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It appears that some of the bigger names pulled out of the tournament, such as URI's Will Daniels, which has hurt the quality of play that we have seen so far:
There is very little question at this point that the pullout of 17 of the top prospects hurt the depth of this camp, even if there were still a decent amount of solid performers today, from at least a handful of players that will play in the NBA sooner or later(DraftExpress).
There were 3 games played yesterday, so here are the standouts from each game:
Game 3 of the tournament was the consolation game between the losers of Game's 1 & 2 from the day before.
The standout here was Ohio State's Othello Hunter, who actually had a strong game the first day as well. In yesterday's game, he came up with 18 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks, while shooting 6 of 9 from the floor. In the two games so far he has scored 35 points grabbed, 23 rebounds, blocked 4 shots, and is shooting a combined 14 for 19 from the floor. Not bad at all.
I had not mentioned Hunter's play in the first game because I felt at 6 ft 8 he may be too small to play in the NBA but check out this tidbit about Hunter:
Ohio State’s Othella Hunter wasn’t very tall at 6-8 ½, but his 7-2 ¾ wingspan more than makes up for that.
That is definitely an impressive wing span and he could be compared favorably to Carl Landry of the Houston Rockets, who was also overlooked last year due to his height.
Also in the first game, Iowa's Jiri Hubalek seemed to come down to earth from his impressive performance on Day 1:
....coming up with 9 points to go along with 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks on 4-8 shooting. He once again showed off his very nice looking stroke, complete with a high release point and excellent range, and also looked to be competing very hard once again. It’s more evident though why he struggled the way he did at times in college, though, as his feel for the game and fundamentals clearly aren’t the best you’ll find here, and he at times looks wild with the shots he takes or the passes and plays he tries to execute(DraftExpress).
Game 3 - Boxscore
Game 4 was the best game of the day as far as talent and performance go.
Patrick Ewing JR was impressive with 12 points 11 rebounds 4 blocks and 2 steals:
Ewing played his trademark tough defense throughout, getting a lot of weak side shot blocks and steals in man-to-man situations, using his athleticism and anticipation skills well. On the offensive end, he hit one three-pointer, but didn’t show much with his ball-handling skills, looking sloppy on some occasions, but also making good use of a few short dribble drives where he demonstrated his explosiveness. He showed more potential than most players here, and dropped some glimpses at times of being a better player than we were able to see at Georgetown. He’s someone to keep an eye on in coming games(DraftExpress).
VMI's Reggie Williams, who led the nation in scoring, also was the leading scorer in this game with 22 points to go along with 6 assists and he nailed 4 of 5 from deep. I definitely think he can play in the NBA and I was interested to see how he would perform in this tournament. He could end up being a deadly shooter in the NBA, he may just need to work on the rest of his game:
He was awesome coming off screens and knocking down shots, despite his strange mechanics. He also displayed better athleticism than we may be giving him credit for by finishing a thunderous alleyoop lob, and also showed a nice basketball IQ and solid unselfishness by making a number of excellent passes to open teammates (helping him net 6 assists). We’ll be keeping a close eye on him for the rest of his game, even though his average lateral quickness and ball-handling skills may limit his NBA potential in the long-run(DraftExpress).
Wisconsin's Brian Butch had a solid showing with 17 points and 7 rebounds. He is 6 ft 11 so I will keep an eye on him despite the fact he may not be athletic enough to cut it in the NBA.
Houston's Rob McKiver, who scored 52 points in a game this season, struggled in this game shooting only 1 of 6 from three. He did finish with 14 points 4 rebounds and 3 assists despite his poor shooting from deep.
Game 4 - Boxscore
Butler's Mike Green was probably the only prospect worth talking about in the dreadful Game 5, here is the scoop on Green who dished out 10 assists to go along with his 13 points and 8 rebounds:
The best prospect on the floor may have been Butler point guard Mike Green, who is slowly emerging as the Jose Juan Barea/Dashaun Wood style floor general extraordinaire that seems to pop up every year here. Green was terrific running his team’s offense today, coming up with 10 assists to go along with 13 points and 8 rebounds on 3-8 shooting, but was just as impressive with the leadership skills he showed on and off the court directing his teammates from the bench, clearly something that is in his blood with how natural it comes to him. He was very good in transition, was effective setting screens and making his teammates better, changing directions well and using his strength to get to the hoop, and set the table in a variety of ways, particularly with smart post-entry passes. He also played solid defense and looked very intense throughout. While his physical tools or perimeter shooting ability may not be ideal, there is no question that he is one hell of a player(DraftExpress).
Game 5 - Boxscore
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