Mark Deeks
| Username: |
Mark Deeks |
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admin@shamsports.com |
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626 |
| Bio: |
I am continuously intrigued by the esoterica and minutiae of all the aspects of building a basketball team. I want to understand how to build the best basketball teams possible. No, I don’t know why, either. |
The Summer Sports Calendar: What Basketball Fans Can Follow While the NBA Goes Quiet
August 11th, 2026
As one basketball fan to another, what are you supposed to do when there are no NBA games? Well, one obvious answer is to enjoy the summer. Go outside, see friends, maybe take a vacation, but hard-core basketball fans need a sport to keep them going, and going outside is just part-time action. Well, even though most sports go quiet during the summer, some are actually coming to life. Yes, you might not hear the sound of the net of a perfect 3-pointer, but sometimes you should try different things. Maybe you’ll love it. So, when the NBA schedule goes quiet after the Finals and the Summer League, what else should you follow to keep the same passion or similar feelings active? Let’s find out. Horse Racing Owns the Summer Weekend We will start with a weird proposition. How about switching to an entirely different sport? A sport that is as far away from basketball as possible. Before you totally reject the idea, try to bear with us since most NBA fans have switched to horse racing during the summer season. Unlike basketball, horse racing comes alive during the summer. There are plenty of races that follow the incredible Kentucky Derby in May. We are talking about high-level racing, horses worth as much as NBA stars, and multi-million-dollar prize purses. In other words, the sport reaches one of its strongest periods during July and August, when we have Saratoga in New York and Del Mar in California organizing races in full steam. If you love sports betting, then you’ll fit perfectly in this transition. Horse racing is basically a sport that’s built around betting. Major horse races gather huge betting attention, betting pools fill up with millions, and the hype is already there. So, yes, going from the NBA […]
Why Do NBA Teams Trade First-Round Draft Picks?
August 9th, 2026
It should be the most important night of their careers – and lives – up until that point. The NBA Draft is a goal that many college athletes have been working towards since they first picked up a basketball and attempted to shoot it at a hoop and backboard. It is the night that they finally make it to the big league. Hearing their names announced as the NBA teams pick them to become a pro should be the pinnacle. But as was shown again this year, there is a seemingly increasing chance that some of the college athletes will not end up playing for the team that chose them. They may well become stars of the league and feature on the best NBA betting sites in the future, but the draft pick can be only the beginning of the process. Hoops fans should consult SportsBettingSites.com to discover the best sportsbooks when it comes to the NBA, but basketball fans have gotten used to waiting a while until the dust settles on the draft to discover which new hopeful has joined their team. Why do NBA teams trade away their first-round picks, though? How does it benefit them to give another team one of the best college athletes of the season just gone? Money Talks We may all love sports, but whatever level you watch, you need to know that it is a business to many. That includes the college athletes who dreamed of playing basketball in the NBA when they were young. By the time they are getting picked on draft night, they have already made countless endorsement deals and signed contracts. That’s just the way the game is today. More importantly, the teams themselves have to adhere to strict financial rules. The most obvious is the salary […]
Germany’s 5.3% Stake Tax: Why Your Bet Costs More Before It Even Starts
July 11th, 2026
Germany overhauled its online gambling rules five years ago, becoming one of the few European markets to tax every stake instead of operator profit. The result is a 5.3% turnover tax that quietly shapes the price of every spin, hand, and sports wager placed on a licensed German site. Although the headline rate sounds modest, the way it is applied makes a real difference to what players ultimately receive back in winnings. How the 5.3% Stake Tax Works The tax sits inside the State Treaty on Gambling (GlüStV 2021), which came into force on July 1, 2021, and inside the amended Race Betting and Lotteries Act passed the same year. Because the levy is deducted from the tax base itself, the effective rate works out to roughly 5.03% rather than the headline 5.3%. Oversight is handled by the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), the joint authority of Germany’s 16 federal states, which has been fully operational since 2023. A Levy on Turnover, Not Profit Most European countries tax gross gaming revenue (GGR), which is the amount operators keep after paying out winnings. Germany flipped this approach and taxes the stake itself, a model the federal states deliberately chose for its predictable revenue stream and clear visibility into market activity. Consequently, a €1 spin generates tax whether the player wins, loses, or breaks even. For operators, that math is challenging, since a typical slot has a 95% return-to-player (RTP) and only a 5% margin. Without adjustments, the entire margin would otherwise go to the tax authority. Which Games Fall Under the Tax The 5.3% rate applies to three verticals offered online and licensed nationally through the GGL. Land-based casinos and lotteries, by contrast, continue to be taxed separately by each federal state. Virtual slots licensed under the […]
Why Fans of Struggling NBA Teams Can Take Inspiration from the NFL
February 4th, 2026
The mainstream media has been calling it the “Underdog Super Bowl,” with others using similar names like “the Long Shot Super Bowl.” It, of course, refers to Super Bowl LX, where the New England Patriots will clash with the Seattle Seahawks in the climax of the NFL season. The reasons for the nomenclature should be pretty apparent. Absolutely nobody would have picked these two to be the two Super Bowl teams at the start of the season. The Patriots were tagged as +8000 shots and the Seahawks +6000 to win the championship game with sportsbook football odds at the start of the season. It’s the biggest combined longshot Super Bowl in history. The Patriots’ turnaround was historic It was for good measure, too. The Patriots won four games across the 2024 NFL season; while the Seahawks won ten, they were not seen as elite. The latter added Sam Darnold and Cooper Kupp to the ranks, but few envisaged a run to the Super Bowl. The Patriots’ main change came in the coaching setup, with head coach Mike Vrabel, who was appointed in January 2025, showing that roster overhauls are not needed to transform losing teams into top contenders. A lesson for some NBA fans? Maybe. Sports history is littered with examples of teams coming from nowhere to start winning again. The Celtics from 2006-2008, the Suns 2003-2005, and the Nets from 2000-2002 are examples of that. Of course, you can also argue that some of those teams added talent to the rosters to make the difference – certainly adding KG and Ray Allen was a dial-turner for the Celtics – but there were also tactical changes that made it possible. Roster overhauls are not always necessary Of course, nobody is saying that the Washington Wizards will suddenly become […]
The Oklahoma City Thunder are Going to Singlehandedly Obliterate NBA Parity
February 4th, 2026
Say goodbye to the era of NBA parity. The Oklahoma City Thunder are about to kill it. Seven different teams have won each of the past seven NBA titles. One cursory look through odds at the best NBA betting sites tells you the Association will not be getting an eighth straight non-repeat. After hanging a banner for the 2024-25 campaign, Oklahoma City isn’t just heavily favored to win it all at the end of the 2025-26 campaign. It is comically, cosmically favored to be the first repeat champion since the Kevin Durant-era Golden State Warriors. Yet, even as we say that, the Thunder may not be heavily favored enough. Most sportsbooks are still letting them pay out better than even money. That is absurd. It implies that the field has a chance. In reality, the field has no chance. Not this year. And maybe not for the next few, either. Oklahoma City is Built to Last Juggernauts are not for everyone. Some fans appreciate variety in their championship-winners, a la the NFL with its Super Bowl champions. Then, of course, there are the fans who don’t want to watch an entire 82-game regular season if their team doesn’t have a puncher’s chance of dethroning the top squad. Oklahoma City has the look and feel of an organization that is going to turn off those types of fair-weather fans. It has what would be a record-setting point differential, along with a realistic chance of breaking the NBA’s single-season 73-win mark, which was set by the 2015-16 Warriors. But this is about more than just the 2025-26 season. It is about the future. The Thunder are built to dominate that, too. In the Era of Aprons, no team’s reign is supposed to last very long. Roster-building restrictions are harder-line than ever […]
NBA Finals Odds Shifts: Teams the Trends Favor for the 2025-26 Season
December 8th, 2025
Photo by simonkr from istockphoto.com The 2025–26 NBA season has already delivered a dynamic mix of breakout performances, surprising early surges, and the continued dominance of established powerhouses. As teams settle into their identities and new storylines emerge, the futures market has been quick to adjust. Fans and analysts are watching closely as championship odds shift week by week, reflecting not only current records but also deeper indicators. These early movements offer valuable insight into which franchises are positioned for long-term success. While the season remains far from decided, the trends forming now are often the ones that define the championship race by spring. In this post, we take a closer look at the teams whose odds are rising and the performance trends that are driving those shifts. Oklahoma City Thunder Oklahoma City holds the league’s best record at 20–1. Their start signals not only elite performance but the kind of consistent excellence required to defend a championship. The roster has remained focused and driven, and the team’s confidence is reflected in their NBA Finals odds. The most significant factor behind Oklahoma City’s rise is the youth and versatility of its roster. The core featuring Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren continues to improve through natural development. Their adaptability in both offensive and defensive schemes allows the coaching staff to maximize matchups throughout the season. At the same time, their collective skill set gives the team the flexibility needed to counter any opponent. Defense remains the defining trait of this team and reinforces their position as favorites. Their length and anticipation enable them to disrupt passing lanes on nearly every possession, which fuels their fast-paced transition attack. When the Thunder push the pace off turnovers, they apply consistent pressure that few teams can withstand, creating a championship-level […]
Favorites & Frontrunners: How NBA Championship Odds Are Already Shifting for 2025-26
November 13th, 2025
The new NBA season has only just begun, but early results and offseason moves are already changing how analysts and oddsmakers view the 2025–26 championship race. Preseason favorites are being tested, new contenders are emerging, and the market is quickly adjusting to roster developments, injuries, and player performances. This overview looks at how several key teams have seen their title odds shift since the start of the season and what those changes suggest about the road ahead. Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder started the season as the favorite to win another championship at +240, and their strong play has already improved those lines to +210 according to current FanDuel NBA odds. The core trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren continues to anchor one of the league’s most complete teams. While other teams made big roster changes, the Thunder kept their group together. That stability has helped them look sharp early, with solid chemistry and balanced play across the lineup. They’ve shown that their success last season was no fluke. Oklahoma City’s depth and teamwork make them the standard everyone else is chasing right now. If they stay healthy and focused, the Thunder have a real chance to repeat as champions. San Antonio Spurs If one storyline has captivated fans early, it’s Victor Wembanyama’s evolution. The 21-year-old phenom has taken a physical and mental leap, propelling the San Antonio Spurs from long shot status (+6500) to legitimate dark horse (+3000 to +3500). The Spurs’ 2025–26 start has been electric, not only because of Wembanyama’s nightly highlight reel, but because the team is learning to win around him. The improved guard play and system cohesion are turning the Spurs’ rebuild into something far more immediate. They may not be ready to dethrone Oklahoma City, but […]
Odds Boost Explained: Get More Value From Your Bets
October 7th, 2025
If you regularly place bets with a non GamStop bookmaker, you’ve probably already encountered the term: odds boost. You often see it in a brightly colored box above a match: “Boosted Odds!” or simply “Odds Boost.” And if you then look at the odds, you’ll indeed see that they’re higher than usual. Nice, right? More profit for the same stake. But what exactly is an odds boost? And more importantly: how can you use it to your advantage? Our experts explain it all in a way that’s easy to follow, even without a math whiz. Best Non GamStop Bookmakers With Odds Boost Do you also appreciate a good deal when placing a bet? Then you’ve come to the right place. These non GamStop bookmakers regularly boost the odds, allowing you to win just that little bit more with the same bet. For a curated list of reliable options, check out the trusted non GamStop gambling platforms UK, where enhanced odds and secure betting experiences go hand in hand. Bloody Slots Orion’s Bet Snatch Casino GQ Bet Check Bet Beon Bet Blaze Spins Slots Paradise What is an odds boost? An odds boost is essentially a temporary promotion by a bookmaker where they slightly increase the odds of a bet. This can be seen, for example, with: The result of a football match; A combination of different outcomes; A player who scores or receives a yellow card; A combination bet on multiple matches. Normally, you’d get 2.00 (even money) on such a bet. With an odds boost, that could suddenly increase to 2.50 or even 3.00. This means a higher payout for the same stake. Different Types of Odds Boosts Not every odds boost works the same way. Sometimes it’s simply a higher payout when you win, but […]
Betting Without Registration at Non GamStop Bookmakers
October 7th, 2025
Many players are looking for a way to bet without registering. With bookmakers without registration, you can still gamble despite registering in GamStop. These gambling sites also offer a wider selection and fewer restrictions. For those seeking reliable alternatives, our experts recommend trusted sports betting platforms outside GamStop, ensuring you can bet safely without registering. Bet without registration at the best non GamStop casinos Want to bypass GamStop and bet on your favorite sports right away? Then you’ve come to the right place. Our casino experts have selected the best bookmakers where you can bet without GamStop scheme. Sports to bet on without registration With bookmakers without registration, you can bet on a wide range of sports. Think of major football competitions like the Premier League, and Champions League, but also tennis, Formula 1, darts, basketball, MMA, and even esports. Live betting is almost always available, and often unique bets are also possible, such as on goalscorers, cards, or lap times. British bookmakers prohibit certain bets. For example, you can’t bet on yellow or red cards, or corners. If you bet without registering at a foreign online casino, you do have access to all types of bets and sports. So you won’t miss out on any choice, except for the GamStop restriction. For a closer look at how these platforms perform in practice, check out the real user feedback on Aphrodite Casino, where players share their experiences with betting options, payouts, and overall reliability. Here is an overview of the most popular sports at bookmakers without GamStop: Sport Higher odds? Live streaming available? Special markets Football Yes, often better than in the UK Yes, in top matches Goalscorers, cards, combos Formula 1 Often limited Only major GPs Tennis Sets, games, live betting MMA/UFC […]
The Basketball Manifesto
November 17th, 2020
The Basketball Manifesto is a 3,775 page, 1.2 million word-ish basketball reference book. And it is free to download. It contains reviews, strategies, ideas, opinions, and a whole lot of thoughts on stuff. This document contains reviews, strategy, assessments, ideas and plans for every NBA team and every NBA player. It seeks to: 1) Look at the assets a team has to work with. 2) Look at what it already has. 3) Look at what it needs to address. 4) Lay out conceptual strategy for it all. 5) Discuss without preaching, except in some slightly preachier moments. It does this 30 times for 30 NBA teams. Then it does the entire G-League, twice. Then it does the annual draft pool, twice. And then it does the EuroLeague…..twice. You get the idea, and if you don’t, you will do once you open it. It’s very, very densely full of content. All in all, it gets quite big. This is a PDF file, and a live document. The links are navigable; the thing self-references. It is, I hope, a website you can download. And it is the pride of my life. Download it at the link below, do please share it to all other basketball fans, email me your thoughts, and let’s have a conversation. Thank you! – Mark Deeks DOWNLOAD THE BASKETBALL MANIFESTO HERE BACKUP LINK BECAUSE APPARENTLY GOOGLE’S GOT A MARDY ON TODAY . Alternatively, if you want to just download separate sections of The Basketball Manifesto, rather than the whole shaboodle, use the following links: 2019/20 G-League 2018/19 G-League
Xavier Silas – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Xavier Silas SG – 6’5, 198lbs – Born 22nd January 1988 Iowa Wolves Silas was in the NBA last year, called up at the end of the season by a Boston Celtics team that ran out of ball handlers at one point. There was a time when that is what Silas was – over the course of his career, he has become more of a catch-and-shoot specialist, and, as can be seen from his 95th percentile shooting here this year, he remains a good one. The mid-rangers of his younger days are now threes, and it is an important weapon to have. It is also however the only weapon he seems to have any longer. Silas seems to be losing his athleticism, and with that, his slashing game. Without that, he is a good three-point shooter, but so are many other players. Those other players will usually be bigger, quicker, and thus better equipped to both run the court, drive curls and defend their position. There was a time that Xavier Silas was a good defender at both guard positions who got his own offensively, who could take turns at the point guard spot, knife into the lane and make things happen off the dribble. He does not appear to be that player any longer. Silas still plays hard and he still plays smart. At the G-League level, he is a solid veteran role player worth having, not just for the shooting but also the experience. Yet in no longer being a positive overall defensive player or someone who can creates in the pick-and-roll or push the ball, his role is starting to get quite small. Or, maybe he was just hurt all year and he is about to have a beautiful comeback. Let’s hope it is the […]
Evan Smotrycz – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Evan Smotrycz PF – 6’7, 230lbs – Born 2nd August 1991 Iowa Wolves Back in the day, there was a stretch in which Michigan decided to run the offence through Smotrycz. What a time that was. Things were different in the Michigan programme back then, and they were also different for Smotrycz, who transferred out of the Wolverines program to avoid having to play the centre spot only to go to Maryland and find he had to do it there as well. But then the Terrapins also ran the offence through him, for an entire season. What a time to be alive. Smotrycz’s college career was defined by inconsistencies on both ends, mixed with intrigue in how he seemed to always do a little bit of everything, however sporadically. A good outside shooter for a big man, Smotrycz slightly undercut that by being far too aggressive with his jump shot at times, and also missing a very large amount of layups. This is not ideal when you’re playing centre. Also not much of a ball-handler unless he is able to look at the floor while doing it, Smotrycz’s abilities to drive the close-outs his shot would draw, or pump-fake and get to the cup that way, were always a bit hit-and-miss. When he pulled these things off, he was versatile and new-age. When he didn’t, he was a turnover-prone shooter who got blocked a lot. Regardless of the results, Smotrycz would always play hard. Too hard, sometimes, yet he put forth the energy to mask the fact that with a small wingspan and little athleticism, he did not have the physical tools to thrive defensively at a higher level. Smotrycz has made improvements in his man -to-man defence over the years and is surprisingly good when playing in […]
Jonathan Stark – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Jonathan Stark PG – 6’0, 180lbs – Born 23rd May 1995 Iowa Wolves Jonathan Stark was the Ja Morant before Ja Morant. The two briefly play together at Murray State for one season, and whereas the over-exuberant, dynamic yet wild Morant (at that time) would be the spectacular if inconsistent playmaker, Stark would be the half-court scorer. It is thus good to see him get back into a full-time point guard mentality, just as he had been before his unison with Ja. To be sure, Stark can score the ball. Small though he is, he plays off the ball, getting to the rim on curl plays and shooting a nice pull-up. Stark puts in a lot of movement off the ball, using a lot of baseline cuts as well as being in motion endlessly above the break, pushing the ball in transition, shooting with a quick release and with NBA range. There would be some heat checks, and Stark, recognisant of his small size, would use subtle fakes and a high floater inside the arc rather than take on the trees, which is inefficient if necessary. Yet he scored 20 points a game playing as a primary scorer alongside Morant, and the fact that he can do that whilst also playing as an on-ball lead guard, a genuinely good pick-and-roll passer and post feeder, makes for a versatile and skilled offensive player even with the small size. The small size does prove to be an obstacle defensively, where, despite a good effort level and few mistakes, Stark finds it difficult to apply ball pressure or bump people off the spot. He will work to recover and pursue, gets low and chases hard, yet it is difficult for him to make an impact, even at the smaller point guard […]
Hakim Warrick – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Hakim Warrick PF – 6’9, 219lbs – Born 8th July 1982 Iowa Wolves Warrick left the NBA six years ago, cut by the Magic at the 2013 trade deadline, and is now 36 years old. The G-League has in recent times served increasingly often as a place for multi -year NBA veterans to come and try their hand at getting back into the big dance, with some successes (Damien Wilkins and Emeka Okafor, for example), yet Warrick’s absence from the big league has been a particularly long one. He has been employed in that time, of course; a season in China, a half-season in Turkey, a season split between Australia and Greece; a couple of summers in Puerto Rico; brief stints in the Lebanon and Israel. Yet the NBA has been a long time gone. It is intriguing if a bit harsh on Warrick to reflect on how the NBA has moved on in that time. At his peak, Warrick was an athletic but undersized power forward, stuck with the dreaded ‘tweener’ status. He was never a big time rebounder, and never an impactful defender of any area of the court, but he was extremely athletic. He liked to run, and he liked to dunk, and in an era of stretch bigs, high ball screens and roll men, Warrick could have thrived more than when forced to post up as he so often was, back when such things were considered orthodoxy. Of course, Warrick himself was never an outside shooter, and in the years hence, he still has not shown himself to be one, either. 6-9 shooting from three this season is fun, but not meaningful. Warrick retains much if not all of the athleticism of his youth; the hope is that that plus name recognition makes him […]
Prince Williams – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Prince Williams PG/SG – 6’5, 200lbs – Born 22nd August 1992 Iowa Wolves Williams has been in and out of the G-League in his three professional seasons, grinding through a first season with the Greensboro Swarm after making the team through the local tryout route, being acquired and waived by the Texas Legends four times last season, before eventually ending the year with the Wolves, who also designated him as a returning player for this season. Waived after only five games, however, Williams ultimately spent the majority of the season in Georgia, averaging 15.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals in 12 games. Having done very little through his first three collegiate years, Williams won the AAC Most Improved Player award as a senior after being a good shooter (79th percentile at spot-up shooting) where once he had not been one. A big point guard by trade, having that shot gave Williams some pro intrigue; after all, a 6’5 point guard who shoots 40% from three does sound good. Williams does not however create with the ball, and three years of sporadic run at this level have left him found wanting. – 20th June, 2019 This above is extracted from the following page in the The Basketball Manifesto, an entirely free 3,775 page, 1.2 million word-ish basketball reference book which contains reviews, strategies, ideas, opinions, and a whole lot of scouting on men’s world basketball. – View tons more player profiles like this from the Manifesto here.
William Lee – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
William Lee PF – 6’8, 210lbs – Born 10th January 1995 Iowa Wolves This was Lee’s first professional season out of UAB, and it began with a summer league stint with the Memphis Grizzlies. After not getting a training camp contract from them, he initially signed in Serbia with Dynamic Belgrade, yet left just before their season started, signed a one-day contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves and then was allocated to Iowa, where he spent the entire season. However, Lee did not translate the two-way game he had demonstrated with the Blazers previously, and found himself behind the pace offensively in particular. An athlete, a dunker and a shot blocker, Lee has a very good professional projection based on that alone. Yet at UAB, he also was a 59th percentile spot up shooter. It was not much, yet given that Lee has a very limited handle on the ball and rudimentary post-up moves, it added an offensive dimension beyond merely cutting and rolling to the rim. When Lee is not able to dunk, he struggles to finish around the basket, even with all that athleticism – he tends to go up rather soft, and his lean frame does not take a bump well. The jump shot and the threat of it open up the court for him, giving him some room in which to drive. It only works though if he hits his shots. This year, he did not hit enough of them, and when combined with all of the things that he does not do offensively, this made him a distinct net negative on that end of the court. Consistent balance and release point on the shot will be key to him taking a lot of the variance out of his shooting game. Lee made a portion […]
Marquise Moore – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Marquise Moore PG/SG – 6’2, 208lbs – Born 22nd December 1994 Iowa Wolves I love four things in this world. Sausage sandwiches, the lead singer out of The Interrupters (call me, Aimee!), 6’7 point guards who can’t shoot, and extremely undersized guards who rebound like centres. Here, then, is Marquise Moore, and I won’t hear a word said against him. As a senior at George Mason, Moore averaged 10.9 rebounds per game. He did this while playing at the point guard position. That is tough to fathom. It should have course therefore be taken as a given that Moore plays with a tremendous level of energy, particularly on the defensive end. He is an athlete, certainly, but one with a furious level of determination. Moore goes after every loose ball and wins ones he should have no rightly business getting. Sometimes, smaller players grab a relatively high number of rebounds because they are essentially playing as undersized frontcourt guys – DeMarcus Gatlin from Sam Houston State is one that comes to mind, as is Javonte Green from Radford, because apparently that’s how my mind works (call me, Aimee! I can change!) – but Moore really is doing it while playing the point guard position. It is unique what he is doing. Of course, this is a bonus rather than a requirement. What Moore needs is to be able to play the point guard position in every other way, or the shooting guard spot at least. With a distinctly below-average jump shot, Moore is not the most creative player with the ball in his hands either. He is instead better served when cutting off the ball for athletic finishes, attacking the rim and getting to the line. Yet playing a ball-handling spot does not much allow for that. If […]
Jaylen Johnson – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Jaylen Johnson PF – 6’9, 230lbs – Born 7th August 1996 Iowa Wolves Declaring for the NBA Draft after his junior season at Louisville in 2017, Johnson is still young and therefore still a project. In what would have been his senior season, he received a 10-day call-up from the Chicago Bulls – albeit without playing any game time, instead being one of several players they called up without playing so as to get more money to their G-Leaguers – and then went to summer league with the L.A. Clippers. He is on the NBA radar on account of having NBA athleticism. Further development to his skill set has been required, and having progressed in every major statistical category this G-League season compared to last, perhaps it has been forthcoming. Johnson’s basic numbers are down across the board this season due to a big decline in his minutes per game. Yet in every efficiency metric, he improved. Johnson became a better and more efficient scorer from all areas, hit more jump shots, fouled less, turn the ball over far far less and ultimately was a big positive in a smaller role. His game is best defined by his athleticism, where his length and good frame make him an agile player who gets into a lot of space, and back when he was wild and unskilled, he was at least aggressive. Overly aggressive, but decisive nonetheless. Now that he has more poise and strength in his frame, Johnson is a stretch four with an unblockably high shot, doing so without losing his ability to score on the move or finish around the basket. There are still areas of his game to work on. Johnson’s jump shot improvements are valuable, yet he does not seem to have put in the […]
Darius Johnson-Odom – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Darius Johnson-Odom SG – 6’1, 220lbs – Born 28th September 1989 Iowa Wolves Prior to his return this season, Johnson-Odom had been away from the G-League for four years. The vast majority of that time had been spent in Italy, where he had been amongst the country’s highest scorers, leading it outright last season with Vanoli Cremona. Johnson-Odom always has been and always will be a scorer, a prolific one by volume as well as efficiency. Of that, there has long been no doubt. Johnson-Odom gets his points in pretty much every way conceivable. He is a ball-dominant player by trade, but if ever he is run off the ball, he has a very good spot-up shot he can use. When on the ball, he also shoots off the dribble, albeit not as well, yet he is primarily looking to get beyond the first line of the defence and make things happen. Johnson-Odom is very strong for his small size, and without having the greatest speed, he also pushes the ball wherever he can. If you need someone to get you a basket, he is always a good bet – he can drive both ways, finishes extremely well at the basket with his very strong upper body, makes excellent reads and never wavers in his confidence. Johnson-Odom, simply, is a workhorse. Given his size, DJO is always going to be a defender of point guards. Or at least, he should be. Playing alongside Jonathan Stark and Marquise Moore this season saw him play a lot of shooting guard, a position well suited to his offensive game yet one at which he gives up a significant degree of size. It is thus not a surprise that he was an overall net negative as a defensive player considering that the […]
L.G. Gill – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
L.G. Gill PF – 6’8, 210lbs – Born 24th December 1994 Iowa Wolves This season was Gill’s second in the G-League, one which began as a returning player with the Greensboro Swarm (whose roster he had made last season via the local tryout route) before immediately being traded to Iowa in exchange for the returning player rights to Terry Whisnant. Gill subsequently mostly came off the bench for the Wolves, filling in as a starter where required, and provided a decent burst of athleticism and occasional post-up play. There is nothing spectacular about Gill’s game. He is an OK jump shooter, an OK post player, an OK transition player, yet very rarely a creator. He simply does not have that level of ball skill, footwork or shot-making talent, as evidenced by his free throw stroke. Any offence that Gill gets is situational rather than by design. He moves a little off the ball to get open and has some decent athleticism to go with his energy, but ultimately this is a underskilled player with no left hand, inconsistent finishing from all areas, bad hands and interior instincts with a wing’s frame. You don’t seek points from Gill – you just like the ones he gets for you out of the blue. And to change that, he needs to take and make more jumpers. On the defensive end, Gill also plays with energy, but seems to somehow never win any possessions. He is not a rim protector, he is not a passing lane player, and he is not a rebounder, hindered by a lack of core strength versus his peers. He is instead an energetic player who moves his feet and keeps his hands up, rather than somebody who jumps to contest or reaches to win possessions. Gill is […]
Canyon Barry – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Canyon Barry SG/SF – 6’6, 205lbs – Born 7th January 1994 Iowa Wolves The latest from the production line of Barrys is Canyon, the first in a generation to unashamedly shoot the underhand free throw. This was his first G-League season after spending his initial professional campaign split between Finland, the Czech Republic and China; the Timberwolves signed him for about 25 minutes so that they could allocate him to Iowa, hoping he could develop into an NBA-calibre shooter. The percentages Barry shoots suggests this is very possible. Barry has a quick release and works off the ball to get open, with the kind of shot that sets can be run for. He shoots with nice form and a high arc, running off the ball more than playing on it, but effective when he does given his judicious decisions on when to drive and when to reset. To look to Barry to be a creator, though, is to be overly ambitious; he is instead a spot-up guy and a floor runner who goes to the wings, dribbles and passes little (especially with his off-hand), and is there to do his one major skill. Sometimes he forces up shots and throws wild passes, but with a shooter of this calibre, you would rather he be overaggressive than passive. Defensively, Barry exhibits good defensive reads and timing, although he does not have the best foot speed. Barry has decent size for the wing but is not an explosive athlete, therefore he has to rely on positioning and good reads to survive on that end. He just about holds his own, but he is the kind of player that an athletic ball-handling opposing wing would go at, and not someone you really want to have stuck in a switch. Among all […]
Tra-Deon Hollins – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Tra-Deon Hollins PG – 6’2, 195lbs – Born 22nd August 1995 Fort Wayne Mad Ants Hollins returned to the Mad Ants to begin this season, having played 41 games with them in 2017/18 in his first professional season out of Omaha. Last year, he was a bench player averaging 4.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game, yet in an expanded role in 30 games this season, Hollins upped those numbers to 7.3 points, 7.9 assists, 2.5 steals and 0.5 blocks per game. He is a rather unique type of point guard; a slightly undersized player with decent quickness who pushes at every opportunity, and who is very unselfish, in large part because he sorely lacks for a jump shot of his own. Hollins also has excellent steals numbers, and while steals are not in themselves precise indicators of good defensive impact or not, they are always a good sign of effort, and Hollins puts it out there on that end. There is some passing lane defence, to be sure, but also good hands he always holds up, good reaches when helping onto big men, and a good understanding of where the next pass will be thrown. Offensively, pair him with some good shooters and a big man to run pick-and-roll/pop with, and he can find them. It is a limited yet rare package that helps a team in its own ways. It is a shame however that Hollins was waived after 30 games due to what the Journal Gazette reported as being failed drug tests. Je’Lon Hornbeak survived his suspension and stayed on the Mad Ants roster, but Hollins didn’t, and whatever the reasons behind that were, he has not the G-League job security to be risking it. – 20th June, 2019 This above is extracted […]
Travin Thibodeaux – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Travin Thibodeaux PF/C – 6’8, 242lbs – Born 19th February 1996 Fort Wayne Mad Ants In Thibodeaux’s first professional season, he added size, rebounding and some interior defence to a team that otherwise lacked for them. He was not spectacular in any area, but he was solid in all facets, which accorded with the CV he was brought in with. Thibodeaux made the Mad Ants roster via the local tryout route, and stayed on it for the full season. He benefitted from a big increase in playing time and responsibility on the court when the Pacers waived Ike Anigbogu, and down the stretch of the season, being the leading frontcourt minutes getter by season’s end. In that role, Thibodeaux – who had led New Orleans in every leadable category as a senior the previous season – became more of an interior player and rebounder than as an upperclassman. Having made his way coming up as primarily a post player, Thibodeaux expanded that over his Privateers career to begin exhibiting an inside/outside game; baseline jumpers became straight -away trailer threes, and post feeds became going out to get the ball. With a handle and some touch, he did better going to get it than in relying upon the team’s limited guard play to set him up. With the Mad Ants, however, and with the distinct leap in talent this meant, Thibodeaux forwent being ‘the man’ and became a role player. He set screens, used his physicality (with a decently strong frame), attacked the offensive glass and accepted a reduced offensive role. In doing this, Thibodeaux made himself a good candidate to return in the future. It is always an adjustment going pro, and he made it, playing as essentially an undersized centre in a lowusage role very different to […]
Jared Sam – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Jared Sam PF – 6’10, 210lbs – Born 17th May 1995 Fort Wayne Mad Ants In his first three years at Southern University – and by the way, the commitment shown by the naming committee back in the formative days of that establishment is something we could all learn from – Sam was a low-usage player, whose highest usage rate was the 18.4% mark of his junior season, on which he shot a .655% true shooting percentage. As a senior, Sam was given a much bigger offensive role, thus shooting the usage rate up to 25.9%. The true shooting percentage, however, plummeted down to .520% accordingly. The offensive diet did not change much in that time. There was still no perimeter ball-handling involved, and only a small increase in the number of spot-up jumper attempts; Sam was still almost entirely employed in the paint, with a high volume of post-up possessions, put-backs and looks off of cuts and dump-off passes. Specifically, the post-up was always a big part of things. You would think that Sam, a wiry 6’9 with good speed and mobility but without much core strength, would be the kind of player best served catching the ball on the move as much as possible, rather than arbitrarily being given the post-up role purely because he was the biggest player on the team (and because an excessive focus on post-up play is a legal requirement of college basketball playbooks, or so it seems). Alas, old coaching habits die hard, and thus Sam was regularly found with his back to the basket. So if he looked a bit unfamiliar with the more face-up, on-the-move role that the Mad Ants try to put him in, that will be because of the four years of different usage that he had […]
Ike Nwamu – 2018-19 G-League Player Profile
June 20th, 2019
Ike Nwamu SG/SF – 6’5, 205lbs – Born 3rd January 1993 Fort Wayne Mad Ants Nwamu’s best skill is his dunking, and I don’t think anyone will dispute that. He is a very explosive leaper and a player who loves to finish with power at any opportunity; the Mad Ants will have known when they traded for him in January (along with Jordan Barnett, sending Elijah Stewart and the returning player rights to Alex Hamilton to the Wisconsin Herd) that they were getting a fun player, and a reasonably useful one. Nwamu’s skills development outside of that, however, seemed to stagnate this season. Playing in the G-League for his third consecutive season, Nwamu’s main offensive value outside of the dunk is volume outside shooting, and while he will occasionally do some work off curls and the like to get open, he in large part camps out on the wings, waiting for reverses or kick-outs. He is a decent shooter who can have hot streaks, and the high volume counts for something, but the habit he has of tending to hold the ball for a bit after catching it does not help his efficiency. If he could shoot quicker and run more off the ball, he would only stand to benefit, because it is a nice stroke he has. Combining it with the dunks makes for a useful, and rare, two-pronged attack of skills. As a pro, Nwamu has cut down on the turnovers that once plagued his game. Fairly rudimentary in his handle and right-hand dominant, Nwamu is more poised and considered on his drives to the rim, perhaps recognisant of the fact that he is much better served as a finisher than a creator. When it is not a dunk, he struggles to finish at the rim, […]
