D-League Draft Prospect Preview: A Roundup of All the Draft-Eligible D-League Prospects

Here it is. The NBA Draft. After waiting anxiously since the end of the NBA season, NBA fans are looking forward to see who is going to be the next NBA star like LeBron, Durant and Carmelo and who is going to be the next NBA bust like Darko, Oden or Thabeet. It's an exciting time where the draft can help boost a team's chances of a championship, or help get a GM fired.

This NBA Draft, there are an unprecedented six eligible players who participated in the D-League this past season. It will be interesting to see after this draft if going to the D-League prior to entering the draft will start to be a trend for college and high school players not just around the country, but around the world as well. This very draft could be exhibit A in the D-League's growth and continued growth since its inception in 2001.

So, let's take some quick looks at the prospects eligible for this upcoming NBA Draft.

PJ Hairston, 6'5, 229 pounds, North Carolina, 21 years old

D-League Profile: 21.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 45.3 FG%, 35.8 FG%, 10.0% PIE (Player Impact Estimate) (Texas Legends)

Scouting Report (via DraftExpress)

Best Case Scenario: Lottery pick. Worst Case Scenario: Second round pick.


MLH Quick Take:

Hairston is the most polished and heralded prospect coming out of the D-League in this year's draft. After a sophomore campaign where he averaged 14.7 ppg for UNC, Hairston was ruled ineligible for the 2013-14 season due to multiple transgressions which ranged from marijuana use to having possession of a car that was rented out to a convicted felon. Despite his checkered history at UNC, Hairston is a talented wing player that uses his strength well on the drive and can shoot well from anywhere on the floor. Hairston still has to prove that he can improve on defense, but without a doubt, Hairston is a lottery-caliber prospect who could surprise a lot of people in tonight's NBA draft.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo, 6'6, 205 pounds, Greece, 21 years old

D-League Profile: 12 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 46.9 FG%, 7.9% PIE (Delaware 87ers)

Scouting Report (via DraftExpress)

Best Case Scenario: Late first-round pick. Worst case scenario: Late second-round pick.


MLH Quick Take:

The older brother of Milwaukee's Giannis, Thanasis is an athletic wing player that works hard on both end of the court and should be a late first round, second round pick in this upcoming NBA draft. While he doesn't have the height or athleticism of Giannis, Thanasis impressed some people with his motor and improvement over the course of the D-League season with the Delaware 87ers. Any team that picks up Thanasis knows that they will be getting a project of sorts, as many of his offensive skills need a lot of work. It would not be surprising to see Thanasis back in the D-League next season even if he is drafted. But, while his upside isn't as great as his older brother in Milwaukee, his work ethic and defensive ability is already NBA-ready, and he could end up developing into a Luc Richard Mbah Moute type of player down the road.

Cleveland Melvin, 6'8, 215 pounds, DePaul, 23 years old

D-League Profile: 11.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.3 apg, 54.4 FG% 9.6% PIE (Erie Bayhawks)

Scouting Report (via MLH)

Best Case Scenario: Second round pick. Worst case scenario: Undrafted.


MLH Quick Take:

A 6'8 wing player with inside-outside scoring ability, Melvin is an interesting player that will be eligible for the NBA Draft. Though he was suspended in January from the DePaul team, he had a pretty good career with the Blue Demons as he was one of the school's all-time leading scorers. In the D-League, Melvin showed a lot of maturity and polish as a player, excelling off pick and rolls and cutting to the basket for easy assisted buckets. Melvin showed a lot of improvement in his outside shot from his freshman year, going from an undersized center who primarily stayed around the hoop his freshman year to one that could hit the mid-range with regularity and occasional three by the end of his D-League campaign. Melvin still has to work on his physicality, rebounding and defense, but there are a lot bigger risks in this draft than Melvin, and it'll be interesting to see if a NBA squad will use one of their selections on him.

Norvel Pelle, 6'10, 207 pounds, Price High School, 21 years old

D-League Profile: 5.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 51.3 FG%, 5.5 % PIE (Delaware 87ers)

Scouting Report (via MLH)

Best Case Scenario: Early Second round pick. Worst Case Scenario: Undrafted


MLH Quick Take:

The long but troubled post prospect will be enticing to many NBA squads. With a 7'2.5 wingspan, and good shot blocking ability, it is easy to see a team take a second-round flier on the D-League prospect. He can wow people with his defense in the post, and he runs the floor well and is able to make the come from behind block with ease. At the same time, most of Pelle's game is a work in progress. His offensive game and footwork still need major work, and his court awareness still needs development as well. Whether he is drafted or not, Pelle would be better served with another year in the D-League to become a more polished player, especially since he had a long layoff between high school and his stint in Delaware. But, I like Pelle and the tools he brings to the table. Don't be surprised to see his name called tonight in the second round.

Elijah Pittman, 6'9, 219 pounds, Marshall, 22 years old

D-League Profile: 10 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.1 apg, 48.4 FG%, 5.8 PIE (Delaware 87ers)

Scouting Report (via MLH)

Best Case Scenario: Late second round pick. Worst Case Scenario: Undrafted


MLH Quick Take:

An athletic forward who has the ability to play on the wing or in the post, Pittman's game really isn't the issue. At Marshall, he was on his way to having a career year 8 games into the season, as he was averaging 20.5 ppg and 4.4 rpg for the Thundering Herd. However, off-the-court issues eventually led to his ouster from Marshall and the college level, and he ended up playing for Delaware during the stretch run. Pittman brings a big frame and a strong ability to score with the ball in his hands. He had improved his 3-point percentage to 38.2 percent his senior season at Marshall, so it is obvious that he can be a matchup nightmare for opposing defenders. Defensively he is prone to lapses, and he doesn't rebound as well as you would expect for someone his size, but he definitely held his own in the short, late-season stint with players who had been playing for an entire season. Pittman's profile is very similar to Melvin's, but he isn't quite as polished or heralded as Melvin entering this draft, so that's a strike against him. That being said, Pittman is on the cusp of being a great player. It's just more likely we'll see that jump and development in the D-League next season rather than the NBA.

Aquille Carr, 5'6, 148 pounds, Princeton Day Academy, 20 years old

D-League profile: 10.7 ppg, 1.9 apg, 1.2 spg, 39.8 FG%, 7.6 % PIE (Delaware 87ers)

Scouting Report (via MLH)

Best Case Scenario: Late second round pick. Worst Case Scenario: Undrafted.


MLH Quick Take:

A legend in Baltimore high school, AAU and streetball circles, Carr is one of the most fascinating players eligible from the D-League. At 5'6, he is diminutive in stature, but he has excellent athleticism and quickness for a player his size. Furthermore, he shows a strong ability to score against bigger defenders, using his quickness to drive past defenders to the bucket or pull up for easy jumpers. Carr showed some improvement in the D-League with his jump shot from his time in high school and AAU, and he also showed some promise with his pick-pocket ability on defense when it came to steals. That being said, the main issues with Carr stem with size and maturity. History doesn't bode well for guys his height (Nate Robinson is the only notable case as of late) and his off the court issues have hurt him since his high school days (from not qualifying academically at Seton Hall to being released by the 87ers for not showing "professional commitment"). Carr has tremendous potential, and he certainly is enjoyable to watch. But his career outlook at this point seems more destined for the AND1 MixTape Tour rather than the NBA, unless he is able to shore up the maturity and off-the-court issues that have haunted him throughout his short career.

D-League NBA Draft Prospect: Delaware 87er Guard Aquille Carr

Though Aquille Carr is a legend in high school and streetball circles, he has yet to put it together at the professional level leading up to 2014 NBA Draft.

With the NBA Draft less than a week away, there are many stories circulating around the Web from Joel Embiid's recent foot injury to what the Cavs are going to do with the No. 1 pick (at least they have chosen their coach though, more on this story over the weekend). However, one of the biggest stories going under the radar is the fact that six players who played in the D-League this season are eligible for this year's NBA Draft, and two are expected to be taken (Texas Legends PJ Hairston and Delaware 87ers Thanansis Antetokounmpo) either late in the first or early in the second round.

This isn't exactly new territory for the NBA D-League. Glen Rice, Jr. did the same thing in preparation for last year's draft after he was dismissed from Georgia Tech prior to the start of the college season. Rice did pretty well in his first stint of professional experience, averaging 13 ppg and 6.2 rpg in 42 games and 23.7 mpg for the Vipers, and parlayed that strong performance to being selected 35th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers (he was later traded on draft day to the Washington Wizards, his current team).

Yet, if Rice, Jr. was the first to open the door for such a path to the NBA (the D-League route), this year's draft-eligible D-League class is blowing the door wide open on it. And one of the most interesting cases is Aquille "the Crimestopper" Carr.


Who is Aquille Carr?

Carr hails from Baltimore, Maryland where he affectionately earned the nickname "the Crimestopper". He earned the nickname because his play was so spectacular at Patterson High School in Baltimore that many people in East Baltimore would pack the high school gyms during basketball season, and thus, crime would supposedly "go down" as he played (due to no one being on the streets or corners). Carr is diminutive at 5'6, 148 pounds, but he is an explosive player and an even more dynamic scorer. In his first two years at Paterson, he accumulated over 1,000 points, and averaged over 30 points per game his sophomore year. But while his numbers were impressive, it was the mixtapes of Carr that circulated across the Internet that added to Carr's high school legend, much akin to other East Coast guard "MixTape" sensations like Sebastian Telfair and Tyreke Evans. Check out Carr's 2012 MixTape below that has garnered over 6 million views and see why Carr was such a hyped player:



Pretty amazing stuff. Kinda like watching Telfair in the movie "Through the Fire" crossed with Nate Robinson when he is in on.


So how did Carr get to the D-League?

Because of his incredible performance at Patterson, Carr earned a scholarship offer from Seton Hall University and seemed set to go. He even turned down "allegedly" a $750,000 contract offer from an Italian Club going into his senior year (Carr noted that it was a family tradition to "graduate high school" and he intended to honor that). But after transferring to Princeton Day School prep his senior season (he transferred because he was an older player who turned 19 his senior year and there was fear he wouldn't be eligible due to Baltimore High Schools rules and thus, hurt his stock sitting out a year; a similar situation arose with former high school star Lenny Cooke), Carr decided not to sign a letter of intent to Seton Hall and instead, planned to play overseas ala Brandon Jennings-style (who decided to play in Italy rather than Arizona, but that was mostly due to Jennings not being academically eligible to play at Arizona). A couple of speculations of his change of heart were that Carr and his family were facing financial difficulties (he noted in a tweet that he had to "get the money while he could") and he was facing a lot of negative publicity after he was charged for assaulting the mother of his baby.

It is unsure after Carr made the decision if he received any offers from any European or foreign clubs. However, in the NBA D-League draft, Carr was selected in the third round by the nearby Delaware 87ers. Carr immediately signed with the 87ers after being drafted.


So how did Carr do in the D-League?

For a 19 turning 20 year old, Carr seemed to hold his own early on. In 10 games played, he averaged 10.9 points per game, and he seemed aggressive in his ability to take the ball to the rim and proved to be a strong ball handler as well. Furthermore, he showed some pretty good range as a shooter at times, an area of his game he was often critiqued about during his high school days. Check out Carr's highlight video below and see some of the flashes of brilliance Carr displayed in his short time with Delaware:



Despite his obvious abilities, Carr struggled to find minutes in the 87ers rotation and his career abruptly ended after 10 games, as he was released shortly after the new year by the 87ers. In an article by Jason Wolf of the Delaware News Journal, Delaware GM Brandon Williams noted that Carr's focus and problems from back home in Baltimore may have been preventing him from not only finding more minutes in the rotation, but being committed to the team in general. Williams says this in this article:

"Some personal things are happening with him that made it difficult for him to focus here," Sevens general manager and Sixers front office executive Brandon Williams said. "He's a good kid, and I think talented, so just being waived in the D-League is certainly not a 'no' forever, it's just not the best fit right now. … His family has been very engaged, and he has a very strong support system pulling for him. He's had a tough stretch here with private affairs."

Instead of trying to get back on a team or testing his skill in Europe, Carr entered the 2014 NBA Draft, where at best he is rated as a late second round pick.


What did we learn about Carr in his time in the D-League?

 One of the games Carr earned heavy minutes in was the 87ers first game of the 2013-2014 season against the Canton Charge. In the season debut, Carr played 26 minutes and scored 15 points on 4 of 13 shooting from the field. However, despite the double digit scoring total, Carr had 6 turnovers in the game and only 2 assists, not a good ratio for a point guard at any level. The first game proved to be a capsule of his entire, but short, D-League career so far: exciting, but wildly inefficient. Take a look at his advanced stat-line in his 10 games this season.

A lot of what you see above is pretty below average, even taking into consideration the small sample size. The offensive rating (97.4 points scored per 100 possessions) and PIE (7.6 percent impact) as well as low Assist to Turnover ratio display that Carr has a lot of flaws in his game that he needs to work on, especially as a point guard developing professionally. Could Carr have improved over the course of the season? Absolutely (most players do). But all we have to judge Carr on going into the draft is this sample and unfortunately for Carr, the numbers in this sample do not look good.

That being said, the potential Carr presents is interesting, and will be enticing for a lot of professional teams both before and after next week's draft. Carr excels on the court thanks to his excellent ball-handling and ability to advance the ball to the rim with speed and quickness. Defenders who are falling asleep or underestimating him due to his size will find him flashing by them to the rim for easy points. However, Carr still needs to mature in his decision making on the court, even in transition. Let's take a look at two different fast break possessions where in one, he made a bad decision that led to a badly missed and forced layup, and a good possession on the fast break where he was able to drive by the slower defenders for a foul.

Here's the set up of the first possession:

In this possession, Carr is obviously at the disadvantage. Only one player on the 87ers is ahead of the ball and he is guarded and on the other end (beyond the arc at the wing too, not an advantageous position to be in offensively when someone is driving to the hoop). The Charge are pretty much set up already back on defense as evidenced by the right wing and right elbow defender settling into place and the left wing starting to settle as well. Even the left elbow defender at the top is ahead of Carr on defense. However, Carr, puts his head down and drives to the middle of the lane to try and get a lay-up, which ends up resulting in this:

Carr is surrounded by yellow jerseys and he can't make the kick pass because he's surrounded by Charge defenders. All Carr can do is try to put up a lofty up and under layup attempt which is heavily contested and greatly misses. To make matters worse, he isn't bailed out by the foul either (thankfully, Delaware gets the offensive rebound and the foul, so they bail Carr out on this possession).

 Now let's look at a similar possession where Carr is forced to make almost the same decision:

Now this is a much more advantages situation for Carr to drive. The defense isn't as set as they were in the previous possession I analyzed and as you can see, two of the defenders are out of position greatly (the one above the circle and the one chasing him). The left elbow defender is also not quite set because he is put in a tough decision. Does he stop Carr and leave the three open or does he try to let the team guard Carr while he respects the shooter? In this situation, Carr recognizes the need and the opportunity to drive. His chances of getting a bucket or foul are far greater here than the possession above due to how the defense is positioned. By recognizing his advantage, Carr uses his speed to drive to the right side, which results in...

Carr getting to the rack and drawing the foul. The elbow defender waffles, which isn't good enough considering Carr's speed and the chasing defenders end up either not being able to catch up (like the one beyond the three starting out) or fouling him (such as the one who has his back turned to Carr at the free throw line). It is situations like this where Carr needs to use better instincts when utilizing his speed and ability to drive. When he takes advantage of situations like the latter, he will be able to either score, kick to open shooters or draw fouls on a consistent basis. However, when he tries to force the issue, regardless of how the defense is set or prepared, he ends up taking bad shots or gets his layup attempts defended or blocked. That is an area of his game Carr will need to develop if he wants to have any kind of long-time career not just in the NBA, but as a professional as well.

Unfortunately though, possessions like the former happened more often than the latter, as evidenced by his shot chart from his 10-game sample in the D-League:

Making only 41.46 percent of your shots at the rim just isn't going to cut at it the next level. And while he did show some ability from some areas beyond the arc, his ability to make good decisions and finish around the rim will make or break Carr's ability to play at the NBA. His size is an issue. And because of his size, his defense will be a liability, much like it is for most traditional shorter guards (like Nate Robinson for example). But having the ability to beat teams on the drive whether by layup, pass or drawing the foul will be a big factor in terms of Carr being effective and getting in a NBA rotation at the next level. If he can develop that kind of killer dribble-drive ability where he can be at least average to above finishing around the rim, then it is plausible that Carr could develop a Robinson-like career. He has the speed and the ball-handles to do so, and his outside shot looks to be developing better at the professional level, which should give him another weapon in his arsenal.

But, it will be interesting to see if Carr can get the focus, drive and minimize the distractions that have seemed to derail his basketball dreams so far. He really should be playing at Seton Hall, helping the Pirates become a contender in the Big East. Instead, he is on the outside looking in when it comes to getting picked in this upcoming draft, most likely looking at a second D-League tour or a contract in Europe or overseas somewhere.

Is Carr going to miss out on the NBA and devolve into another Lenny Cooke or Ronnie Fields? (former high school star that didn't get drafted). It's tough to say. The odds are against him. But Carr has the skills and the fanfare. He just has to put it together and mature a little bit more on and off the court if he wants to realize that dream of making a NBA roster.