Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs are producing NBA talent on a consistent basis. The Zags have seen at least one player selected in each of the past four NBA drafts and currently boast more players in the league than every college basketball program not named Kentucky, Duke, Michigan, UCLA, Arkansas, and Kansas.
However, the program’s all-time leading scorer, Drew Timme, is not among them. Timme had an unbelievably prolific career in Spokane, earning consensus All-American honors three times, twice winning WCC Player of the Year, along with two NCAA All-Region nods, an All-Tournament nod, and WCC Tournament MVP.
Despite the accolades, the 6’10 big man went undrafted in 2023 and landed with the Milwaukee Bucks, spending his first professional season with the Wisconsin Herd in the G-League – where he averaged 9.5 points and 5.7 rebounds in 25 games before suffering a foot injury.
Timme is back healthy and playing in the Summer League with the Sacramento Kings, and he put together a vintage performance on Monday in Las Vegas – dropping 19 points on 8-12 shooting with five rebounds and four assists.
Praise poured in for the big man, including on the broadcast when former NBA coach P.J Carlesimo discussed why he believes Timme fits in the modern NBA.
“Drew Timme’s not a good basketball player, he’s an excellent basketball player,” Carlesimo said. “That’s one of the reasons right there, the way he can pass the ball and it’s become so important for so many teams. You don’t have to be Nikola Jokic, but we showed those guys before, Vlade Divac up on the elbow making the passes. Drew Timme does a lot of things well. It’s hard for me to imagine there’s not a place somewhere among the 30 teams for this young guy.”
P.J. Carlesimo is working the Sacramento-Utah game right now for ESPN. Just had this to say about #Gonzaga's Drew Timme in the second half. pic.twitter.com/ICTcczKAyz
— Theo Lawson (@TheoLawson_SR) July 16, 2024
Timme’s improved passing gives him more offensive versatility than just being a back-to-the-basket low post scorer – a role that is very out of style in the current NBA. His ability to operate in the high post, set screens, make good reads with the basketball, and hit open cutters will translate at the next level, even if he has yet to prove he can consistently hit shots from the three point line.
Timme’s main issue is on defense, where his lateral mobility and vertical athleticism are subpar – enough so that he is a liability as a switch defender and underwhelming even in drop coverage.
Still, the offensive bag is enough for him to merit serious consideration for any NBA team in need of more frontcourt depth, and if he keeps putting together highly efficient performances in Summer League he should land a two-way contract or at least an invitation to training camp ahead of the upcoming NBA campaign.