It’s the economics of the NBA: teams in the second round draft European players they can stash overseas, saving the roster spot and money and giving them a trade chip. Sometimes those guys develop and come over, a lot of times they do not.
In picking those guys, good players looking for chance in the NBA get passed over.
Here is PBT’s top five guys left undrafted. Each hopefully gets a shot through Summer League and training camps (nearly 20 percent of the guys in the NBA went undrafted, there is hope).
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• Patric Young, 6’9” power forward/center, Florida. He was very highly recruited coming out of high school, and without a doubt he passes the eye test, he looks like a powerful NBA inside player. Of course, Kwame Brown passes the eye test, too. Young has an inconsistent offensive game, mostly based around post up play, but he’s athletic and can run and finish in transition. He has the tools to be a great defender, but needs works. He has the tools to make an NBA GM look good and stick in the league for a long time, the question may be mental but he deserved the chance he can get it together.
• Jabari Brown, 6’4” shooting guard, Missouri. He can flat out score — he can shoot the three (41 percent this past season), can put the ball on the floor, knows how to finish in transition, and he does it all efficiently (64 percent true shooting percentage last season). The issue at the next level is defense (and passing, but mostly defense), if he doesn’t learn to do it better he’ll have trouble staying on the court. But if you can score you should get a look at least.
• Deonte Burton, 6’1” point guard, Nevada. He’s small, quick, gets into the paint with a fantastic first step and can finish or find teammates. He knows how to score in the pick-and-roll or isolation, plus he knows how to run a team in transition. He had to carry a lot at Nevada and with that there were some questions about his ability to read the court and make the right play. How does he play surrounded by much better talent? Some team needs to give him a chance so we can find out.
• Khem Birch, 6’9” power forward, UNLV. He’s long (7’0” wing span), athletic and he uses that well on the defensive end of the court, which is why a team could use him. He can block shots and is a guy who gets hustle points and buckets by being scrappy. He’s not polished on the offensive end, his footwork is unimpressive and he doesn’t have much shooting range. But teams could use guys off the bench who just hustle and scrap.
• Jahil Carson, 5’11” point guard, Arizona State. Lightning quick and that made him one of the most entertaining players in college basketball the past few years. He can get to the rim in the halfcourt and he can be a one-man fast break. He’d be a fan favorite. He’s small and slight and that’s a concern in the NBA, particularly on the defensive end of the floor. The other question is his ability to lead an offense and create for others not just himself. His passing skills can be inconsistent. Still, in a league where you can’t touch a guy on the perimeter a point guard with speed has value.
