Mobile Menu
HEADLINES

Emanuel Miller

50 Prospects Reportedly Invited To G League Elite Camp

May 5th, 2023 at 8:12am CST by Luke Adams

A total of 50 prospects for the 2023 NBA draft have been invited to the NBA’s G League Elite Camp, according to reports from Adam Zagoria of Forbes and Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report (Twitter links).

Those players are as follows:

The name of the G League Elite Camp is a bit of a misnomer — when first introduced, the event showcased NBAGL players, but the field of participants now consists exclusively of draft prospects. The event will take place on May 13 and 14 in Chicago, ahead of this year’s draft combine.

Like the combine, the Elite Camp brings young players to Chicago to meet NBA teams and participate in drills and scrimmages. While the combine focuses on the top prospects in a given draft class, the Elite Camp generally features prospects who are trying to break into that upper echelon of prospects but are more likely to go undrafted. The top performers at the event typically receive invites to the combine.

Of the 50 G League Elite Camp invitees, 15 show up on Jonathan Givony’s list of this year’s top 100 prospects at ESPN.com. However, no Elite Camp invitee ranks higher than No. 58 (Hart) on ESPN’s board.

The G League Elite Camp will give the invitees who declared for the draft as early entrants an opportunity to see where they stand ahead of the draft withdrawal deadline on May 31. Not all of the players who participate in this event will remain in the draft pool.

Some NBA players who have participated in past G League Elite Camps include Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, Pacers forward Oshae Brissett, Clippers guard Terance Mann, and Heat wing Max Strus.

Retweet 2 Share 0 Send via email0

Draft Notes: Walker, Lively, Podziemski, E. Miller, Lundy

March 23rd, 2023 at 8:03am CST by Luke Adams

Many of the top prospects in college basketball either struggled during the first four days of this year’s NCAA tournament or weren’t in action at all, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Insider link), but Houston forward Jarace Walker and Duke center Dereck Lively II were among the players who showed off the defensive acumen that makes them intriguing prospects at the next level.

Referring to him as “arguably the most versatile defender” in the 2023 class, Givony praises Walker for his ability to protect the rim and stand tall against big men in the post while also switching onto perimeter players and drawing charges. Walker is currently the No. 6 prospect on ESPN’s top-100 list and has the potential to be a top-five pick, says Givony.

While Walker has shown some flashes of offensive potential, Lively scored just four points across his two NCAA tournament games (65 minutes) and has the lowest usage rate (11.6%) of any player in ESPN’s top 100, per Givony. However, the 7’2″ center possesses “exceptional mobility” and is easily the top shot blocker among players projected to be drafted, so he still projects to be a first-round pick (he’s No. 22 on ESPN’s list).

As John Hollinger of The Athletic observes, the floor spacing at the NBA level should give Lively more room to operate as a rim runner. He has shown some passing ability and the potential to make corner threes, according to Hollinger, so there’s reason to be hopeful that he could develop a passable offensive game to go along with his game-changing defense.

Here are a few more draft-related notes:

  • Following a breakout sophomore season, Santa Clara guard Brandin Podziemski announced (via Twitter) that he’ll test the draft waters while maintaining his NCAA eligibility. Podziemski, who averaged 19.9 points per game and 8.8 RPG with an impressive .438 3PT%, is the No. 39 prospect on ESPN’s big board, but has moved up to No. 20 in Jonathan Wasserman’s Bleacher Report rankings.
  • TCU senior forward Emanuel Miller will test the draft waters while maintaining his extra year of college eligibility, he tells Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Miller, who began his college career at Texas A&M, averaged 12.3 PPG and 6.5 RPG on .505/.392/.652 shooting in 2022/23.
  • Penn State senior forward Seth Lundy is also declaring for the 2023 draft, he tells Rothstein (Twitter link). A press release issued by the school indicated that Lundy will be forgoing his final year of eligibility and going pro.
Retweet 3 Share 0 Send via email0