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Allen Crabbe looking to prove he’s more than just a scorer

California v UNLV

SAN JOSE, CA - MARCH 21: Allen Crabbe #23 of the California Golden Bears shoots over Anthony Marshall #3 of the UNLV Rebels in the first half during the second round of the 2013 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at HP Pavilion on March 21, 2013 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

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Labels. They’re everywhere, and in many cases the easiest thing to do is attach a specific label to something or someone. When it comes to the NBA Draft process, receiving a particular label can be both a gift and a curse for prospects. A gift in the sense that if a player is good enough at that specific role, that label could open the door to a long and lucrative professional career. But it can also be a curse, especially if the player can’t show that they’re capable of doing a little more to help a team.

This is the issue that confronted California junior guard Allen Crabbe as he began the process of making a jump to the next level. In three seasons at Cal, Crabbe proved to be one of the nation’s best perimeter scorers and won Pac-12 Player of the Year honors in 2012-13. The Los Angeles native left Berkeley ranked in the top ten in three major statistical categories: scoring (1,537 points), made three-pointers (209) and three-point percentage (38.2%).

With numbers like those, it’s safe to say that Crabbe can score. But what can also happen as a result of such numbers and his ability to knock down jump shots is that some decided Crabbe’s a scorer and that’s it. With that in mind, Crabbe went through the process of working to become a more versatile player during his time at Cal.
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“The scouts look at things that you can’t do, and you just go back and you work on those areas,” said Crabbe in a phone interview with NBCSports.com. “So the next time they see you, you can prove that you’re capable of doing the things they said you weren’t capable of.”

Crabbe’s journey to the draft began last summer, with the guard deciding to remain on campus all summer. It would have been nice to be able to enjoy some time off, but Crabbe saw the value in remaining on campus and continuing to expand his game. With that being the case, Crabbe was able to make improvements to his game in regards to both his skill set and his physical strength.

“We kept talking about how he needed to improve off the dribble,” Cal head coach Mike Montgomery said in a phone interview. “He needed to be able to set up his shot, in that if teams drove him off the three-point line he had the ability to break them down off the dribble.”

While the majority of his shot attempts were jump shots last season, Crabbe did manage to make improvements when it came to his ability to beat opponents off the dribble. With the move to the NBA, Crabbe can continue to make progress in this area while proving to be a valuable commodity as a shooter. NBA scouts are well aware of his ability to shoot the basketball; one goal of the process for Crabbe was showing that he can score in a multiple ways.

Herein lies the balance that players need to maintain throughout the pre-draft process: showing themselves to be capable of handling the tasks that come with that particular role while also displaying the ability to contribute in other areas.

“The balance tends to go more towards trying to show more,” said Ed Isaacson of NBADraftBlog.com and Rotoworld in a phone interview with NBCSports.com. “Only because if you lump guys together as “specialists” at particular things, you’re going to have to separate them somehow. Even though, in terms of “franchise” players you’re not getting much in this draft, the people you do see at the top have the potential to [contribute in the most areas].”

Crabbe being labeled a scorer is likely to result in the junior being a first round selection Thursday night. How much value Crabbe provides to the team that selects him will depend upon his ability to not only score but also contribute in other areas. With the feeling being that the spacing of the pro game will prove beneficial, Crabbe aims to do just that when the time comes.

Raphielle can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.