Vision Quest: Kasparas Jakucionis
Illinois guard Kasparas Jakucionis has had an intriguing path to college basketball. Now, the freshman star finds himself on a "Vision Quest" ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft.
Elmo: You ever hear of Kasparas Jakucionis?
Louden Swain: Yeah, he’s a basketball player.
Elmo: A very good basketball player
[pause]
Elmo: I was in the room here one day... watchin' the Big Ten Network channel on TV…I don't know nothin' about Kasparas. I'm watchin' what this guy can do with a ball and his passing. Next thing I know, he jumps in the air and throws a no-look pass to the corner - upside down and backwards... the goddamn defense never knew what the fuck hit them. Kasparas gets excited and he rips off his jersey and starts running around the stadium waving it around his head. Everybody's screaming. I'm here, sitting alone in my room, and I start crying.
[pause]
Elmo: That's right, I start crying. Because another human being, a species that I happen to belong to, could throw a ball, and lift himself, and the rest of us sad-assed human beings, up to a better place to be, if only for a minute... let me tell ya, kid - it was pretty goddamn glorious.
Elmo: It ain't just draft season... it's what happens during that draft season.
In 1985, one of the best sports movies ever made was released. That movie was Vision Quest. In case you haven’t seen it (come on, figure it out), let me give you a quick run down. The movie is about a high school wrestler by the name of Louden Swain, played by Matthew Modine (for Stranger Things fans, it’s “Papa.”) In his final year of high school, Louden Swain decides he wants to go all-in and take on “Goliath” in a wrestling showdown to make a mark in his life. The challenge is taking on a terrifying rival wrestler by the name of Brian Shute, who is undefeated in his high school career and is terrifying the moment he comes on the screen.
The challenge for Louden is that in order to face the undefeated Shute, he has to drop two weight classes. Literally, he spends the entire movie starving himself to try to make weight. Swain is accompanied throughout the movie by his best friend, named “Kuch”, who says that Louden is pursuing a “Vision Quest.” I should also mention that when Louden goes to tell Shute in person that he’s going to wrestle him, Kuch right before says: “I think this is a big mistake, man…why give yourself nightmares?” To which Louden responds “I already have nightmares.”
Now, you might be asking yourself, why are you telling me about Vision Quest? Well, the dots should be starting to connect by now. Throughout every NBA Draft cycle, one player starts to dazzle film junkies with their display on the court. Even if the numbers might look solid on paper, these players have the ability to leave evaluators foaming at the mouth when the tape is on.
Illinois freshman guard Kasparas Jakucionis has been a name that has been buzzing. On paper, Kasparas has the resume to intrigue fans about their favorite NBA team adding the skilled floor general to the mix. But when you turn on the tape, you start to see another world of possibilities. But in order for us to move forward, we have to first take it back to the beginning…
Prior to his freshman year at Illinois, Kasparas Jakucionis was generating some noise with his play overseas. Born in Lithuania, Jakucionis spent time with Perlas Vilnius before ending up with international juggernaut FC Barcelona. He spent most of his time with Barcelona playing with their second team, where he averaged 19.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game while shooting 38% from downtown.
Eventually, Kasparas would make his mark during the Adidas Next Generation Tournament. During tournament play, Jakucionis averaged 17.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 9.0 assists, and 2.9 steals per game, earning himself All-Tournament team honors. After starting to heat up in the draft world, Kasparas made the decision to commit to play for Illinois for the 2024-25 NCAA season.
That’s when his vision quest began.
Due to the growing NIL situation with college basketball, we’ve started to see our first big wave of international talent coming overseas to play collegiately before eyeing the NBA Draft. It’s obviously a potential game-changer for college basketball, and especially for draft evaluators. It gives scouts more opportunity for an up-close look at some of the top international players. For Jakucionis, it’s a chance to put his talents on full display against some of the best prospects in the United States.
I said it before, and I’ll say it again. On paper, you find yourself immediately intrigued by Kasparas Jakucionis's resume. He’s listed at 6’6” and 205 pounds, and he has the frame that you’d look for in a potential combo guard. But Jakucionis doesn’t look like an 18-year-old on the court. He plays as if he’s an NBA veteran of six years. Poise is going to be a word that floats around your head the moment you turn on the tape. The moment that Jakucionis gets the ball in his hands, it looks like a maestro conducting an orchestra. He understands both how to use angles and the importance of timing. Not only will Kasparas create a window to attack, but he will do everything in his power to get you trapped in no-man’s-land before picking you apart.
In so many words, he’s an assassin with the ball in his hands.
Kasparas is currently averaging 13.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, with shooting splits of 50/36/87. His most impressive recent outing was an impressive 23-point, six-rebound, four-assist performance against Arkansas. There’s A LOT to like about the tape. There are also plenty of areas that will be important to watch out for throughout the year. Let’s break it down.
THE TAPE
You Have My Attention
When you first get a glance at Kasparas Jakucionis, the size stands out. Then you quickly have the inner doubt come in wondering if this is a stocky guard that is simply going to just try to overpower opponents without any elite speed. Then, you quickly find out that concern can be thrown out the window. Now, there are two types of speeds with a ball-handler. There’s breakaway speed in the open court, and there’s tight-window speed, or burst. In order to be dangerous, you need to understand how to set up your opponent in order to best utilize that acceleration. That’s just what Kasparas has in his arsenal.
He knows how to push you to your limits and get your momentum all out of whacks. Then when you overcompensate to catch up, he hits you again with a change-of-pace before throwing on the emergency breaks as you fly by. Kasparas is fantastic when it comes to having poise and patience. He doesn’t panic when the first attempt is cut off. Instead, he looks at it as an opportunity to build a sequence before attacking you at your weakest point.
Attack and The Stepback
I love it when a young guard shows an understanding of how to set up defenders. Even better is when that player can recognize that creating one look can all of a sudden open up another window throughout the game flow. That’s just what happens in these three clips above.
In the first, we see Kasparas set up the primary defender with a little “rocker-step” before rejecting a screen. He then uses his acceleration to get downhill and beat the last line of defense for a crafty finish at the basket. Seems simple enough, but it’s that look that all of a sudden creates the following sequences later on.
Now, the defense has to respect Kasparas off the bounce, so the secondary defender tries to position themselves in a better position to not get beat off the bounce. Kasparas feels that out, going to his “go-to” stepback consecutive times to hit a pair of threes.
Welcome to the Circus
One of the most underrated things about watching film is when a player can make you utter sounds out loud. The poise and control that Kasparas plays the game with are special. It’s like going to see a magician, and you think you know what’s going to happen before you realize there’s another twist at the end. We’ve seen a lot of guards over the years offer “highlight machine” type of assists. At the same time, we’ve seen plenty of talented facilitators that know how to make the impressive play look simple. Jakucionis has the unique ability to dance on both sides of the fence. He can pull out a bag of tricks at any time. But he also isn’t opposed to just making a simple play look impressive with timing and precision.
Three Point Shot
There’s always a swing skill when it comes to players. You might have guessed it: that area for Kasparas will most likely come down to the three-point shot. It’s not that Jakucionis is a bad shooter from outside, by any means. It’s just an area that if it comes more consistent, it can make him even more dangerous as a potential three-level machine.
When Jakucionis has the space to get set and let it fly, there’s a lot to be encouraged about. The form is solid and consistent. It’s still an early sample size, but you can tell that Jakucionis is much more comfortable when he has the ability to get set and into his motion. Despite his ability as a scorer from multiple levels, Kasparas is shooting just 18.2% on catch-and-shoot opportunities (per Synergy). However, that’s only on 11 attempts. Still, a number worth keeping an eye on.
Importance of Angles
You don’t have to be the fastest player in the world or the most athletic to be dangerous on the basketball court. If you understand how to create an advantage against the opposition, you can be deadly to a defense. Understanding the importance of angles and anticipation is crucial, especially when going up in competition levels. Kasparas works relentlessly to get his opponent guessing. He wants to make you work your butt off to have to stick with him. You might think you have him covered, but he’s going to use hesitations and tight-window bursts to create any possible window he can exploit.
Not only does he have the ability to pick you apart off the dribble, but Kasparas can also get you battling for your life off the ball. Once he gets to the second level of the defense, that’s when he can start to move pawns around like a seasoned chess player.
Playmaking and Timing
Vision is tough to teach. You can try to prepare a player with scouting notes of what a defense is looking to do. But at some point, it’s just a gift when a player can ancipate something before it even happens. Feel is a beautiful thing in the sport of basketball. When you have vision and a high feel for the game, it can take you a long way in this sport. You can see both of those worlds collide numerous times on tape with Kasparas. A simple ball fake is all he needs to get the defense to present him with options. On rotations, he seems to know where the ball should go before the following pass even touches his hands.
Drive & Kick
Finding a playmaking guard is easy. You can find guards all over the basketball world who can have success in one aspect of their game. Maybe they are at their best when it comes to making decisions out of the pick-and-roll. Perhaps their scoring ability makes them thrive as a drive-and-kick asset. But when you find a player that can offer a bit of everything in multiple parts of their game as a distributor, that’s when you’ve got something serious cooking.
Kasparas has shown flashes of all types of playmaking areas. If there’s anything to groan about with his game to start the 2024-25 NCAA season, it’s that he can be “too unselfish” at times. You’ll see times on tape in which Kasparas will pass up a wide open three before driving and throwing a dime. It’s not a confidence issue, but it’s more of a desire to get his teammates involved. Reactionary playmakers are special. They can have a plan while on the attack before quickly adjusting to the defense in the blink of an eye. That’s what you see come into play numerous times with the Illinois freshman.
Pick & Roll
As stated above, there are a number of areas in which playmakers can make their mark. But can you do it all and consistently? That’s what takes a player from a solid piece to a potential stud. Kasparas has shown early on that he can turn some heads in numerous areas with his awareness. He can throw a tight window dime off a pick-and-roll before quickly throwing a gorgeous jump pass to a rolling big man for an easy two. Delivery, timing, and anticipation: these are all crucial parts of the game for a playmaker that can quickly become a joy to play with if he can have success in each aspect.
Pick and Pop
A couple of times on tape, Kaspras looks like he’s got eyes in the back of his head. You find yourself quickly hitting the rewind button and asking yourself: “Wait…what was that?” With his ability to flip the court and make the defense play to his speed, Kasparas can be a vicious two-man weapon, especially with a floor-spacing big man. He’s got the ability and understanding of how to selfishly work in order to create an easy look for his teammates.
All of these might seem like simple “easy” plays. But it’s the legwork that goes into each play that cannot be overappreciated. When you have a guard who is willing to battle offensively to just create an imbalance for the opposition, just to get you a cleaner look, that’s when you’ve got a heck of a player.
Feel and Anticipation
I couldn’t help myself from including these clips in here. For me, this stuff just gets me psyched out of my mind. Some of these plays require slowing it down to truly appreciate the beauty of the madness.
This first clip is going to show Kasparas coming off an initial on-ball screen. It looks as if it’s going to be dumped off to the rolling man, who has a potential runway to attack. At the last second, the primary defender gets his hand in the way to prevent the pass. Without any hesitation, Kasparas reads that and quickly processes where the ball should go next. Too many times, especially with a freshman guard, you’d see that look become a turnover and a quick learning lesson. Instead, the processing speed of Kasparas is on full display as he throws an immediate cross-court pass on the money to Will Riley.
You see a great demonstration of patience on the second clip. Kasparas throws a ball fake, setting up his defender to react and give him an opportunity to attack. At first glance, it looks as if Jakucionis has the opportunity to throw a dump-off pocket pass to the big man crashing the lane. He’s got the look, and the window is there, but he knows stressing poise can make that look even better as the seconds go by. If Jakucionis throws this pass too soon, it gives the Arkansas defense time to quickly rotate and alter this shot. If he waits too long, he can run himself into no man’s land with plenty of sharks swimming in endangered waters. By getting the secondary defender to fully commit to the drive, Kasparas now creates a window just big enough to make it difficult for the rotation to prevent the shot.
We’re still in the beginning stages of the 2025 NBA Draft cycle. It’s always an exciting time of the year to start to get excited about tracking the progress of a prospect throughout the rest of the year. You find yourself becoming enamored with a talent and wondering what type of player they can become at the next level. There have been a lot of names already in the draft space who have started to generate some buzz in this class, but the lunatic fringe individuals are already starting to turn up the volume when it comes to Kasparas Jakucionis.
"Kuch had it right. It was a Vision Quest. But all I ever settled for is that we're born to live... and to die... and we've each gotta do it alone... each in our own way. And I guess that's why ya gotta love those NBA Draft prospects who deserve it like there's no tomorrow... because when you get right down to it... there isn't."
- Kasparas Jakucionis (probably) -