Temple’s Quinton Rose shows NBA ability but shooting remains question, scouts say

Even before Temple’s Quinton Rose scored 26 points Thursday night in an 85-76 victory over Memphis, first-year Tigers coach Penny Hardaway had a great appreciation for the 6-foot-8 junior’s skills.

“I have always respected his game,” said Hardaway, a four-time NBA All-Star.

That respect deepened after Rose tied a career high by hitting five three-pointers (in nine attempts) and added five assists as Temple (15-4, 5-1 American Athletic Conference) continued to build on a potential NCAA Tournament resume.

This game showed what Rose can do at the next level.

“He is a big guard who understands the game,” Hardaway said. “He hasn’t been shooting the ball well, but ... when he goes to the basket, he’s tough to guard. He understands how to get to his spots, and I respect that about his game.”

Plenty of others have respect for his game, but Rose has been a confounding player to scout.

“He’s a tease,” one NBA scout said recently.

Rose can glide to the basket and has become much better at taking players off the dribble, although his handle at times can get sloppy, evidenced by the fact that he has 50 assists and 49 turnovers this season.

He has tremendous anticipation and entered the weekend third in the AAC in steals, averaging 2.4. In addition, he averages 17.1 points and is second in the AAC in minutes to teammate Shizz Alston with 34.8 per game.

“The game comes easily to him, and he plays with a smoothness,” the scout said.

Sometimes, there is such a smoothness that Rose doesn’t give the appearance that he is going full tilt, but that is far from the truth. When he makes mistakes, it is often because he is trying too hard.

“When he puts a lot of pressure on himself is when he starts to make mistakes, but as long as he is out there having fun, he is so easy to play with,” said Alston, who leads Temple with an 18.5 scoring average. “When he is on, he is one of the top players in the country.”

Last year, after averaging 14.9 points, Rose declared for the NBA draft but didn’t hire an agent. That meant he could go to predraft workouts but still maintain his college eligibility. He went to five before withdrawing from the draft.

Rose said that it was a great experience and that the main feedback he received from NBA teams was that he had to get stronger and be more consistent with his three-point shooting.

Thursday’s game aside, three-point shooting has remained a struggle. He is shooting only 23.3 percent on threes (20-for-86).

“He shows flashes of NBA potential, but he hasn’t shown it consistently,” a second NBA scout said. “You look at his length and athleticism, he has decent skills, but his shooting has to become better and more consistent.”

Nobody realizes that more than Rose.

“It is very frustrating,” he said this week about his shooting woes. “I think I put too much pressure on myself in taking contested or bad threes.”

With Rose, it always comes back to three-point proficiency.

“Shooting is a concern with the long ball,” a third NBA scout said. “The other areas, he checks the boxes and is aggressive going to the basket and getting to the lane. He plays hard and has a good physical package but could use a little more muscle.”

Temple coach Fran Dunphy acknowledges what everybody says about Rose’s need to improve his shooting, but he has seen growth in his game.

“Certain times of the game, he has the ability to take over a game, and other times, he puts his defensive mark on games,” Dunphy said. “He is being more consistent in all aspects.”

Rose insists that he’s doesn’t think much about the NBA and that, for now, earning an NCAA Tournament berth is his driving force.

Temple went 33-32 in his first two seasons and didn’t come close to qualifying for the NCAA Tournament. Now the Owls, who next will host Cincinnati (17-3, 6-1) at noon Sunday, are definitely in the hunt.

“The thought of getting to the NCAA Tournament really juices me up,” Rose said. “That is what I want, and I am working every day for that.”

Left unsaid is that the NCAA Tournament would increase his exposure to NBA scouts. For Rose, the challenge is to show that Thursday’s shooting spree against Memphis was not an aberration but a sign of things to come.