The opening weekend of the 2018 NCAA Tournament came and went as NBA franchises were able to get eyes on a number of prospects against a new lineup of opponents.
As always, March can be a stepping stone to June for some of the top players in college basketball. Those who perform well are almost always rewarded come draft night.
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As such, here’s a look at a few prospects eligible for the 2018 NBA Draft who took advantage of the opportunity provided by the first two rounds of March Madness.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, PG/SG, Kentucky
Height: 6-6 | Weight | 180 | 19.7
Current Rank: No. 17
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been steadily climbing draft boards since taking over as Kentucky’s starting point guard at the beginning of 2018. His performances during the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament in wins over No. 12 Davidson and No. 13 Buffalo could propel him even higher.
Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 24.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 3.7 steals per 40 minutes while posting a 70.8 true shooting percentage over the course of the Wildcats’ first two games.
As usual, the freshman’s exceptional ability to navigate as the ball-handler in pick-and-rolls was on display. Gilgeous-Alexander doesn’t have the same straight-line burst as many top point guard prospects, but he controls defenders with changes of speed and direction.
Most college defenses are content to let their big sit back when defending Gilgeous-Alexander in ball screens because he hasn’t shown a consistent ability to pull up off the dribble yet. Against Davidson, he punished those coverages by patiently approaching the big before exploding past. When the Wildcats did bring their big up, he was able to split the coverage and get to the rim.
Gilgeous-Alexander also continued to flash one of the more underrated aspects of his offensive arsenal: his ambidexterity. The 19-year-old is comfortable finishing around the rim with both his left and right, and he is capable of whipping one-handed passes to the corner with either hand. In both cases, Gilgeous-Alexander is able to take advantages of angles that don’t exist for other point guard prospects.
Defensively, Gilgeous-Alexander’s length is impressively disruptive in passing lanes and as a help defender, as evidenced by the number of steals he amassed against Davidson and Buffalo. He currently lacks the strength to project as a highly-versatile defender at the next level, but his long arms offer a path forward if he can add weight.
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By now, the Kentucky freshman has made a strong argument to be the second-ranked point guard prospect in the class behind Oklahoma’s Trae Young on my board. Still, there are a few lingering questions.
Although Gilgeous-Alexander knocked down a pair of 3s against Buffalo — one off the catch and one off the dribble — he’s still not a high-volume outside shooter, and his catch-and-shoot motion remains slower than molasses. Given the importance of shooting for modern point guards, his lack of experience there is worthy of a cautionary note.
The Sweet 16 will present another opportunity for Gilgeous-Alexander to make an impression against one of the country’s top defenses. Kansas State ranks in the top 20 nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, in large part because its perimeter defenders are able to consistently turn over opposing point guards. The Kentucky freshman could have his hands full.
Hamidou Diallo, SG, Kentucky
Height: 6-5 | Weight: 198 | Age: 19.6
Current Rank: No. 60
Unlike his teammate, Hamidou Diallo’s proverbial draft stock has spent most of the season plummeting. Once the potential none-and-done freshman who kept everyone waiting on pins and needles ahead of the 2017 NBA Draft deadline, Diallo developed into one of two focal points for the animus of Kentucky fans this season.
As his freshman campaign rolled on, Diallo’s minutes tumbled. After averaging more than 26.0 minutes per game in November, December and January, he played just 17.6 per contest in February. The move coincided with his on-court struggles. Diallo posted a negative net rating during SEC regular season play, meaning Kentucky performed better when he wasn’t on the floor. That the Wildcats started winning as Diallo’s minutes declined didn’t appear to be a coincidence.
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The 19-year-old’s warts aren’t hard to pinpoint on a stat sheet. Sure, he’s knocked down 34.2 percent of his 3-point attempts this season, but the statistical indicators suggesting he’ll even be be a league average NBA shooter aren’t there. Diallo’s made less than 50.0 percent of his 2s, has a negative assist-to-turnover ratio and posts middling-to-poor steal and block numbers for a prospect who theoretically should be a lockdown defender.
Perhaps March can be Diallo’s turning point. Against Davidson and Buffalo, he averaged 15.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.1 steals per 40 minutes. His 76.8 true shooting percentage in those two games is over 25.0 percentage points higher than his season average. His outing against the Bulls particularly sticks out:
It starts with the defensive end where Diallo showed why he was once thought of as a potentially elite perimeter defender. Of course, his emphatic chase-down block on Buffalo’s Wes Clark is the highlight, but Diallo also excelled in other areas. He was disruptive with his hands in one-on-one and help situations and gambled less than he has most of the season. If Diallo can consistently provide that level of effort and execution, it’ll go a long ways towards rebuilding his reputation.
Against Buffalo, Diallo also played one of his best offensive games of the season, finishing with 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field. Kentucky frequently used him coming off screens in the midrange where the screen gave him space to either attack the basket in a straight line or pull up for a jumper. His 44-inch vertical popped on a putback dunk over two Bulls defenders, and he even connected on a corner 3 after a simple relocation as the ball-side shooter.
On the whole, Diallo’s offensive game remains unrefined and all too inconsistent, but he showed a bit of his upside in the second round. The 19-year-old continues to be a risky prospect given what he’s done over the course of the full season. However, his performances over the opening weekend were a good first step in rehabilitating his image.
Robert Williams III, C, Texas A&M
Height: 6-10 | Weight: 240 | Age: 20.4
Current Rank: No. 16
When Robert Williams III announced he was forgoing the 2017 NBA Draft to return to school, things were looking up for Texas A&M. The Aggies were pegged as one of the top three teams in the SEC, according to the preseason media poll, and universally regarded as a top-25 team in the country. A series of injuries and suspensions stifled the program, though, as A&M finished in the middle of the pack in a stronger than expected SEC and entered the NCAA Tournament as a popular pick to make a first-round exit.
Williams' draft stock never quite took the bump he was hoping for. For much of the season, he’s looked like the same player he was as a freshman. Some of that relates to his situation. The 6-10 big man projects as a rim-protecting, play-finishing center at the next level, but he plays almost exclusively as a power forward for Texas A&M. It’s a roster construction that doesn’t accentuate Williams’ strength, but he came out a winner during the first weekend.
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In victories over Providence and North Carolina, the Aggies’ jumbo package looked formidable, and Williams was a big reason why. In addition to his normal play finishing around the rim (and a couple of windmill dunks), the 20-year-old flashed an improved post game against smaller frontcourt defenders. Although it’s not likely to be a go-to scoring option for NBA teams, Williams showed he’ll likely be able to score when smalls switch onto him.
Still, the most enticing thing about Williams as a prospect remains his defense. He blocked four shots in 47 minutes of playing time against the Friars and the Tar Heels. He’s now averaging 3.9 blocks per 40 minutes this season. Williams impressed with his timing and feel on the perimeter against Providence in particular, with both of his blocks coming against jump shots:
Williams remains a limited prospect in terms of his projected fit at the NBA level, which is tough in a draft loaded with versatile bigs. The A&M sophomore is likely fighting to be a late lottery pick at this point and competing directly with Arkansas’ Daniel Gafford — a center prospect with a similar skill set — for looks. That he was able to put together strong performances on the sport’s biggest stage almost certainly helped.
Zach Norvell Jr., SG, Gonzaga
Height: 6-5 | Weight: 205 | Age: 20.1
Current Rank: N/A
Gonzaga’s Zach Norvell Jr. isn’t a likely early entrant for the 2018 NBA Draft, but after his 28-point outburst against Ohio State in the round of 32, he’s certainly someone worth tracking for 2019 and beyond. Norvell is a redshirt freshman who was ranked No. 103 in the high school class of 2016, according to 247Sports’ Composite Rankings.
Against the Buckeyes, Norvell displayed an impressively diverse jump-shooting arsenal for a freshman, knocking down outside shots out of ball screens, off relocations and in isolation:
He finished 6-of-11 from behind the arc and has now made 36.8 percent of his 201 3-point attempts this season. Norvell has a projectable left-handed stroke and his statistical inputs — 82.1 percent from the foul line and 3.1 3-point makes per 40 minutes — are positive indicators of NBA-level shooting.
The 20-year-old also checks some boxes as a potential secondary playmaker for an offense. His overall pick-and-roll game ranks in the 94th percentile this season, per Synergy, while his scoring efficiency as the ball-handler in those sets is in the 88th. Unlike many other young players who rely on pull ups to generate value out of ball screens, Norvell is terrific going to the rim. He ranks in the 95th percentile nationally as a finisher around the basket this season, per Synergy.
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Norvell’s overall offensive contributions are up there with some of the elite freshmen this season. His plus-6.5 offensive box plus/minus number is tied with Alabama’s Collin Sexton for fourth-best in the class and ranks behind only Trae Young, Marvin Bagley III and Deandre Ayton.
In an era where offensively competent wing players — especially ones who can do more than simply spot up — are at a premium in the modern NBA, Norvell represents an intriguing future option for front offices to keep their eyes on.
A handful of quick hits...
— After a rocky finish to what will likely be his lone season in college, Oklahoma’s Trae Young bounced back with a good outing against one of college basketball’s tougher defenses in an 83-78 overtime loss to Rhode Island. He finished with 28 points on 9-of-18 shooting, plus seven assists and six turnovers.
Yes, Young’s turnover problems were on display, but so was his ability to create separation from quality defenders and his crafty passing. The Sooners also spent more time using Young as an off-ball threat against the Rams, giving NBA teams a few additional chances to see him playing off movement, something he should get to do more at the next level. Young remains the top point guard prospect on my board despite his flaws because of the offensive upside associated with his shooting.
— With Villanova’s Mikal Bridges this season, it’s never been a question of if he’s going to bring positive value to an NBA team, just how much.
The junior wing’s 3-and-D trajectory can veer towards stardom if he’s able to consistently create offense either with the ball in his hands or as a shooter on the move. Against Alabama, NBA teams saw more of the latter. Bridges comfortably knocked down shots off simple relocations and dribble handoffs. He finished 5-of-8 from behind the arc and is now shooting 44.2 percent from deep this season on over 200 attempts.
— West Virginia’s Jevon Carter piled up 11 steals across two games as the Mountaineers advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third time in four years. The senior guard’s defensive chops are already well-established, but his shot-making against Marshall in the round of 32 was particularly impressive.
He finished 5-of-7 from behind the arc, including several off-the-dribble 3s, en route to 28 points. While Carter’s defense will provide NBA coaches a reason to put him on the court in the first place, his jumper could give them a reason to leave him there, as it’s his best path to providing offensive value.
— Georgia State’s D’Marcus Simonds finished with 24 points and four rebounds in a 68-53 loss to Cincinnati in the opening round. While Simonds is a mid-major prospect who is already on NBA radars because of his bucket getting, it was refreshing to see him do it against one of the nation’s toughest defenses.
Simonds was able to consistently knock down shots off the dribble both in the midrange and out to the 3-point line while also attacking the basket and finishing through contact. Although the 20-year-old has been a poor pull-up shooter this season — he ranks in the 13th percentile nationally, per Synergy — it was interesting to see what he could look like at the height of his scoring powers.
— It’s never a bad thing when a big man can dribble, pass and shoot, and Marshall’s Ajdin Penava proved capable of doing all three in an 81-75 upset of Wichita State. Add in a bit of shot blocking, and you’ve got an intriguing NBA prospect.
Penava has the potential to be a play-making power forward who can provide some weak-side rim protection. He’s not a tremendous vertical athlete, though, and relies on timing and length to challenge opposing shots. There’s no guarantee the 20-year-old Bosnian comes out this season, but if he does, he’d probably be worth a second-round look, especially if a team could stash him overseas to develop.