This previous weekend, our resident NBA Draft Analyst Matt Babcock made a visit to Springfield, Mass., the birthplace of basketball, and the house of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Corridor of Fame, to attend two highschool occasions: the HoopHall Basic and HoopHall Prep Showcase. Right this moment, he outlined a couple of of the prospects from the occasions that caught his eye, how their kinds of play might match the fashionable NBA, and a number of the adjustments throughout the evolution of basketball on the NBA degree.
As an NBA Draft analyst, I routinely journey to guage high prospects worldwide. Though I normally concentrate on prospects prone to be eligible for the upcoming NBA Draft, I make a concerted effort to get forward by evaluating youthful prospects, too, which leads me to my newest journey. This previous weekend, I visited a particular place: Springfield, Mass., the birthplace of basketball. I attended two highschool occasions: the Spalding Hoophall Basic, which was held at Springfield Faculty, and the HoopHall Prep Showcase, held at MassMutual Middle.
I evaluated high gamers within the Class of 2023, who can be faculty freshmen subsequent season, and a few who might change into one-and-done at that degree earlier than coming into the 2024 NBA Draft. I additionally evaluated many high prospects from the Class of 2024. I consider there have been a number of future NBA gamers in these buildings and enjoying in these video games. Nonetheless, a number of prospects particularly caught my eye, however they weren’t in both of these lessons; they had been even youthful. The gamers I’d like to focus on at present are three of the highest younger prospects within the nation: 2025 ahead Cameron Boozer of FAB 50 No. 6 Columbus (Miami, Fla), 2025 wing ahead Cooper Flagg of FAB 50 No. 2 Montverde Academy (Fla.) and A.J. Dybantsa, of St. Sebastian’s College (Needham, Mass.), a 6-foo-7 wing from the Class of 2026.
One factor I discover fascinating about Boozer, Flagg, and Dybantsa is they’re considerably comparable. All three gamers are simply 15 or 16 years outdated, 6-foot-7 or taller (and certain nonetheless rising), athletic, and possess well-rounded talent units. They play inside and outside, shoot threes, put it on the ground, carry out spotlight finishes above the rim, and have the potential to defend a number of positions successfully. They often play confronted towards the ring, they usually’re extremely versatile. They’re positionless. Their bodily builds, physique actions, athleticism, and total physicality are completely different. Nonetheless, they’re just about the identical: they’re do-it-all gamers with measurement and flexibility. And most significantly, they’re dynamic and, subsequently, elite prospects.
One other participant that will match an analogous description is the No. 1 decide from the 2022 NBA Draft, Paolo Banchero from Duke, who’s at the moment enjoying properly in his rookie season for the Orlando Magic. Banchero is listed at 6-foot-10 and 250 lbs — he’s an absolute brute. And regardless of his bodily measurement and instruments, he’s a flexible, do-it-all participant with no strict penciled-in place, similar to the three highschool prospects I discussed.
And this 12 months’s No. 1 NBA prospect is a participant from France, whom everybody’s doubtless heard of now, Victor Wembanyama, as he has seemingly set the world on fireplace this season along with his expertise and play. Wembanyama is an excessive model of this sort of do-it-all participant, as he’s 7-foot-4 with an 8-foot-wingspan. Nonetheless, regardless of his measurement, he shoots threes and crosses guys up off the dribble, along with dunking and blocking every thing in sight. He’s a unicorn as an NBA prospect.
So after spending a number of days in Springfield, attending to know these younger prospects higher, I couldn’t assist take into consideration Dr. James Naismith, who invented basketball in Springfield in 1891. I assumed in regards to the origin of the sport and the sport’s evolution. Basketball has come a good distance, and the sport is altering quickly, particularly on the NBA degree.
The times of predictable isolations on the low block, hand checks, and tough physicality are lengthy gone, as at present’s sport is way more predicated on spacing, talent, and finesse. It’s usually mentioned that small guards and conventional bigs are a dying breed within the NBA. Because of excessive spacing in at present’s sport, NBA coaches choose flexibility on the defensive finish, with switchable gamers that may defend a number of positions and gamers that may shoot the ball with vary on the offensive finish. So gamers with measurement and flexibility on each ends of the ground typically maintain way more vital worth throughout the board within the NBA. So naturally, Boozer, Flagg, and Dybansta test all the fitting containers for what NBA scouts are searching for in younger prospects.
So I left Springfield asking myself, “are Cameron Boozer, Cooper Flagg, and AJ Dybantsa future NBA stars?”
Effectively, I’m not going to make any daring statements about 15 or 16-year-olds. I believe that will be reckless. Nonetheless, I’ll say this: all three have the potential to change into nice and are heading in the right direction. And though I’m admittedly being a bit imprecise, I can say one factor for sure; they’re high-priority prospects for me to observe, and I’ll observe their progress very intently shifting ahead.
