Tag: Omer Yurtseven

Jimmy Butler, Heat give their respect to Sixers star big man Joel Embiid

Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat give their respect to Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid.

The Philadelphia 76ers once again needed Joel Embiid to step up to come away with a win. After a very slow first half on Saturday, Embiid scored 25 points after halftime to lead the Sixers to a 109-98 win over the host Miami Heat.

Embiid was fully neutralized in the first half. He scored seven points on 3-for-11 shooting. The Heat did a great job forcing him into tough shots. It was a different story in the second half. Embiid shot 9-for-11 as the Sixers rallied.

“Score, rebound, force guys to help,” said Heat star Jimmy Butler. “Be the dominant player that he has been for a very long time. He did that.”

While young Miami big man Omer Yurtseven played a very good game against Embiid, the Sixers were able to get the big fella in spots where he could have a big impact.

“That’s a lot of it,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “Great players do great things, and he certainly did that tonight. We had a lot of different coverages, different guys covering him. He showed pretty much his full skill set tonight. His ability to face up, which made it a little bit tougher sometimes to get to him, but he has that shooting ability and that touch where he can do that.”

Yurtseven held his own for Miami. He produced 22 points and 11 rebounds, but, once Embiid decided to take over, there was not much the rookie big man could do.

“I think the biggest thing was just getting in front of him and not letting him catch the ball,” Yurtseven said. “We should have just gotten more stops, but it’s just a learning curve. His physicality and how strong he is, is definitely a factor.”

The Heat are always a tough team for Embiid due to the zone defense Spoelstra deploys. There is also the play of Butler, who will not back down from anybody. But Embiid has been on a tear recently, and there is not a lot the opposition can do at this point.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Rookie Power Rankings: Franz Wagner stays on top, while the top picks return

Rookie Wire takes a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2021-22 season.

The rookie class recently saw more action as teams and players alike dealt with the latest coronavirus outbreak across the NBA that saw dozens sidelined in the health and safety protocol.

With over 200 players entering the protocol, several saw additional action recently around the league. However, it appears as though teams are through the worst of it with more players and individuals back and out of the protocol.

The last round of Rookie Wire Power Rankings included several under-the-radar first-year players. With more teams nearing full strength again, some of the top draftees have returned to the court and are contributing at a high level again.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Franz Wagner boogies up to No. 1 spot

Rookie Wire takes a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2021-22 season.

With the end of the year approaching, the NBA is struggling to stay afloat as teams and players alike deal with health and safety protocols and other issues related to the coronavirus.

Over 200 players have entered the health and safety protocol in the month of December alone as 10 games have been postponed as a result. Teams have called up over 80 players from the NBA G League to replace those in the protocol, creating opportunities for under-the-radar guys.

With several players sidelined, the rookie class has seen more action this month with some unlikely guys receiving more playing time and larger roles as of late. In addition, the usual cast of rookie standouts have also continued to perform at a high level.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Note: Players with at least 5 appearances since Dec. 15 were eligible for this week’s Rookie Wire Power Rankings.

OKC added 3 players this offseason who left or decommitted from NC State

Oklahoma City Thunder signed Omer Yurtseven and Josh Hall and traded for (and away) Jalen Lecque, all of whom have NC State connections.

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s roster has been a whirlwind of change over the last month, and inside that storm is one rather strange anomaly.

This offseason, the Thunder have added three different players who have either transferred or decommitted from North Carolina State. Two of them remain on the team while one was quickly traded away after being acquired.

Omer Yurtseven, signed as an undrafted free agent, played at NC State from 2016-18 before transferring to Georgetown. While with the Wolfpack, Yurtseven averaged about 10 points and six rebounds per game and shot 54.2% from the field, with his numbers dramatically improving as a sophomore.

Josh Hall, also added to the Thunder as an undrafted free agent, was committed to NC State but entered the draft out of high school instead. As a 19-year-old and fifth-yer prep player, he was eligible for the NBA draft coming out of Moravian Prep.

This was the second year in a row the Wolfpack lost the commitment of a star high school prospect.

In 2019, Jalen Lecque entered the draft out of Brewster Academy instead of going through with his NC State commitment. Lecque was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Phoenix Suns and played for the organization last season before being traded to the Thunder as part of the Chris Paul trade.

Lecque is no longer with the Thunder, as he was traded to the Indiana Pacers for T.J. Leaf and a second-round draft pick, but the coincidental nature of Oklahoma City adding three players who left NC State hanging remains strange.

Last season, there were four former NC State players in the NBA according to Basketball RealGM, not including G League players. Lecque is actually now in the same organization as one of them, T.J. Warren.

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Oklahoma City reportedly signs Josh Hall, Omer Yurtseven as undrafted free agents

Josh Hall and Omer Yurtseven have reportedly been signed by the Oklahoma City Thunder as undrafted free agents.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have reached agreements to sign two undrafted free agents, according to reports.

The team signed Josh Hall, who played postgraduate high school season at Moravian Prep, to a two-way contract, according to Stockriser’s Jake Weingarten.

Oklahoma City also signed Georgetown center Omer Yurtseven to an Exhibit 10 contract, according to Yahoo’s Chris Haynes.

Hall had been committed to North Carolina State but withdrew the commitment out so he could enter the NBA draft. The 6-foot-9 wing, who turned 20 in October, averaged 24 points per game and led Moravian Prep to a 34-3 record, according to the Charlotte Observer. He was ranked a four-star player and the No. 31 player in the 2020 high school class by the 247Sports composite.

Yurtseven spent his first two seasons at North Carolina State before transferring to Georgetown. As a senior, he averaged 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

He is 7 feet tall with a 7-foot-1 wingspan and weighs 264 pounds.

Both will likely spend the majority of the season on the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G League affiliate.

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2020 NBA Draft Big Board 5.0: Final update ranking Top 100 prospects

After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.

After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.

Originally scheduled for June, the ongoing pandemic pushed the big night back by five months. While this may cause some teams to overthink their decisions, it gave analysts plenty of time to study all of the top prospects eligible in this class.

This year, players had to participate in a mostly virtual pre-draft process. On the bright side, this meant that teams had the opportunity to interview more candidates than ever before.

However, the number of in-person visits were incredibly limited due to the restrictive parameters set by the league. Similarly, the NBA draft combine was conducted without the typical scrimmages where players can separate themselves from the others with impressive on-court performances.

Overall, the players that stood out in this pre-draft process had a different path to recognition than any other year. College basketball players did not have the opportunity to showcase themselves during March Madness. The nation’s top seniors did not get to participate in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament.

As such, executives will rely mostly on the existing game footage as well as the intel they gathered during their conversations with the prospects. We also depended on similar strategies, getting access to one-on-one interviews with more than three dozen prospects and exchanging our thoughts with various scouts across the league.

This helped us put together our final big board, looking at the Top 100 players ranked on their potential to make a difference for teams in the NBA.

Relevant statistics were pulled from Synergy Sports Tech, Bart-Torvik, KenPom, Open Look Analytics and RealGM. Note that the age listed for each player references how old they will be on the night of the draft.

2020 NBA aggregate mock draft 8.0: Draft day ranges for top prospects

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done. 

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done.

We looked at mock drafts from NBADraft.net, ESPN, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, The Ringer, Stadium, SI.com, USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire, USA Today and Yahoo to give us a more clear understanding of consensus rankings and projections.

This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.

Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.

The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.

2020 NBA aggregate mock draft 8.0: Draft day ranges for top prospects

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done. 

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done.

We looked at mock drafts from NBADraft.net, ESPN, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, The Ringer, Stadium, SI.com, USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire, USA Today and Yahoo to give us a more clear understanding of consensus rankings and projections.

This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.

Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.

The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.

Tracking top NCAA prospects who could still declare for 2020 NBA Draft

NCAA prospects have until April 26 to declare early entry for 2020 NBA Draft. There are several notable prospects who could join this class.

NCAA prospects have until next week to declare early entry for 2020 NBA Draft. There are several notable prospects who could join this class.

Two freshmen (Precious Achiuwa and Jahmi’us Ramsey) are widely projected as first-round prospects. Meanwhile, three sophomores (Isaiah Joe, Aaron Henry and Joel Ayayi) typically appear on mock drafts.

Others who are likely Top-100 prospects: Romeo Weems, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Filip Petrusev, Joe Wieskamp, Corey Kispert, Terrence Shannon Omer Yurtseven, Yves Pons, AJ Lawson, Charles Bassey, Anton Watson and Miles McBride.

Below is a list reviewing all of the key players in college basketball who have yet to make a public decision about their NBA futures, even if it is simply just to test the waters so long as they already applied to receive feedback from the Undergraduate Advisory Committee before April 16.

FRESHMEN

Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports

Precious Achiuwa, Memphis (Big)

Jahmi’us Ramsey, Texas Tech (Guard)

Romeo Weems, DePaul (Forward)

Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana (Big)

Terrence Shannon, Texas Tech (Wing)

Anton Watson, Gonzaga (Forward)

N’Faly Dante, Oregon (Big)

DJ Jeffries, Memphis (Forward)

Lester Quinones, Memphis (Forward)

Spencer Jones, Stanford (Big)

Nah’shon Hyland, VCU (Guard)

James Bouknight, UCONN (Guard)

SOPHOMORES

Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports

Isaiah Joe, Arkansas (Guard)

Aaron Henry, Michigan (Wing)

Joel Ayayi, Gonzaga (Guard)

Filip Petrusev, Gonzaga (Big)

Joe Wieskamp, Iowa (Wing)

AJ Lawson, South Carolina (Guard)

Charles Bassey, Western Kentucky (Big)

Emmitt Williams, LSU (Forward)

Isaac Likekele, Oklahoma State (Guard)

Marcus Zegarowski, Creighton (Guard)

Will Richardson, Oregon (Guard)

Kessler Edwards, Pepperdine (Forward)

Quentin Grimes, Houston (Guard)

Aaron Wiggins, Maryland (Guard)

Xavier Johnson, Pittsburgh (Guard)

Davion Mitchell, Baylor (Guard)

Marcus Bingham, Michigan State (Big)

JUNIORS

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Corey Kispert, Gonzaga (Wing)

Omer Yurtseven, Georgetown (Big)

Yves Pons, Tennessee (Wing)

Colbey Ross, Pepperdine (Guard)

Oscar da Silva, Stanford (Forward)

Nahziah Carter, Washington Wing)

Dru Smith, Missouri (Guard)

Matt Mitchell, San Diego State (Forward)

Mark Vital, Baylor (Forward)

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2020 aggregate NBA mock draft 5.0: International prospects are rising

Scouting and preparing for the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft is incredibly challenging due to circumstances surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

Scouting and preparing for the upcoming 2020 NBA draft is incredibly challenging due to circumstances surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

As always, we examine the mock drafts from the most trusted analysts to give us the best idea of a consensus for what the upcoming class will look like in June. The latest 2020 NBA mock drafts from experts at ESPN, CBS Sports, SI.com, Bleacher Report, NBADraft.net, The Athletic, SB Nation, Sporting News and USA Today Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire were used for these rankings.

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Currently, the first three players expected to be selected (Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, James Wiseman) have remained in the exact same order for the third aggregate mock draft in a row.

After dropping from No. 5 all the way to No. 11 between December and January, Maccabi Tel Aviv forward Deni Avdija has jumped back to No. 4 for this version.

He played well recently at the 2020 Eurobasket Qualifiers, scoring 21 points with eight rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal while also shooting 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. This was a welcome change of pace for scouts hoping to learn as much as possible about Avdija as he had averaged just 4.0 points in 14.3 minutes in Euroleague games earlier this season.

Several other prospects playing overseas have seen their stock increase as well. This makes some sense considering many in the NCAA rely on their performance in March Madness to solidify their draft position whereas the international players gain momentum in other ways.

Killian Hayes, who was ranked No. 18 overall on our last aggregate mock draft, jumped up to No. 8 for this edition. The 6-foot-5 guard was 14-for-61 (39 percent) from 3-point range while also connecting on 90.9 percent of his free-throw attempts during Eurocup action. Several outlets are currently projecting him as a Top 5 pick in the 2020 NBA draft.

Another prospect playing outside of the United States but currently making waves is Leandro Bolmaro. He debuted on our aggregate mock draft in the most recent edition before this one but has jumped all the way to No. 29 this time around.

Meanwhile, in the NCAA, some college basketball players managed to make some serious momentum for themselves before the season was unexpectedly cut short. Some of those players are seniors Killian Tillie (Gonzaga), Grant Riller (Charleston), Udoka Azubuike (Kansas) and Desmond Bane (TCU).

As mentioned here, it makes sense for upperclassmen to be more appealing in this class than in previous years. Seniors have far more game film to draw film which may be necessary considering individual team workouts and even the 2020 NBA Draft Combine may be canceled. Plus, older players are likely more ready to contribute immediately.

On the flip side, there are freshmen around the country who have seen their draft stock drastically decline in recent months.

Oregon’s N’Faly Dante has fallen off our boards completely after playing just twelve games and making no appearances in the starting lineup. Kahlil Whitney, who was considered a lottery pick when we did this exercise in October 2019, also dropped off after withdrawing from Kentucky.

Some other freshmen who saw their draft stock fall: Duke’s Matthew Hurt was ranked No. 16 overall back in October but is now at No. 76 overall. LSU’s Trendon Watford was ranked No. 14 in October but has fallen to No. 63. Florida’s Scottie Lewis was No. 9 in July and is currently No. 53 overall.

Less drastic but still valid: Arizona’s Nico Mannion has fallen from No. 6 back in January 2020 all the way to No. 16 now in April. Likewise, UNC’s Cole Anthony dropped from No. 2 back in July 2019 to No. 10 in our new study.

But some encouraging news for prospects who were considered Top-25 recruits coming out of high school but had a disappointing freshman year (e.g. Duke’s Wendell Moore as well as the aforementioned Dante, Whitney, Watford, Hurt and Lewis) can be found in Kentucky’s Immanuel Quickley.

The 6-foot-3 guard was the No. 13 overall recruit in the nation coming into Kentucky as a freshman. But after averaging just 5.2 points as a freshman, he returned for his sophomore campaign.

Fortunately, the SEC Player of the Year dramatically improved his draft stock in 2019-20. His season was highlighted by 21.3 points per game in February and a free throw percentage (92.3%) that ranked as the sixth-best among all underclassmen. This month, he debuted on our aggregate mock draft at No. 42 overall.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.

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