Noah Kirkwood Player Breakdown
Dakota Schmidt breaks down the game of former Harvard forward Noah Kirkwood, a unique 6'7 forward
On the morning of May 4th, CBS Sports’ college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported that Harvard forward Noah Kirkwood would not be returning to college for the 2022-23 season through an additional year of eligibility to pursue a career in professional basketball.
This decision follows a strong senior season where he averaged 17.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1.9 steals on 48% from the field and 35% from beyond the arc on 5.1 attempts per game. Those shooting percentages helped him maintain a very solid 57% True Shooting Percentage and 54% effective Field Goal Percentage. Noah’s mix of scoring volume and efficiency were the keys behind him being named to the All-Ivy League First Team, an honor that he had previously received during the 2019-20 season (the 2020-21 Ivy League conference season was canceled due to COVID-19).
Noah’s offensive success during his Harvard tenure had a lot to do with how tough it was for his Ivy League foes to try to defend the 6’7, 215 pound forward. Those struggles from the opposition come from the simple fact that he mixes that size with being a skilled ball-handler that can use his craft to get his shot off on three levels of the court: perimeter, mid-range, and around the rim.
Starting on the perimeter, it’s fair to say that the Harvard alum is unique with how he approaches this area on the court. For most perimeter-minded wings or forwards, much of their success comes through catch-and-shoot situations. This is due to them benefiting from the defensive attention that ball-dominant guards create before they receive the ball.
In Noah’s case, the situation was different from the norm as he and junior guard Chris Ledlum shared the majority of Harvard’s offensive load, as the two players maintained 31.4% and 28.4% Usage Percentages, respectively. Maintaining that high level of offensive load meant that opposing teams game-planned different ways to try to slow him down rather than having to rotate and closeout on forwards that can shine as catch-and-shoot threats.
Despite him having a role within Harvard that demanded the attention of the defense, the pride of Ottawa was able to stand out as a lethal threat that can utilize his handles to create the separation needed to launch open shots. The clip below is a good example of that as he steps forward with his right to push the defender towards the free throw line before stepping back and hitting the three a few milliseconds before the Iona defender can react.
Although he didn’t get much separation on this particular approach, that step-forward move that made his man backtrack was enough to get a clean look at the rim. While his wingspan isn’t long, which could be a concern in other areas of the game (that I’ll talk about later), Kirkwood being a 6’7 forward that can put up that type of shot makes him an incredibly tough player to close out on.
Kirkwood’s ability to use fakes and step-backs to create separation from his man allowed him to be one of the most efficient off-the-threats in all of college basketball. That fact is shown by how he maintained a 57% effective Field Goal Percentage and averaged 1.152 points per possession on 143 off-the-dribble shots, which placed him in the 98th percentile according to Synergy Sports. While it may be considered crazy to have concerns about a player that’s this efficient, it will be interesting to see if he has the power to translate this ability to the NBA level as the vast majority of his made step-back 3’s came with his toes right above the NCAA 3-point line.
The reason why Noah only shot 35% from beyond the arc despite being one of the most efficient off-the-dribble shooters in college basketball is due to his struggles as a catch-and-shoot threat. As a senior, he shot only 27% on 62 total perimeter attempts, according to Synergy Sports.
Those struggles are present when you watch film of him working off the catch as the Harvard alum is inconsistent when it comes to getting his feet facing towards the rim before he gets ready to receive the pass. Also, the aforementioned concerns about his power distribution when shooting from deep are prevalent here as most of his catch-and-shoot jumpers clanged on the front of the rim.
