Montrezl Harrell, T.J. McConnell among prospects Spurs have met with
The San Antonio Spurs’ front office is taking advantage of the team’s early playoff exit. While preparing for last week’s draft combine in Chicago, the team was getting a sneak peek at a handful of prospects.
Among that handful that came through, two prospects stood out, mostly because of the impression they made in Chicago after the Spurs worked them out. First is Notre Dame’s Pat Connaughton. The senior shooting guard made waves last week when he set a combine record for the max vertical with a 44 inch leap. There’s some question about how high he actually got up, but rest assured the guy is one hell of an athlete. Before that there was some question about whether Connaughton was even someone worthy of a late second round pick. His age (22) held him back and while he was a valuable role player at Notre Dame, he was overshadowed by fellow guards Jerian Grant and Demetrius Jackson. However, he’s a really good shooter and now a way better than advertised athlete so he’s going to get plenty of attention moving forward. Some have said he could develop a Danny Green type role for a team, which would obviously interest the Spurs. Now the problem is where before the combine he may have been around at the 55th pick he’s almost certainly going to interest a team drafting before the late second round. The question will now become whether he’s worth the 25th pick in the draft.
The other player that caught my eye was Arizona point guard T.J. McConnell. The 23 year old floor general is not particularly athletic or tall and wasn’t a consistent offensive threat during college. So why on earth would any team want him? He is the definition of a floor general. Gets everyone involved, takes what’s given to him and rarely makes the wrong play. He is also a tenacious defender. If you saw Arizona’s second round match up with Ohio State in March, you may have noticed the work he did when he defended D’Angelo Russell, a lock for a top five pick. I’d be willing to bet McConnell makes an NBA team this fall, but he’ll almost certainly be there at the end of the second round because his athletic profile and age don’t speak well for him. But he’s the type of player and teammate you want on your bench. (Side note: the Spurs are also scheduled to work out McConnell’s Wildcat teammate, forward Brandon Ashley, who is an interesting second round combo forward prospect).
Once they were at the draft combine, the Spurs went through the interview process like every other team. There’s so many interviews it’s tough to take too much stock in any one, but a couple that we’ve heard of also stand out. The first is Louisville power forward Montrezl Harrell (H/T Jabari Young). Harrell is so much fun to watch due to his athleticism and all out hustle. He’s raw on offense, but has grown in his three years with the Cardinals. If you’re looking for a comparison, think a more skilled DeJuan Blair as his basement and Kenneth Faried as his ceiling. Defensively is where he has the ability to be a better all around prospect than either. While he’s only 6’8″ (like a real 6’8″, not DeJuan Blair 6’8″), he has this crazy 7’4″ wingspan and is more mobile than either Blair or Faried. He’s also strong enough to defend the post. Check out this awesome breakdown from DraftExpress, including two quality scouting videos from Mike Schmitz. He might not be the perfect fit, but his potential as both a pick and roll defender and finisher would be something the Spurs don’t have and could certainly add to their arsenal.
The other name that stood out is Brazilian guard George De Paula. I’ll dive more in depth on De Paula later, but he’s a 6’5″ point guard with a ridiculous 7’0″ wingspan. He’s one of those fringe first round picks you could absolutely see the Spurs selecting. Until then, leave us a note about what you think the Spurs biggest need is in the draft or a specific prospect you’d like to know about.
