Some Standouts From The 2022 NBA G League Combine
Dakota Schmidt breaks down how Kenneth Lofton Jr, Jalen Wilson, Marcus Sasser, and Tyrese Martin impressed in last month's NBA G League Combine
Kenneth Lofton, Jr. - Louisiana Tech - 6’7 forward with a 6’11 wingspan
13 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists on 10-13 from the field and 2-2 from 3 in 19.7 minutes per game
Despite ongoing concerns around his weight, it was hard to think of a player that played with more energy during last week’s G League Elite Camp scrimmages than Kenneth Lofton, Jr. In both of the scrimmages, the Louisiana Tech alum played with the fiery passion on both ends of the floor that jumped through my laptop screen. On offense, that passion was shown by his willingness to contribute in numerous ways. As was the case during his run in college, his work inside the paint served as the anchor of his offensive attack. The 275-pound forward was able to use his frame and good footwork to get what he wanted in the low-post while his quick feet and processing speed to recognize where the ball is going after it bounces off the rim.
While his dominance inside the paint were impressive, I was most intrigued by the flashes that he showed away from the restricted area. For example, Kenneth showed absolutely no fear of pushing the ball in transition. Heck, the gif below shows that he did a pretty solid job at it as he pushed the pace in transition before delivering a great pass that catches the trailer in stride.
During his two-year run with Louisiana Tech, our subject didn’t show much in terms of skills as a shooter, where he went 4 for 20 from beyond the arc. On a larger sample size, our subject was an inefficient 64% from the charity stripe on a total of 339 attempts. Although that inefficiency is troubling, a bright spot is seen from how he this free-throw percentage grew by seven percent from his freshman (60% on 4.9 attempts per game) to his sophomore (67% on 5.5 attempts per game) seasons.
Despite that less than stellar track record as a shooter during his young college career, perhaps the progression in his free-throw percentage is a sign that the 19-year-old is showing growth. Another example of his potential improvement was shown in the G League Elite Camp by how comfortable he seems to be in his jumper. That’s evident in the gif below as he uses a jab step to create space from his defender before nailing his three from above the break. For someone that is an inexperienced shooter, him being confident in his shot and knowing how to create space are both causes of optimism for the young hooper.
Following a tremendous week of great performances in the NBA G League Elite Camp and NBA Draft Combine, Kenneth announced via his Twitter account that he was staying in the NBA Draft rather than return to Louisana Tech for his junior season. While it’s yet to be seen if great weeks like last will result in him being one of the 58 young men selected in next month’s festivities, it’s crystal clear that Kenneth Lfton, Jr. is a young and talented forward that has a lot more to give to the game of basketball as a player.
Tyrese Martin - UConn - 6’7 wing with a 6’8 wingspan
10.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3 assists on 8-17 from the field and 2-7 from 3 in 18.8 minutes per game
Since his senior season with UConn ended back by way of a heartbreaking 70-63 NCAA Tournament loss to New Mexico State, Tyrese Martin has been on an absolute tear. This stated a few weeks after that tourney defeat as he scored a game-high 22 points and 4 rebounds on 9-17 from the field, 1-5 from 3, and 3-4 from the free throw line in the Reese’s College All-Star Game. That great play continued two weeks later at the Portsmouth Invitational, where he shined as one of the competition’s best wings. In 3 games at the event, the 6’6 wing averaged 19.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.3 steals on 56% from the field and 35% from beyond the arc on 5.7 attempts per game.
Despite there being a month between his fantastic play in Portsmouth, Virginia and his week in Chicago, our man still impressed. While his knack as a scorer is what allowed him to shine in the events leading up to last week, Tyrese’s knack as a facilitator is why you’re seeing this analysis.
For a 6’6 prospect that worked as a wing during his run in college, it was impressive to see the numerous ways that he was able to work the ball around. Working on the perimeter, the 23-year-old did a fine job of utilizing his height to see the floor to find cutters and open shooters. A great example is evident in the clip below where does a great job of finding the cutting guard after he maneuvers the screener.
Along with his ability to quickly process his surroundings and react with a precise delivery, Martin showed a knack of distribute while going downhill. This skill can be incredibly dangerous to defenses if that ball-handler is great at being able to deliver the ball to his man right when he captures the attention of opposing players. While the G League Elite Camp was the texbook example of a short sample size, our man did show some flashes of doing just that.
The below gif shows just that through how he does a great job of immediately taking advantage of the switch through using his burst to get past Bryson Williams. That edge forces Pete Nance to help out. Fortunately for the UConn alum, he immediately recognizes it through by using the hangtime he gets to deliver a pass to Brison Grisham
Outside of those flashes as a facilitator, the UConn alum’s motor really caught my eye during those two scrimmages. Whether it’s his aggression when it came to pushing the pace in transitin or how he focused on dominating the glass during his run the floor, Tyrese seemed to force the scouts and executives to focus their eyes on him with his actions on the court. I mean, just look at the clip below where he comes out of nowhere to get his spot around the restricted area, reach up to collect the rebound, and thne go back up to finish around the rim with his left hand.
While his perimeter shot was unreliable during his two scrimmages in the G League Elite Camp, Martin’s flashes as a distributor and effort on both ends allowed him to truly flourish during the event.
Marcus Sasser - Houston - 6’3 guard with 6’7 wingspan
17 points, 2.5 assists, and 5.5 rebounds on 53% from the field and 42% from beyond the arc on 6 attempts per game
Heading into this event, Marcus stood as probably the most intriguing prospect to keep an eye on. Part of that is due to the giant leap that he showed during the early stages of the 2021-22 season where he shined as one of the premier two-way guards in college basketball. However, I only said “early stages of the season” due to how a tue injury suffered in late December cut his junior season short.
Five months later, the pride of Red Bank, New Jersey would have the NBA G League Elite Camp as his first opportunity to show the world his on-court skills. Despite all of that, he didn’t show any sign of rust. In fact, he showed himself to be the most dominant offensive weapon in the entire event. This high praise came through how regularly he was able to get to his spot at all three levels of the court.
On the perimeter, he showed a real knack of utilizing screens to hit pull-ups or create separation from his man by way of step-backs. In either of those areas, he showed confidence in getting enough power in his lower body, reassuring considering the injury that cut short his junior season.
As any ball-dominant guard should, Sasser was able to utilize the threat that he had as a scorer to make lives better for the other four men on his team. During this two game stint, he showcased this through work in the pick-and-roll as he did a great job of using his threat as a shooter and driver to capture the defense’s attention enough before dishing it out to the roll man. All of that is shown below as the big defender stays by Sasser long enough for the big to diving into an open lane. Sasser does a great job of quickly recognizing and throwing a bullet side-arm passes that lands in the hands of his target.
As someone that hasn’t played organized basketball in almost a half-year, it was impressive to see that Sasser was back to looking like the same player that impressed with the Universtiy of Houston before he went down with that major toe injury last December. His performance at the NBA G League ELite Camp and the subsequent Draft Combine seems to have already helped out.
Currently, he sits 73rd on Rookie Scale’s Consensus Big Board, which collects big boards and mock drafts from major NBA Draft sources like ESPN, The Athletic, and NBA Big Board along with the numerous big brains on Draft Twitter. This is a big step up from him sitting 96th on May 10th, before he participated in the events in Chicago. While this doesn’t mean that he’ll be drafted, it’s a sign that his stock is rising among folks that keep track of the NBA Draft, whether from the perspective of analysis or gathering information from various sources.
Jalen Wilson - Kansas - 6’7 forward with 6’8 wingspan
15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 10-19 from the field and 7-11 from 3 on 17.7 minutes per game
Besides Marcus Sasser, there might’ve not been a better example of a player just getting hot during his two G League Elite Camp scrimmages than former Kansas forward Jalen Wilson. As you can tell from what he shot from deep, the 6’7 forward was unstoppable as a catch-and-shoot threat. No matter if he was on the left or right wing or corner, he showed an incredible knack of quickly catching the ball and releasing without having to really dip. That allowed him to release the shot before the defense was able to react and close out.
The incredible accuracy from deep during his run at the NBA G League Elite Camp is remarkable and also confusing when you consider his past with Kansas. During the 2021-22 campaign, he shot an abysmal 27% on 104 total catch-and-shoot attempts.
Even if you look at his work from the charity stripe, Wilson shot 72% from the free throw line on a total of 115 total attempts, a nine percent improvement from the prior season. While that improvement from the free throw line shows some signs of progression in his touch, it doesn’t take away from how remarkable his shooting barrage was.
Outside of his surprising hot streak from beyond the arc, Wilson showed flashes of being able to create on the move for both himself and his teammates. As a 6’7 forward, the Kansas alum is very smquick and smooth with his downhill driving abilities. An example of that is seen below as he does a great job of attacking a closeout, getting to the rim, and kicking it out to a big.
Nice write up Dakota. Lofton Jr. is someone who will be fun to track given his ability to manufacture buckets and his developing skill set. Sasser looked very confident and fluid, as you mentioned. Given you watched the event closely, any thoughts on AJ Green out of UNI? I’m from the area and have rarely heard anyone dish on him or his chances, probably not a draft guy but his shot making is intriguing to me.