Summer League GT#3: TOR Raptors vs UTAH Jazz - Wed July 17 @ 5pm EST - Sportsnet

[MEDIC]

What are his NBA level primary skills?

Shooting, passing, Bball IQ . He was one of the better passing bigs ik the NCAA last season. Will see some use as a hiub at the high post. Also has the mobility to get to the rim a little. Should be good on pick and roll and pick and pop action. He can also hit some of those Dirk-like fade aways mid range.

He's not going to be a top level defender, but it seems so far that he will be average. Much better than Kelly O.

His shooting wasn't very good in college and the NBA is going to be harder. He was struggling in the Summer League prior to his match up with Chomche who is a high school level player. He has a reported negative wingspan and below average athleticism so his ability to protect the rim or finish in the paint will be questioned. These are the main reasons he dropped out of the lottery and all the way into the 2nd round.

The first game he struggled coming off the bench (15 min).

The last 2:

10 pts (5/10 from the field), 6 reb in 20 min.
20 pts (9/16 from.the field) 7 reb in 25 min.

For me it's not about the numbers as much as it is the different ways he was able to score in those games. Plus his mobility/ footwork.

Is there a Raptors rookie that has performed as well or better?

I am not saying he is going to be an allstar, but he is definitely going to be a solid piece..

[Tha Cynic]

Something I've wondered about Abaji since the Raps got him... anybody else think he's too jacked to be a good shooter? His touch, even around the rim, is quite poor; and you just don't see many good shooters with his muscle mass. I think all that extra muscle might make it harder to apply varying degrees of touch on the ball, which leads to inconsistency. You see the same struggles with jacked QBs in the NFL, while QBs with dad bods like Brady and Mahomes make it look easy.

Hah, I remember CJ Miles came to camp jacked in 2018. We had tried to use him against Kevin Love the previous spring, so I guess he thought he should bulk up. Result: He entirely lost his shot, the only thing keeping him in the league. I thought it just might have been that he had to get used to the new muscle mass in judging his shot. But perhaps muscle mass by itself is an issue.

OTOH, Kawhi is pound for pound the strongest player I've ever seen. It's what makes him such an elite rebounder (especially off of missed FTs). And ... he can still shoot.

Take a look at the way Giannis used to shoot in his rookie season vs now. The guy was moving way more fluid and his jumper looked smoother when he went up for the shot. I kind of went back to watch some videos after seeing Chomche play, but Giannis was way more skilled back then and could have potentially developed into a different type of player if he didn't bulk up.

[Vorticity]

Ochai is like an extra on the set out there.

Most of the time I forgot he's on the court.

for whatever reason i get JG vibes with him (tank build?)

[Thaddy]

Shooting, passing, Bball IQ . He was one of the better passing bigs ik the NCAA last season. Will see some use as a hiub at the high post. Also has the mobility to get to the rim a little. Should be good on pick and roll and pick and pop action. He can also hit some of those Dirk-like fade aways mid range.

He's not going to be a top level defender, but it seems so far that he will be average. Much better than Kelly O.

His shooting wasn't very good in college and the NBA is going to be harder. He was struggling in the Summer League prior to his match up with Chomche who is a high school level player. He has a reported negative wingspan and below average athleticism so his ability to protect the rim or finish in the paint will be questioned. These are the main reasons he dropped out of the lottery and all the way into the 2nd round.

The first game he struggled coming off the bench (15 min).

The last 2:

10 pts (5/10 from the field), 6 reb in 20 min.
20 pts (9/16 from.the field) 7 reb in 25 min.

For me it's not about the numbers as much as it is the different ways he was able to score in those games. Plus his mobility/ footwork.

Is there a Raptors rookie that has performed as well or better?

I am not saying he is going to be an allstar, but he is definitely going to be a solid piece..

Our rooks aren't made for the summer league environment and style of game. Flip is also an older rookie compared to Walter and Chomche. I'd say Shead and Carlson have shown more than him if you include defense and the fit they showed so far. I would give them a very high chance of getting the 9th spot in the rotation.

[DelAbbot]

Something I've wondered about Abaji since the Raps got him... anybody else think he's too jacked to be a good shooter? His touch, even around the rim, is quite poor; and you just don't see many good shooters with his muscle mass. I think all that extra muscle might make it harder to apply varying degrees of touch on the ball, which leads to inconsistency. You see the same struggles with jacked QBs in the NFL, while QBs with dad bods like Brady and Mahomes make it look easy.

Hah, I remember CJ Miles came to camp jacked in 2018. We had tried to use him against Kevin Love the previous spring, so I guess he thought he should bulk up. Result: He entirely lost his shot, the only thing keeping him in the league. I thought it just might have been that he had to get used to the new muscle mass in judging his shot. But perhaps muscle mass by itself is an issue.

OTOH, Kawhi is pound for pound the strongest player I've ever seen. It's what makes him such an elite rebounder (especially off of missed FTs). And ... he can still shoot.

Take a look at the way Giannis used to shoot in his rookie season vs now. The guy was moving way more fluid and his jumper looked smoother when he went up for the shot. I kind of went back to watch some videos after seeing Chomche play, but Giannis was way more skilled back then and could have potentially developed into a different type of player if he didn't bulk up.

Giannis looked like Lamar Odom (without post moves) back then

[ForeverTFC]

Shooting, passing, Bball IQ . He was one of the better passing bigs ik the NCAA last season. Will see some use as a hiub at the high post. Also has the mobility to get to the rim a little. Should be good on pick and roll and pick and pop action. He can also hit some of those Dirk-like fade aways mid range.

He's not going to be a top level defender, but it seems so far that he will be average. Much better than Kelly O.

His shooting wasn't very good in college and the NBA is going to be harder. He was struggling in the Summer League prior to his match up with Chomche who is a high school level player. He has a reported negative wingspan and below average athleticism so his ability to protect the rim or finish in the paint will be questioned. These are the main reasons he dropped out of the lottery and all the way into the 2nd round.

The first game he struggled coming off the bench (15 min).

The last 2:

10 pts (5/10 from the field), 6 reb in 20 min.
20 pts (9/16 from.the field) 7 reb in 25 min.

For me it's not about the numbers as much as it is the different ways he was able to score in those games. Plus his mobility/ footwork.

Is there a Raptors rookie that has performed as well or better?

I am not saying he is going to be an allstar, but he is definitely going to be a solid piece..

He's played in 5 summer league games:

-20 vs OKC (-22 differential for the Jazz)
-4 vs Sixers (+8 differential for the Jazz)
-6 vs Mavs (+1 differential for the Jazz)
-19 vs Kings (-12 differential for the Jazz)
+6 vs Raptors (+17 differential for the Jazz)

The knocks on him have been "ok" 3pt shooting, bad FT%, weak, limited lateral quickness. He's done nothing to dispel these notions. We knew he could get up shots and pass the ball. The nature of summer league is such that players that have some 1 on 1 skills can screen out a lot better than they are. The issue with Filipowski is that he might not be able to stay on the floor against NBA competition to showcase any of his strengths.

As Russillo always says, for better or worse, when watching summer league, it's best to take the data points that confirm your view, throw out those that go against your view and move on. I actually think those that were less high on him have more data points confirming their views than those that were high on him tbh.

And I say this as a guy who had him as the 31st pick going into day 2. But I'm not mad at Mogbo being picked there. We'll have to wait to see these guys in against real competition and within an actual role to make any near term projections.

[Village Idiot]

Chomche showed a bit more. Doesn't appear to have any fatigue or confidence issues.

He looked kind of fatigued as he took a seat after this closeout to catch his breath
https://youtu.be/powS8zCgYcA?si=WKDDNPqPVATPhNDD&t=36

[Mattatron]

Raptors now have their own Bronny James in Jon Mogbo

[MEDIC]

. We'll have to wait to see these guys in against real competition and within an actual role to make any near term projections.

This we can agree on.

I will be watching lots or 905 games this season if these guys are regulars on the roster (which they should be). I hope they have them playiing within their roles and skillset.

[KillaSham23]

Raptors now have their own Bronny James in Jon Mogbo

Drafted due to being Scotties friend?

[dublo7]

We really missed on Flip

I think so. It was a no brainer pick at the time & also filled a need.. I think Flip will be a much better version of Kelly O. I will be surpised if Mogbo turns out to be a better player. Hopefully I am wrong. Mogbo basically has a whole offensive game to build from scratch.

The Flip thing is odd to me. I wonder if he and his agent forced their way to Utah..

Some say the ppl around flip is off and that scared away suitors - maybe masai too?

but i'll let this draft class simmer a bit.