Arsalan Kazemi, Senior, Small Forward, Rice
Overview:
If you are looking for an unheralded do it all small forward, look no further than Rice’s Arsalan Kazemi. In just two seasons with the Owls, Kazemi has tallied 27 double-doubles…good enough to rank third on the school’s all-time list. Rice may not have the most storied history in all of college basketball, but that is still a very impressive feat.
As a freshman in 2009-2010, Kazemi averaged 10.3 points and 9.1 rebounds. He also added 1.2 assists, 1.6 steals and nearly one block per contest. With a year of experience under his belt, Kazemi got even better. His scoring and rebounding output bumped up to 15.2 and 11.0, respectively. What changed the most for Kazemi during his sophomore season was his aggressiveness getting to the basket. Whether he is backing down a smaller player or attacking the rim, Kazemi gets fouled a lot. And his free-throw shooting went from 61.0 percent as a freshman to 72.0 percent as a sophomore so he knew he could help out his team a lot by spending some extra practice time at the charity stripe.
Final Projection:
The problem the Iran native will face when projecting to the NBA is not his 6-7, 216 pound frame, but the fact that he is not a shooter. He is not big enough or strong enough to be a post player. All his versatile skills make him tailor made to be a small forward. Yet, there are other small forwards out there that can do what Kazemi can do, but they can also hit an occasional three-pointer. Kazemi does not have that weapon in his arsenal yet.
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