Trash Talk: Gems Found on the Scouting Trail
Garbage Time Ghim is back on the road and had the opportunity to see some highly-touted prospects in the 2024 NBA draft class. Tap in and see what he found.
Live hoops are the best. I know we have Synergy and several different services out there that supply game film. But there’s something special about being in the building, on the floor for warmups, in the press conference room after a game. There’s so much you can learn from the things that don’t always end up on screen. I recently was credentialed by UCLA to attend a few of their games, and I wanted to take some time to put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard to lay out what I saw, what I learned, and where I think things are going.
UCLA vs Oregon
I was super amped about this one. I wrote a piece on Kwame Evans earlier in the season, so I was stoked to see him live. The biggest thing that I wanted to highlight was what he was doing on the floor before the game. Oregon had some travel issues and showed up to the arena a little later than expected. But even with his limited time, it was interesting to see how Kwame spent his time. After initial warmups and getting up some shots, he joined the big men, and they were working on basic one-dribble moves over either shoulder in the post. After that and passing drills, Kwame spent most of his remaining time working on pick-and-pop jumpers and catch-and-shoot jumpers from the corners and wings. This was such an encouraging thing to see because you could see that the Oregon coaching staff was being very intentional about what they wanted Kwame to focus on.
I personally loved seeing it because these are the types of shots he’s going to have to hit on the next level for him to really stick and carve out a role for himself early. As I outlined in my piece earlier in the season, Kwame is a good passer, has great size, and could potentially be an intriguing big with some play-making ability. But how his shot turns out, and the diversity of shots he can take, will ultimately be a big deciding factor in where his ceiling ends up. Standing beside him, he looked like a solid 6’9” to 6’10”. He definitely needs to continue to work on his frame, but he doesn’t need to add a ton of weight because I don’t think he’ll ever be a bruiser. He could become a nice ancillary jumbo wing that can make some plays, move the ball, and offer some spice as a pick-and-roll screener or popper.
Jackson Shelstad was another guy that I was excited to see. After we saw him play at the Nike Hoop Summit last season, we were all intrigued by his ability, even though he is a little bit smaller. Shelstad didn’t have a crazy game, but the thing that continues to stick out with him is his shot-making ability. The guy has a silky smooth jumper, and he’s got a ton of moves in his bag to get to his spots on the floor. Shelstad is a crafty finisher who knows how to change speeds effectively and has good touch. I get it; he’s small, and he’s even shorter than me, but that doesn’t really matter too much with his game. The guy is a gritty competitor and a good athlete. He also knows how to play to his strengths against bigger defenders with his savvy and tight handle. I don’t know if he’s even thinking about entering his name in the draft this year, but I could see him testing the waters and coming back for his sophomore season.
It was a challenging game for Oregon, and it wasn’t all their fault. The travel issues were rough, and you could tell by their slow start. They turned it on at the end of the first and eventually even took the lead, but they ran out of gas at the end, and UCLA was able to pull away. I’m hoping to get another look at them during the PAC-12 tournament.
If you’re wondering why I haven’t mentioned any UCLA players yet, stay tuned; I’m gonna have a whole section about them at the end.
UCLA vs Colorado
Let’s not complicate things here. Cody Williams and Tristan Da Silva are outstanding basketball players.
I know the marquee name here is Williams, but I wanted to start off by talking about Da Silva. Da Silva is an NBA guy, barring injury, I think he’s going to have a very long and very successful career in the NBA. Let’s start with the basics. He’s huge, he shoots the ball well, he always knows where to be on the floor, and he doesn’t need the ball to impact the game.
When Colorado walked on the floor, Da Silva was easily one of the first guys you notice. He’s easily 6’9”, has broad shoulders and a chiseled frame, and just looks the part. There was a quiet confidence to him that was palpable. He just looked relaxed, sure of himself, and ready to work. During warmups, he was talking to some of the younger guys, pointing stuff out, working on his inside game, and taking a bunch of outside jumpers. Just standing next to him, you could tell that he’s physically ready for the NBA. Trust me, his muscles are not just for show, he’s got good functional strength, and it’ll be easy for an NBA front office to look at him as a bench stretch-four from day one.
Da Silva is a strong outside shooter and has been good from outside for the majority of his time in college. He’s mostly shooting threes off the catch, and that’ll probably be a big part of his shot diet in the NBA as well. He’s currently shooting over 51% on unguarded catch-and-shoot threes on the season, according to Synergy. Most of his threes will be coming off the catch because creativity off the dribble is just not in his arsenal. He’s a functional ball-handler without much shake or flash. Like a 2004 Honda Accord, his handle is reliable and can always get you from point A to point B. Da Silva doesn’t do much with the ball in his hands, but he’s a good connective passer, and he moves really well without the ball. He had a couple of cuts to the basket that led to layups that just made me laugh. He knows how to manipulate defenders with his movement, and his timing is impeccable.
Other than the offensive stuff, Da Silva is a rock-solid defender. He may struggle laterally against the fastest guards in the world, but he will be able to hold his own. He’s strong, has great positional sense, and has high overall activity. If you’re a team sitting in the teens or early 20s, you should have no problem grabbing a guy like Da Silva in that range because of what he offers with his baseline skills. I don’t think there’s a high ceiling on what he can become, but he’ll enter the league with a high floor and room to grow.
Now to Cody Williams.
Cody was a lot of fun to watch up close. The first thing I noticed in warmups was how he interacted with his teammates. You can tell that he’s beloved by his teammates; the veterans are bumping into him, fooling around, pointing things out. He was also playing around with some of the coaches and equipment guys. Tiny detail, but it’s something you like to see. It’s good to see guys fitting in with teammates and being a positive force of energy. Cody doesn’t just bring the vibes, though; he can play.
He’s got good touch overall; you can see it with his outside shooting and in-between stuff and touch around the rim. He’s added a significant amount of mass. He looked very thin when we saw him at the Nike Hoop Summit last April. Credit to him and the Colorado development team; he looks much bigger. It was great to see his improved frame; you can tell he has a strong base to build upon. The shoulders and back looked great; he looked very long, and you could tell this was only the beginning. If his brother is a preview of what Cody can become, you can’t help but be excited about Cody.
Cody needs to work to continue to tighten his handle, but he has a good handle. He wasn’t flashy with his handle, but you can tell he can handle the rock. There’s still some stiffness to him as well, but I do think he could become a strong ball-handler and decision-maker with the ball one day. At this point in his development and with the team he has around him, he’s not asked to do a ton with the ball in his hands. Thanks to the presence of KJ Simpson and the fun playmaking ability of Eddie Lampkin Jr., Cody was more of a spot-up shooter and tertiary playmaker. In his role, he did his job. Cody showed off some nice cuts to the basket; with the ball in his hands, he had some nice drives to the rim, finishing through some contact as well.
I walked away feeling really optimistic about Cody’s outlook. I think it’s going to take him a couple of years to become a truly impactful guy and for him to reach his ceilings. From day one in the league, he’ll be better suited as a support guy rather than someone you hand the keys to the car to. If a team in the Top 5 already has a primary creator who can handle most of the playmaking, Cody could be a great fit next to someone like that. Someone like the Blazers could be interesting since they already have Scoot Henderson, Jerami Grant, and others in place; Cody could come into a situation like that and be given the time to grow into himself for the first couple of years of his career. San Antonio could also be an interesting option, especially because they will have multiple first-round picks. You could see a situation where they use their first pick on a creator like Nikola Topic and then use their second pick on Cody Williams. Ultimately, I think Williams has a ton of potential to become an exciting NBA wing who could even become a number two option type of guy. Obviously, the goal for someone like that is to become a player like Paul George or Mikal Bridges. Cody could become that type of player with more seasoning. A player with that type of upside in this class is worth a top-five pick.
I wanted to do a deeper dive on KJ Simpson, but he had one of his worst games against the Bruins, so I’ve decided to come back to him later on rather than let this one game have too much of an influence on my evaluation of him. Simpson is a fun guard who can get his own shot, but I will stop myself here for now.
UCLA Guys:
This UCLA team is really weird. Heading into the season, it was clear to most that this team would go through some highs and lows this season. After losing a ton of upperclassmen, Mick Cronin and his staff have brought a slew of guys from all over the world.
Let’s start with Jan Vide.
Heading into the season, there was some excitement with Vide. After being one of the top scorers in the U19 World Cup last summer, people were excited to see how that would carry into his freshman season. It didn’t. Vide has not earned the trust of Coach Cronin, has had a ton of trouble adjusting to the college game, and needs a lot of work overall. Watching Vide shoot in warmups was rough. There are many moving parts with his jumper; in my opinion, he will have to revamp his shot from the ground floor to become an effective shooter. Vide took a significant risk coming over to play in Westwood; it’ll be interesting to see what he decides after the season. Now that he’s entirely out of the rotation, I’m sure he has a lot on his mind regarding his future.
Berke Buyukuntcel is another guy who has struggled in his first season with the Bruins, but unlike Vide, he isn’t entirely out of the rotation. Berke was pretty interesting to watch. He’s not getting a ton of minutes, but in his limited minutes, he has flashed some outside shooting, and he’s pretty useful because of his size. Standing 6’9” with a big frame, he has been pretty helpful as a backup big, but he’s another guy that needs more time and work before he can even be considered on the next level. His shooting form is very pretty and has displayed good touch. He’s slow laterally, but he could be an interesting prospect in a few years.
Aday Mara is another one of these guys who may be regretting the decision to come over to play for the Bruins. He’s not playing a ton, is not very productive when he gets minutes, and is tough to watch aesthetically. For all the people out there wanting to shame Zach Edey for not being lightning-fast, Edey looks like Usain Bolt compared to Mara. Mara struggles to move around the court, does not get very high off the ground, and most of his appeal right now is tied to his size. I wish him the best, but I think he’s far from being ready for the NBA.
Adem Bona should have entered the draft last season. His stock hasn’t improved in year two, and not all of it is his fault. He hasn’t gotten much help from his teammates, and it wasn’t like he would come back to school and change a ton as an offensive player. He’s still a menace on the defensive side of the ball. He has a handful of hustle plays every night that get you out of your seat. But overall, I don’t think he looks very different from who he was last season. I’d have no problem spending a second round pick on a guy like Bona to come off the bench and offer some defense and hustle. He’s still a great lateral mover; I just don’t think he’ll ever be anything more than a rim-runner in the NBA. That sounds harsh, but that’s not a bad thing. Plenty of guys in the league continue to collect checks with that same skill set.
The most intriguing guy on the UCLA squad is actually Lazar Stefanovic. Stefanovic is a junior wing who transferred over from Utah before the season. He’s got good size at 6’7” and can shoot off the catch and off movement as well. He’s only shooting 34.2% from three on the season, but he’s got a beautiful-looking jumper, and he’s shooting 87.3% from the charity stripe. He’s not going to offer much beyond his outside shooting and movement when it comes to the offensive side of the ball, but he was a surprising defender. He showed good activity on that end and made me optimistic about his outlook. He’s also a solid rebounder and has recently offered some good minutes for Coach Cronin. In their last game against Utah, Stefanovic had 19 points and eight rebounds in a close loss against his former school.
I still have a good amount of games to watch before the draft comes around, and I am excited to share all that I find.