Central Notes: Markkanen, Achiuwa, Doumbouya, Kennard
Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason, is optimistic he’ll take major steps forward under new coach Billy Donovan, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Markkanen has already spoken with Donovan about how he’ll be more involved offensively next season. “It’s really important,” Markkanen said of next season. “I’ve got show people that I can come back from the down year I had. It didn’t put me down at all.” Markkanen’s 14.7 PPG and 6.3 RPG in his third year were lower than the numbers he put up in his first two seasons.
We have more from the Central Division:
- The Cavaliers have already talked remotely to Memphis’ Precious Achiuwa and Stanford’s Tyrell Terry, two of the players who will take part in the virtual combine on Tuesday, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com tweets. Achiuwa, a power forward, is ranked No. 10 overall by ESPN while Terry, a point guard, is rated as a second-round prospect at No. 42.
- Pistons coach Dwane Casey is encouraged by what he’s seen from forward Sekou Doumbouya in group workouts, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Doumbouya was the team’s first-round pick last year and appeared in 38 games, including 19 starts. “Sekou has had a good week,” Casey said. “His seriousness of his approach has really improved. His body is in excellent condition. He’s one of the bright spots.”
- Pistons swingman Luke Kennard has been getting reps at point guard during those same workouts, Langlois notes in a separate story. Kennard, who missed the bulk of the season with knee injuries, is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason. “It’s a really big year for me, a really big year for the team,” Kennard said. “I’m one of the older guys and I’ve got to help lead the team this year.”
LaMelo Ball Headlines List Of Draft Combine Participants
Potential No. 1 overall pick LaMelo Ball will be among the prospects participating in the revamped virtual draft combine this week, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Ball is scheduled to take part in team interviews and a media session this week, but may not participate in any other portion, Jeremy Woo of SI.com cautions (via Twitter).
While Ball’s participation might be limited, many of this year’s other top prospects aren’t taking part in the event at all. As Woo points out (via Twitter), Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman, Obi Toppin, Onyeka Okongwu, Cole Anthony, Aaron Nesmith, Devin Vassell, and Saddiq Bey are among the players who don’t appear on the list of participants sent out by the NBA.
The list of top prospects besides Ball who will be participating in the event includes Precious Achiuwa, Deni Avdija, Tyrese Haliburton, RJ Hampton, Killian Hayes, Theo Maledon, and Isaac Okoro, among others.
Here’s the full list of combine participants, via Charania:
- Precious Achiuwa, F, Memphis
- Ty-Shon Alexander, G, Creighton
- Deni Avdija, F, Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel)
- Udoka Azubuike, C, Kansas
- LaMelo Ball, G, Illawarra Hawks (Australia)
- Desmond Bane, G, TCU
- Tyler Bey, F, Colorado
- Vernon Carey Jr., C, Duke
- Yoeli Childs, F, BYU
- Mamadi Diakite, F, Virginia
- Devon Dotson, G, Kansas
- Paul Eboua, F, VL Pesaro (Italy)
- CJ Elleby, F, Washington State
- Malachi Flynn, G, San Diego State
- Trent Forrest, G, Florida State
- Josh Green, G/F, Arizona
- Ashton Hagans, G, Kentucky
- Tyrese Haliburton, G, Iowa State
- Josh Hall, F, Moravian Prep
- RJ Hampton, G, New Zealand Breakers (New Zealand)
- Jalen Harris, G, Nevada
- Killian Hayes, G, Ratiopharm Ulm (Germany)
- Markus Howard, G, Marquette
- Elijah Hughes, G/F, Syracuse
- Isaiah Joe, G, Arkansas
- Mason Jones, G, Arkansas
- Tre Jones, G, Duke
- Nathan Knight, F/C, William & Mary
- Kira Lewis, G, Alabama
- Theo Maledon, G, ASVEL (France)
- Karim Mane, G, Vanier College (Canada)
- Nico Mannion, G, Arizona
- Naji Marshall, F, Xavier
- Kenyon Martin Jr., F, IMG Academy
- Skylar Mays, G, LSU
- Jaden McDaniels, F, Washington
- Sam Merrill, G, Utah State
- Zeke Nnaji, F, Arizona
- Jordan Nwora, F, Louisville
- Isaac Okoro, F, Auburn
- Daniel Oturu, C, Minnesota
- Reggie Perry, F, Mississippi State
- Myles Powell, G, Seton Hall
- Payton Pritchard, G, Oregon
- Immanuel Quickley, G, Kentucky
- Jahmi’us Ramsey, G, Texas Tech
- Paul Reed, F, DePaul
- Nick Richards, F/C, Kentucky
- Grant Riller, G, Charleston
- Jay Scrubb, G, John A. Logan College
- Jalen Smith, F, Maryland
- Cassius Stanley, G, Duke
- Lamar Stevens, F, Penn State
- Isaiah Stewart, F/C, Washington
- Tyrell Terry, G, Stanford
- Xavier Tillman, F/C, Michigan State
- Kaleb Wesson, F/C, Ohio State
- Kahlil Whitney, F, Kentucky
- Cassius Winston, G, Michigan State
- Robert Woodard II, F, Mississippi State
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the NBA is unable to hold its typical in-person draft combine this year, but the league has put together an alternative combine that will feature interviews through videoconferencing as well as the making of “pro day” videos, which will include strength and agility testing, anthropometric measurements, and shooting drills. Participants will also undergo medical testing and exams.
For more details on this year’s combine, be sure to check out our full story on the changes.
Pacific Notes: McNair, Achiuwa, Clippers, Johnson
New Kings general manager Monte McNair will be bringing an impressive resume to Sacramento, per Kyle Ramos of Kings.com. McNair served in various capacities with the Rockets for over a decade, mostly recently as vice president of basketball operations under general manager Daryl Morey.
McNair puts a special emphasis on using analytics in his player assessments, thanks in large part to his tenure with Houston. Ramos cites McNair’s discussion of this very topic at various MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conferences. “Organizationally, it helps to have that philosophy where it’s like ‘Hey, we’re going to try stuff until it works’ and you can look across other sports to see what they’ve done to innovate,” McNair said at the 2020 Sloan Conference.
There’s more out of the NBA’s Pacific Division:
- Energetic Memphis big man Precious Achiuwa could be a great fit for the Kings with the No. 12 pick in this year’s NBA draft, writes James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area.
- Andrew Greif of the LA Times examines what went wrong for the Clippers‘ ignominious early playoff exit. An executive who spoke with Greif opined that Los Angeles will remain vulnerable without a play-making point guard. “Running it back is great, but the Clippers are beatable,” the executive told Greif. “They need a point guard. They’ve got to get one. They need better chemistry. They’ve got to do a better job scheming and adjusting.”
- Suns rookie forward Cameron Johnson, the No. 11 pick in the 2019 draft, detailed his experiences on the NBA’s restart campus with Gina Mizell of Valley Tales. He also reflected on what it means to ascend to the next level of basketball talent. “When you get [to the NBA], now everybody kind of has to play their role, but we still all push to get better in every category,” Johnson said. “For me, it’s a lot of ballhandling, shooting off the dribble, understanding defenses from an offensive perspective and how to attack them.”
Eastern Notes: Pistons, Valentine, Ujiri, Wizards
The Pistons remain in limbo as some teams around the NBA start reopening their practice facilities, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press writes.
The Cavaliers and Trail Blazers formally opened their facilities on Friday under strict restrictions and guidelines from the NBA, with teams such as the Nuggets, Kings, and Hawks intending on doing the same next week. Detroit is likely multiple weeks away from opening its own facility, the Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center, Sankofa notes.
“There’s a set of guidelines, we’ll follow them to the T and we’ll be very cautious for both the player and the staff,” Pistons senior advisor Ed Stefanski said. “But … it’ll be a slow process. We’re waiting for the state of Michigan to allow us. We’re not doing anything until then.”
Detroit has mostly relied on virtual workouts during the hiatus, including using features such as Zoom, joining other teams in doing whatever they can over break. It’s likely the team will continue to use these approaches as time progresses this month.
“It’s not perfect from a basketball/cardio stance, but we’re not in perfect times,” Stefanski admitted. “We understand that the players are just getting their strength workout and some cardio, even if it’s outside on a track and things like that. That’s what we’re trying to do right now. We’re not encouraging them to go into gyms and things like that that are not regulated by NBA people.”
There’s more out of the Eastern Conference tonight:
- Eric Woodyard of ESPN explores how Bulls forward Denzel Valentine wound up wearing No. 45 from the day he was drafted by Chicago in 2016. Bulls legend Michael Jordan wore No. 45 for 22 games in 1995, causing many in Valentine’s circle to wonder whether he’d be able to don the number with Chicago.
- Blake Murphy of The Athletic examines the draft history of Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who’s widely considered to be one of the top executives in the league. Ujiri was responsible for drafting Pascal Siakam in 2016 and OG Anunoby in 2017, along with signing Fred VanVleet as an undrafted free agent in 2016.
- Precious Achiuwa would fill some important needs for the Wizards if the team chooses to draft him, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington contends. Achiuwa, who turns 21 in September, is a 6-foot-9 forward who averaged 15.8 points per game with Memphis last season.
Precious Achiuwa Entering 2020 NBA Draft
One of the most notable college prospects who had yet to announce his draft intentions has now made his decision. Memphis freshman forward Precious Achiuwa tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN that he is entering the 2020 NBA draft and will go pro, hiring an agent in the process.
In his first and only college season, Achiuwa emerged as one of the nation’s most impressive freshmen, averaging 15.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG, and 1.9 BPG while shooting 49.3% from the floor in 31 games (30.4 MPG). He was named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Year and currently ranks 12th among 2020 prospects on ESPN’s big board.
In his scouting report on Achiuwa, ESPN’s Mike Schmitz says that the youngster’s feel for the game is a “major work in progress,” noting that he finished the season with 87 turnovers and just 30 assists. However, Schmitz praised Achiuwa’s physical profile, defensive versatility, and his potential to improve as a shooter. Givony suggests that the strides the 6’9″ forward has made as a shooter, passer, and ball-handler have evaluators optimistic about his potential development at the NBA level.
For his part, Achiuwa suggested his freshman year at Memphis showed NBA teams what he’s capable of doing on the court.
“I’d summarize my season as spectacular. Even though a lot of things were thrown at us early and we had a lot of ups and down, we found a way to be successful,” Achiuwa told ESPN. “I think I was able to show NBA teams my versatility on defense and that I am able to adjust to whatever role that is given to me and still find a way to be successful. We all had to adjust to different roles because of the uncertainty that was thrown at us early in the season.”