebounding
A benefit of Clifford’s prolonged collegiate career is that it has allowed him to improve drastically in multiple areas of his game. The area in which he’s improved the most is shooting.
In his three years at Colorado, he attempted just 139 3s and made 33.8% of them. Additionally, he shot 60.6% from the free-throw line and 29.8% from mid-range.
Clifford worked on his jump shot in the summer of 2023, and it paid dividends when he transferred. Over the next two seasons, he shot 107 of 284 (37.7%) from behind the arc and 202 of 262 (77.1%) from the charity stripe.
During his time as a Ram, Clifford diversified his shooting profile to become more than just a spot-up shooter. In 2024-25, he shot 46.2% from 3 as the pick and roll ball handler, 46.7% on off-ball screens and 35.8% on catch-and-shoot reps.
Clifford developed scoring in the mid-range as a middle-of-the-floor counter when he could not get to the rim. He has excellent footwork and fluidity and is adept at decelerating into his looks when a defender’s momentum is headed towardsthe rim.
Whenever he can get to the rim, he showcases his athleticism with highlight-reel dunks or tough finishes through contact. Clifford finished with a solid 66% at the rim and 17 dunks in the half-court on a largely self-created rim diet.
Clifford also improved as a passer during his time in Fort Collins, Colorado. The wing took over a lot of ball-handling reps and spent a good time functioning as the Rams’ point guard. As a fifth-year senior, he had a 27.7 usage percentage coupled with an impressive 26.8 assist percentage. Clifford handled the uptick in usage very well as he posted a 1.7 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Clifford is a former point guard who transitioned to a wing position after experiencing a growth spurt as a junior in high school. On film, he displays a good understanding of defensive coverages. As the pick-and-roll ball-handler, Clifford generated 1.240 points per possession (95th percentile).
The Colorado native is good with the ball in his hands but can also scale down and fit into an offense as a secondary piece. In 2023-24, he operated as a spot-up player who attacked shifting defenses, made timely cuts and caused damage in transition.
Clifford is a highly effective offensive player, but he also impacts the game on the defensive end. His stats (2.1 steal percentage and 2.7 block percentage) don’t jump off the page, but he’s excellent at deterring shots, making quality rotations and rebounding the ball (9.6 rebounds in 2024-25).
When locked in on the ball, he moves his feet well and uses his strong frame and length to stay attached and bother ball-handlers. He held opponents to 34.5% from the field when he registered as the point of attack defender and 23.1% in isolation.
Off the ball, he is excellent at chasing players through screens and contesting without fouling. Clifford is usually active in help and knows where he is supposed to be positioned defensively, whether that’s digging at the nail, tagging rollers orswitching onto bigger players when he spots a cross-match.
Despite Clifford’s well-roundedness, which he attributes to his father, he does have some areas in which he can improve. Clifford does not have one glaring weakness, but he’s not elite at any one thing.
He’s aware of this and seems to be working on fine-tuning his skills. Last month, he sat down with NBA Draft Consultant Rafael Barlowe and spoke about his pre-draft process.
Improvement areas: Advantage creation, handling, shot selection, defensive consistency
Clifford’s most significant area for improvement is his handle. He’s good at initiating offense, but his handle is not the tightest or most dynamic and it limits his outlook as an advantage creator.
Clifford also has a slight tendency to force shots when he can’t create separation, mainly pull-up 3s and mid-ranges, which he’s shown the ability to make at a good clip. Still, those probably shouldn’t be his go-tos against more formidable defenses. Clifford also struggles with ball pressure and traps, which can occasionally lead to turnovers. He had a 17.5 turnover percentage as the pick-and-roll ball handler.
The ball-handling issue was more evident when he faced tougher competition and defenses that keyed in on him more, particularly against better athletes. Clifford often controls the ball too far away from his body and struggles to string together moves to break down a defender.
Defensively, he needs to be more consistent with his effort, intensity and focus. Clifford is a sound defender, but he had moments in which he lost his man off the ball, gambled on passes, and exhibited poor technique when closing out. Some of his defensive issues could stem from an increased role on offense, where he had to balance his energy more compared to previous seasons. In a scaled-down role in the NBA, this should be less of a problem.
For all the strides Clifford has made, there are a few things he simply can’t change.
He’s not getting any younger — he’ll be 23.4 on draft night — and he’s never going to have a seven-foot wingspan. His plus-two wingspan, while adequate, doesn’t scream elite physical upside. And that’s okay.
Because Clifford doesn’t need to become someone he’s not to thrive in the NBA.
Projected Role: Secondary ball-handler / 3&D wing
Clifford profiles as a secondary ball handler who can run second-side actions and guard one of the opposing team’s better perimeter creators. He could potentially switch 1-3 if he’s good enough at the point of attack but will likely be good, not great, defensively.
Clifford’s skill set can be beneficial to any NBA team, and it sets his floor as high as that of a rotation player. The wing has drawn comparisons to players such as Josh Richardson and Dorian Finney-Smith due to his perimeter defense and spot-up shooting ability, as well as Josh Hart for his connective passing skills and rebounding. In terms of role and skillset, these are accurate low and median outcomes for Clifford.
If his jump shot and defense translate to the next level, he could have an impact closer to Hart’s teammates, such as Mikal Bridges or OG Anunoby.
Clifford’s evaluation is a complex one. How much should scouts tax him for his age and competition level?
Is it a red flag that he didn’t begin dominating college basketball until he was old enough to drink?
Sure.
But here’s the thing about question marks: they exist with every prospect. Clifford’s happen to be easier to quantify — and in some cases, easier to live with.
You can’t teach youth, but you also can’t bank on outlier development. And Clifford has the kind of well-rounded game that suggests he’s closer to helping an NBA team than many of the players projected ahead of him.
He may not possess the same theoretical upside as a teenager with a 7-foot wingspan and a sketchbook full of tools. But Clifford’s upside is tangible. It’s functional. It’s based on things he’s already shown he can do
He won’t need years of seasoning in the G-League to contribute. He won’t be a “project” for a coaching staff to mold. He’ll walk into an NBA gym as a player who can handle the ball, make shots, defend multiple positions, rebound and keep the offense humming.
In a draft class full of projections, Clifford offers something rare: clarity. That may not make him the sexiest pick. But it might make him one of the smartest.
