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Given that roster spots are at such a premium, NBA teams don’t need much to disqualify a guy. Whether it’s his work-in-progress jump shot or his four-year status at a small-conference school on the Canadian border, Blakely was passed over. But if you asked enough scouts and basketball operations folks in Las Vegas which player at summer league was most likely to become the next Wes Matthews, Blakely was a common response.

The Clippers clearly like you, but you still have an uphill battle. What’s Marqus Blakely’s route from training camp as an undrafted rookie with a partially-guaranteed contract to six, seven years from now being a solid rotation player in the league?
It probably starts with my defense. I’m going to get after it defensively. Offensively, I’m a better passer than a lot of people think. I rebound the ball really well. I’ve been working on my jump shot a lot out here at the training facility. But it starts with my defense. Defensively, I don’t want to compare myself to anyone else, but if I had to say who my game would be modeled after it would maybe be Bruce Bowen.

You never shot below 54 percent and were up in the 60s your junior year. Don’t sell yourself short. That said, what are your limitations right now?
I have to work on my jump shot, but that’s what I’ve been doing every day out here and getting better at. But once you understand the system, you can find other ways to be effective. You don’t have shoot every time you touch the ball. You don’t have to prove something that you can do something you can’t. Know what you can do and do it to the best of your abilities and be that much better at doing it than someone else. A lot of that comes with seeing the floor and reading defenses. I think I do that well. And I think that’s how I get there.

Kevin Arnovitz, ClipperBlog

DunknDave wrote:Thanks for the article, you always post good stuff. Blakely has a chance to stick with this team. Could become a guy who can gaurd the 1 - 3 spots. He's coachable, has tremendous athleticism and reach, hustles, has the right attitude, and plays team ball; he's one of those guys who will come out of nowhere to make this team. He's learning how to play on the perimeter and his shot is getting better-------VDN is going to love this guy.