Tag: NBA Draft

Meet Jazz rookie Kyle Filipowski, the Duke star ready to reintroduce himself in the pros

Kyle Filipowski is a Duke big man who is ready to dribble, pass, and shoot in the NBA.

Editor’s Note: This story was originally published June 4, 2024.

Duke Blue Devils star Kyle Filipowski is a talented, versatile big man who can help space the floor and impact winning at the next level.

Filipowski is widely considered one of the top players at his position in this class. After averaging 16.4 points with 8.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game as a sophomore, he was named as a consensus second-team All-American.

He told For The Win during a recent video interview that he has the unique ability as a big man who can dribble, pass, and shoot.

“It gives teams a lot to do with me. I’m very adaptable. I’m very coachable,” Filipowski said. Whatever the team needs me to do, I’m going to be able to do it just because of that uniqueness in my skills.”

The former Duke star measured just short of 6-foot-11 in socks at the 2024 NBA Draft Combine. His shuttle run (2.93 seconds) was near the best among all players at his position.

His versatility during his collegiate career puts him in unique company as a top-tier prospect.

“I’m very disciplined with what I need to be doing in order to take my body to the next level in order to play at the NBA stage,” Filipowski explained. “I’m excited for the spacing just to expand my range on 3-pointers because I know that’s going to help a lot with my passing and my facilitating as well if I get that more dangerous for teams.”

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Watch Episode 2 of Prospect Park, a video series featuring future NBA players brought to you by USA TODAY Sports and For The Win:

How helpful will it be to have a fully healthy offseason?

That’s going to be huge. Like you said, right after we lost in the tournament my freshman year at Duke, I got double bilateral hip surgery two weeks later, if that. That was a really hard decision for me to make because I knew I wasn’t going to have an offseason to develop and take off but ultimately, it was the best decision for me because now I’m feeling fantastic with where my body is at and I’m super excited to now have that offseason to get stronger and just work on my body even more now. Even now, every day, my body is getting better than it was. It’s not even at its full peak yet. So having this full offseason is going to be huge for me and I’m looking forward to it.

What should NBA teams know about you?

I’m not even at my fullest potential. I’m not even at my best yet. That comes with physicality and my skill set, of course. I think a lot of players can say that but for me, my upside is a whole lot more because of that hip surgery. I’m still getting better from that every day. So the strides and leaps I can take with that, they’ll get a guy that is going to be a dangerous player that loves competing and loves playing the game. Those are the biggest things for me.

How does your basketball IQ impact winning?

I’m a big learner of the game. I love watching basketball. I love watching the playoffs right now and seeing and reading all of these things that players are doing. It’s just so exciting for me. I know what I’m capable of and obviously college is a whole different style of play than the NBA and I feel like my style of play suits the NBA so much better. With that IQ coming into play, being able to facilitate and with the spacing and just reading and reacting, the defense will be so much easier in my opinion with my IQ.

What is your ideal role in the NBA?

I think what I love to do is just space the floor. I think that opens up a lot for myself and for my teammates. Starting on the perimeter, that gives me the ability to drive the ball and kick it out to the shooters or even pass it off to the five man like a Dereck Likely. Doing that at my size and also being able to space the floor and let the five man go to work inside or let the guards attack and facilitate, and they don’t have to worry about an extra defender because my defender will stay on me because of my 3-point ability as well. That’s the kind of stuff I’m looking forward to.

What are some of your goals?

Definitely going right into this year is Rookie of the Year. I don’t think that’s out of my reach at all. If I should play the way I’m capable of, there is no question I should be in that conversation. But ultimately, wherever I go, I just want to help that team win. Winning is the most important thing for me and I know that with what comes with that is those individual accolades and just being able to do that and work for those types of goals is very important to me.

How would you rate your competitiveness?

I would say an 11 out of 10. I’m so competitive when it comes to playing and winning. I never want to lose and if I fall short, I’ll go right back at it. So just bringing that competitiveness and that personality to a team will be big. That’s just something that makes me such a special player.  

How would you describe your personality?

I would say it’s a very joyful but passionate person. Obviously, if you do the right things playing in a competitive game, you can get me fired up. But at the same time, just being a very joyful guy and enjoying the process and embracing it all because this is what I love to do every day. 

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3 things to know about deputy NBA commissioner Mark Tatum for Day 2 of the 2024 draft

How did a Cornell baseball player end up announcing the picks of the NBA Draft’s second round?

When the second day of the NBA Draft rolls around, the commissioner takes a break from announcing the league’s newest players and hands those duties off to the deputy commissioner. This is, of course, how a lot of folks were introduced to Adam Silver as he worked in this role for eight years under the late David Stern.

Silver’s deputy is Mark Tatum, who took the office in 2014, around the same time Silver became the NBA commissioner.

While Tatum has been the deputy commissioner for a decade – and has worked in the NBA since 1999 – he’s still unfamiliar to a lot of casual fans.

So, let’s get to know him a little bit better before he rattles off second round selections on Thursday night:

1. He played college baseball

While Tatum has worked in the NBA for 25 years, his sports roots are on the diamond.

Before graduating from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing, he played two seasons for the Big Red. Listed as a 5-foot-9 infielder, he played in 41 games as a junior in 1990.

Tatum’s father told Andscape:

“He couldn’t run, but he sure could field.”

Tatum also played in Yankee Stadium once, for his Brooklyn Tech High School team in the 1984 state championship.

2. Before the NBA, there was Pepsi and Clorox

Tatum worked for a lot of different companies before finally landing with the NBA in 1999. He had roles in marketing and sales for Pepsi, Proctor & Gamble and Clorox. After working for bleach and soda companies, he found himself back in baseball, working with MLB’s sponsorship department.

It’s likely that connections to some of those companies helped Tatum in one of his earlier roles in the NBA as the executive vice president of global marketing partnerships, where he negotiated deals with American Express, Anheuser-Busch, Kia and State Farm.

The NBA also credits Tatum – who was born in Vietnam – with leading initiatives that led to the first NBA games played in Africa and India, and the launch of Basketball Africa League.

3. He still takes the subway in New York

Tatum’s parents still lived in his childhood home in Brooklyn as of 2022, and the NBA has held its draft at the Barclays Center since 2013 – the year before Tatum became deputy commissioner.

And every year, Tatum told Andscape in 2022, he takes the subway from the NBA’s Manhattan offices to his old neighborhood before taking the stage at the NBA Draft as an annual tradition.

“I never lose perspective of where I came from. … I just feel so blessed. I am just this kid from Brooklyn. I love the fact that we’re doing the draft in Brooklyn. My hometown.”

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Tim Legler jokingly outlined how the Celtics should draft Bronny James to hold him hostage from the Lakers

The Celtics have the opportunity to do the funniest thing ever.

We’re on Day 2 of the 2024 NBA Draft, and one crucial thread remains unpulled.

After it was suggested he’d inevitably join his dad, LeBron James, on the Los Angeles Lakers, Bronny James still does not have a team.

That opens the door to any of the other 29 NBA franchises doing the funniest possible thing on Thursday night. They can draft Bronny and effectively hold him for ransom from the Lakers, knowing that they likely want to appease LeBron at all costs. According to ESPN’s Tim Legler, the Boston Celtics should spearhead this kind of audacious plan. It probably also helps that Joe Mazzulla seems to have the stomach for these kinds of “crimes.”

During Thursday’s episode of First Take, the analyst jokingly suggested that Boston should “renew its Cold War” with Los Angeles by drafting Bronny in the second round and holding him hostage in return for a sizable trade asset. Like, say, Austin Reaves.

It’s so silly and so funny, but it really just might work:

Could you imagine if the Celtics, of all teams, really pulled this off?

I love the framing of Boston being this kind of bad guy from a bog-standard action movie, and LeBron has to come to rescue his son from languishing on, uh, the reigning NBA champion. And after watching so much of The Town, Mazzulla’s fake intimidating voice over the phone has probably been perfected. The pieces are all there.

If not the Celtics, I’d also like to submit the Denver Nuggets for this “hostage” plan.

Nikola Jokic’s crew has been one of the rare teams to completely vex LeBron on the court during his career. The Nuggets have won eight of their last nine games against the Lakers and have sent them home packing twice in the last two postseasons. That means Denver using a pick to purely bait LeBron and L.A. would be hilarious drama.

One thing’s for sure here. If the Lakers don’t draft James and someone else swoops in, we might be in for a wild and unnecessary saga.

France dominating the NBA Draft is a great sign for international basketball and maybe scary for Team USA

The French Connection is here

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Goooood morning, Winners! Thanks so much for reading the Morning Win today. We appreciate you. Happy Friday, Jr.

I, for one, am happy to welcome our new French overlords to the NBA.

READ MORE: The winners and losers of the first round of the NBA Draft

France is really taking over the league, folks. It’s incredible to watch. This year, Zaccharie Risacher made a bit of history as the fourth international prospect in the league’s history to go No. 1 overall. Say what you want about the guy, but he played (and dominated!) in the same league his predecessor, Victor Wembanyama, played in. That’s impressive.

But the French connection didn’t stop there. Overall, in the 2024 draft, three Frenchmen were picked in the top six. That includes Risacher, Alex Sarr (No. 2 to Washington) and Tidjane Salaün (No. 6 to Charlotte). When you throw in Pacôme Dadiet (No. 25 to New York), that’s four French players taken in the first round of this draft.

That’s already impressive, but it becomes even more so when you look at last season. Two Frenchmen, Wembanyama and Bilal Coulibaly, went in the top seven of the draft. That means five of the top 14 NBA draft picks over the last two years were from France.

As Wemby says, C’est la France frère. The takeover is here.

France has long been a staple in basketball. Since the days of Tony Parker and Boris Diaw, who played roles as key cogs for the Spurs, plenty of French talent has gone through the NBA. But I’m unsure we’ve ever seen anything like this.

These players aren’t just talented — they’re expected to be some of the best players in the league. Wembanyama might actually be the best player in the league soon. That’s an exciting thought.

At least until it’s time for Team USA to play France in the Olympics and World Cup. Then it becomes a bit terrifying.

Just call him AI Michaels from now on

Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The more technology advances, the less human things are beginning to feel.

NBC is bringing AI to the Olympics in possibly the most disturbing way. The network will use an AI version of Al Michaels to recap the day’s most important events.

This is beyond disturbing for two reasons:

  • First, Al Michaels is still alive, folks. Why not just … ya know, use him instead of Siri him?
  • Second, is this something we’re going to see moving forward in our sports and in our media? It certainly feels like a precursor of what’s to come.

Our Robert Zeglinski has more on why this is so disheartening here:

“It’s dispiriting that NBC is content to imitate one of the biggest sports voices it has ever had, especially since he is still alive and kicking. Michaels does a pro football game every week on a streaming service during the NFL season. He couldn’t have come back to NBC to record a few lines for a worldwide sports event? I find that hard to believe.

It’s troublesome that these kinds of decisions might soon define our sports-watching and sports-consuming future, which is only a microcosm of a greater collective. When the human element is even excised from the broadcast booth — the one place where a fan should always reasonably expect dependability and energy — then nothing is off limits.

Most of all, watching companies like NBC willingly hop into bed with these sorts of services without even a second thought is infuriating. And it doesn’t matter why they have decided to do so, either. Be it to cut costs or to invest in a hollow foundation devoid of any real exciting spark, it all comes from the same place of desperation and motivation. It’s all borne of the same brand of business cowardice to “get ahead or get left behind” without ever thinking about potential long-term consequences.”

Hopefully, this isn’t a sign of things to come. But, given our hubris as human beings, it probably is.

READ MORE: AI Al Michaels is coming to a TV screen near you

Idols become rivals

Diana Taurasi #3 of the Phoenix Mercury reacts after hitting a three-point shot against the Las Vegas Aces during the second half of the WNBA game at Footprint Center on June 13, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Folks couldn’t stop talking about Diana Taurasi’s feud with Caitlin Clark (if we can actually call it that) before the WNBA season started.

Feud is probably too strong of a word to describe it. Taurasi had some criticisms of Clark’s game, just like she does with a ton of other rookies, and some folks just took it to heart.

Now, we can talk about the basketball of it all. The two will play each other for the first time this Sunday. Taurasi was asked about it and she had what our Cory Woodroof described as a “delightfully blunt” answer about facing the rookie.

“As Clark and Taurasi finally square off in Phoenix this weekend, Taurasi was asked how she feels ahead of the marquee matchup. Her response was predictably fantastic and delightfully blunt.

“Yeah, it’ll be fun,” Taurasi told reporters, via Desert Wave Media.

If that’s not the perfect Taurasi answer, we’re not sure what is.”

I cannot wait to watch this game, man.

Quick hits: The top 32 NHL prospects … The most stylish players in the NBA Draft … and more

— Here’s Mary Clarke with the 32 best prospects ahead of the NHL Draft

— Here’s Blake Schuster with the best outfits we saw on NBA Draft night. These guys are fly.

— Charles Curtis has the draft order for Day 2 of the NBA Draft. Two days! Whew.

— This batboy absolutely saved Shohei Ohtani’s face and he deserves a raise.

— Bryan Kalbrosky has the best prospects available for Day 2 of the NBA Draft here.

— And here’s Cory Woodroof on why Bronny James wasn’t a first-round pick this year.

That’s a wrap, folks! Thanks so much for reading! We appreciate you. Have a great day. Peace.

-Sykes ✌️

Isaiah Collier avoided Lakers, Knicks, Sixers, and it’s probably for the best

New York media would have devoured Isaiah Collier. Philadelphia brings to mind Markelle Fultz. Collier was fortunate.

Isaiah Collier did not join an NBA organization which is fiercely and vigorously pursuing a championship. On one hand, that could be seen as a negative. Why not be part of a team which can instantly do something special? Why not be exposed to a championship culture where the appetite for success is enormous? It’s a fair question. Collier will start his NBA career with the Utah Jazz after getting picked at No. 29 in the NBA draft. To be sure, the No. 29 pick is a lot lower than Collier wanted. However, Utah is a good spot for a rookie whose game needs time to develop.

Collier avoided the New York Knicks, who easily could have picked him at No. 25 or 26. The New York media would have wanted Collier to become an instant success, the kind of player he’s probably not ready to become. Collier likely needs two if not three years to get his game in order and fix his jump shot. Imagine being in the New York fishbowl, answering constant questions about a broken jumper.

Also consider the example of Markelle Fultz, the promising lottery pick who never did fix his jump shot and was smothered in Philadelphia as a member of the 76ers. Collier should be glad he didn’t land in Philly, where the natives are restless after yet another failed season, and where Joel Embiid’s career is not reaching a championship standard due to a lack of help from his teammates. That would not have been the place to patiently develop a career and improve as a player.

In Los Angeles, LeBron James is hungry to win one more NBA title before he ends his career. As LeBron Wire notes, “an article in The Athletic revealed that both James and Anthony Davis want badly for the Lakers to get them a third star or major difference-maker.” The Lakers are in win-now mode, as are the Knicks and Sixers. Those are not environments suited to a player such as Isaiah Collier who needs to work on his game and go through NBA growing pains.

Collier on the Lakers might have seemed like a fairy tale in one sense, but if you pull back and evaluate what’s best for Collier, it’s probably a good thing he avoided Los Angeles, as well as New York and Philly. Utah should give Collier one thing the USC Trojan needs: time to develop.

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Isaiah Collier reveals advice LeBron James gave him in NBA draft preparations

LeBron James wants Isaiah Collier to trust himself and not allow his mind to be flooded with negative thoughts.

No, this 2024 NBA draft did not unfold the way USC’s Isaiah Collier hoped it would. Collier wasn’t a top-five pick. He wasn’t a top-10 pick. He wasn’t a lottery (top-14) selection. He didn’t even stick in the top 20. He fell to No. 29 and went to the Utah Jazz. However, Collier is intent on dusting himself off, picking himself off the canvas, and fighting for his pro career. He has one notable figure in his corner, giving him measured but sensible advice about the mental side of handling a draft-night tumble: LeBron James.

“It’s vibes just talking to him,” Collier said. “He told me to enjoy the process. It’s hard to make it even this far in your career.

“I’ve talked to LeBron a couple of times. He has definitely been a great resource for me. He is one of the greats — in my opinion, the greatest of all-time. It was crazy surreal to have met him. I’m blessed to be in this situation and I’m taking advantage of every moment.”

LeBron James instantly met and actually exceeded the hype attached to him as an NBA prospect. Isaiah Collier is not in that position. Yet, LeBron has seen players come and go over the past 20 years. He knows what the process is like and is trying to give Collier a blend of realism and confidence. Collier can’t get down on himself now, and that’s part of what LeBron James was trying to emphasize in his words of inspiration. Collier’s draft night didn’t go the way he wanted, but he’s still a first-round pick and still has a chance to repair his career.

Collier has only just begun to fight for his NBA existence. LeBron James hopes he will make it, just like another USC teammate named Bronny James.

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NBA scout evaluates Isaiah Collier, knows he will work hard to improve

An NBA scout was brutally honest in identifying Collier’s weak points, but thinks the guard will try mightily to address them.

The NBA draft did not turn out as Isaiah Collier or anyone at USC hoped it would. Collier, who began the past college basketball season as a projected top-10 pick with top-five potential, was still seen as a top-20 pick in the middle of May right after the NBA draft lottery. As recently as two weeks ago, he was still receiving NBA draft projections in the back end of the top 20. Toronto at No. 19 was a mock draft projection. The Lakers at 17 were mentioned as a projection. The Sixers had a look at him and owned the No. 16 pick. Collier still had reason to believe he would be a top-20 pick. In the end, Collier plummeted all the way to 29 and the Utah Jazz. He barely avoided falling all the way out of the first round. It’s not what he wanted.

One NBA scout explained why Collier fell. He didn’t pull punches:

“If he could shoot, he’d be a top-5 pick. You’re betting on him on being a worker, which he is going to be,” the NBA scout told Andscape. “Everybody talks about his [great] work ethic. If he continues to come in and works and works on his shooting, he is going to be a really good pro. He can get into the paint with the best of them. He passes the ball all over the floor. He’s unselfish. He can get into the paint and throw floaters and finish. But it’s the shooting thing. In the league, people are going to back off of him. And he won’t be able to drive and get to the rim easily. Plus, his size, he’s not as big as everyone thought.

This scout followed up with one important point, though: He thinks Collier will be persistent in working hard to address this and other flaws in his game.

“But I like him. If you look at history, he won three straight championships in high school and started all four years. He’s used to being the guy. He’s used to having the target on his back. He will be fine in this league with all of the space they play with, [where you] can’t hand check. He’ll be fine and be able to be a good player. He just has to develop his shot. And it’s not like his shot is broken. He’s a willing shooter. He will take the shots he’s supposed to take.”

We will soon see — probably in the NBA summer league — what Isaiah Collier is made of.

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Isaiah Collier’s NBA draft tumble recalls Andy Enfield’s rough USC finale

Andy Enfield’s last USC season comes back to the forefront after Isaiah Collier’s draft stock plummets.

Isaiah Collier was picked No. 29 in the 2024 NBA draft. That is not where he expected to end up. Collier began the 2023-2024 college basketball season at USC as a projected top-10 NBA draft pick. For some analysts, Collier was top-five material with a chance to rise to the top three. When Collier dominated Kansas State in the season opener on November 6, everything seemed possible for him and USC. It’s true that Collier’s January injury limited his development and hurt the Trojans last season, but even before that injury, USC had already torched its chances of being an at-large team in the NCAA Tournament. The season had already gone horribly wrong before Collier got hurt. Andy Enfield, who did a good job as USC head coach over the full length of his decade-long tenure, simply could not put the pieces together for more than a few games (Kansas State, the Arizona home game, and a few select others) in his last USC season. Collier did not hide from that truth when talking to Marc Spears of Andscape:

“The most challenging part of this was definitely losing,” Collier said. “Nobody wants to lose. But we learned a lot from it, especially when I got hurt. I sat down and improved as a player later on in the season. It definitely helped me a lot, too.

“College was definitely hard. I learned a lot. I had to learn a different kind of game. I’m just trying to move up on to the next level. I know it’s going to be even harder.

“There have been a couple challenges that I’ve faced. It’s always a learning process for me. Maybe it was a good thing that I went through with it. I can improve on it later on. I’m just taking it day by day in my career.”

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Isaiah Collier’s self-belief is intact despite NBA draft fall

Isaiah Collier isn’t going to stop believing in himself now. No way.

Isaiah Collier is determined to pick himself up and show that he is an elite basketball player after his noticeable fall down the board in the 2024 NBA draft. Collier had plenty to say to veteran NBA writer Marc Spears of Andscape:

“I’m going into every workout with a chip on my shoulder. A lot of things didn’t go the way I wanted them to go. There is a purpose to it. I feel like I’m still going to showcase that I’m that guy,” Collier told Spears.

“I want to show everyone that I’m the best guard in this draft class,” he said. “I’m taking it day by day. Keep working. Going in there in high-level shape and showcasing what I do.”

Collier goes to the Utah Jazz, a young team in rebuilding mode in a place, Salt Lake City, where the media environment isn’t nearly as suffocating as it would have been in New York with the Knicks or in Philadelphia with the 76ers. It’s a place where Collier will have time and space to grow. The team fit is, on balance, relatively good.

Now Collier can go prove a point about his quality as a professional basketball player.

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Rafael Stone, Rockets viewed Reed Sheppard as 2024 draft’s best player

“At the end of our process, we ended up with Reed as the best player in the draft by quite a bit,” Rockets GM Rafael Stone says of Reed Sheppard.

Heading into the 2024 NBA draft, the Houston Rockets had their eyes set on one player with the No. 3 overall selection in Wednesday’s first round. As fate would have it, University of Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard was still available when Houston was on the clock.

“I think there are a lot of guys who can and will have really productive NBA careers,” Rockets general manager Rafael Stone said after the first round. “But in this case, at the end of our process, we ended up with Reed as the best player in the draft by quite a bit.”

“He was the only guy we were really focused on, so if he had not gotten to us, I think we would have traded down or out of the draft. But when we had the opportunity to draft him, we jumped on it.”

When Stone was asked why he felt Sheppard was the best prospect in the draft, he immediately mentioned his shooting ability as a primary reason. Last season, Houston ranked 23rd in the NBA in 3-point shooting, finishing at 35.2% as a team.

“He has a special set of skills,” Stone said of Sheppard, who shot 52.1% on 3-pointers in his lone collegiate season at Kentucky. “His shooting was historically great. His feel for the game, his passing, his ability to get deflections, and he is an NBA athlete. The IQ and feel are very real. There is just a lot to like.”

Sheppard, 20, appeared in 33 games at Kentucky and averaged 12.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists. His 52.1% clip from 3-point range was a key factor in him being awarded Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year and earning second-team All-SEC honors.

While with the Wildcats, Sheppard was named National Freshman of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. He earned All-America Honorable Mention from the Associated Press.

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