NBA Draft: Enrique Freeman, Boogie Ellis Highlight G League Elite Camp Standouts

The draft combine week begins with updates on players who could return to college and transfer portal news.

Akron’s Enrique Freeman was one of the biggest stock risers of the weekend. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

The NBA’s weeklong pre-draft festivities in Chicago began over the weekend with the G League Elite Camp, where the 45 best players not invited to the main draft combine had the chance to play in front of NBA teams and audition for a spot in the combine. While a few players see their stock surge at the event each year and play their way into more serious draft pick consideration, most players at the event are playing for a coveted two-way contract—which has traditionally been enough to woo most players away from the college game and into the pro ranks.

The standouts

There weren’t any overwhelming performances in scrimmage play, as clear of a sign as any that there were no massive snubs on the initial draft combine list. Five players got invited to the combine based on their performance: USC’s Boogie Ellis, West Virginia’s Jesse Edwards, Akron’s Enrique Freeman, Washington State’s Isaac Jones and Memphis’s Nae’Qwan Tomlin.

Freeman was perhaps my biggest stock riser from the weekend. A former walk-on with the Akron Zips who’ll be 24 by the time the NBA season starts, he finds so many ways to make a positive impact on the game with his activity on the glass, floor-spacing ability and defensive toughness. He was one of the few players who shined in both games and his call-up was well deserved.

Jones, a deep sleeper whose college journey included stops at Wenatchee Valley College, the Idaho Vandals and Washington State Cougars, continued his rise up boards with a productive weekend. He is bouncier off the floor than you might expect, has a high motor and can stretch the floor some.

Ellis was the best player in Saturday’s action with an efficient 23 points, and earned the call-up despite a quiet performance Sunday. Ellis’s style of play as a shoot-first combo guard aligns well with the players who have performed well in this event in the past, but it was a good reminder of his natural shot-making instincts and ability to play in ball screens. How he defends and distributes the basketball will define his long-term NBA future.

One player I thought deserved a call-up was Florida State’s Baba Miller. Miller has been a name of intrigue to NBA teams since coming over from Spain, and he put on a very positive weekend. He weighed in at 216 pounds and looked noticeably comfortable playing more as a traditional forward than the big wing he was once projected to be. He needs a lot of fine-tuning as a small-ball center, but showed some promise in that regard and looked impressive handling the ball and finishing around the rim.

Who might return to college?

Several of the best players in college basketball in 2023–24 were 2023 G League campers. Among the camp alumni who returned to school: UConn’s Tristen Newton, Auburn’s Johni Broome, Clemson’s PJ Hall, Alabama’s Mark Sears and Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves. A few names to watch from this week’s event who might be back in school next year.

Arizona guard Caleb Love is considering a fifth college season. / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

• The most consequential decision right now is Arizona’s Caleb Love, who is pondering a fifth year in college and second with the Wildcats. If he returns, he is a potential All-American and a key cog on what would be a top-10, and maybe even top-five team nationally. He was solid but not spectacular during the scrimmages, looking like his always aggressive self firing away from beyond the arc but making an impact with dogged defensive work on the ball. Scouts have seen Love in a variety of settings for years now, and it’s hard to imagine their opinions changing drastically based on this week’s events.
• Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. is another name to watch. Clayton was one of the better guards at the Elite Camp, and his background should intrigue NBA personnel given his late start focusing full-time on basketball after being a highly regarded football recruit out of high school. It seems more likely than not that we’ll see Clayton in a Gators uniform for one more year, but this was a solid weekend of work for Florida’s star guard.
• Georgia Tech’s Baye Ndongo had a big freshman season and continued that momentum with a strong performance this weekend. He measured with a 7’3” wingspan and looked impressive as a roll man and lob threat in ball-screen situations. Plus, he stacked up eight combined blocks and steals in Saturday’s scrimmage and followed that up with three more steals and a block Sunday. He is already 21 years old (incredibly old for a rising sophomore), but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he winds up staying in this draft. Georgia Tech head coach Damon Stoudamire and assistant Karl Hobbs were in Chicago on Saturday to watch Ndongo.

Transfer portal players keep recruitments close to vest

Some players weighing stay-or-go college decisions added an extra layer of uncertainty to their futures by entering the NCAA transfer portal ahead of the May 1 deadline. Most of the best players left in the portal are players currently testing the draft waters, so combine week has become something of a recruiting event for college teams.

Most players keeping their options open declined to share specifics about their college recruitments in interviews with Sports Illustrated, with some even indicating they had little to no knowledge of their recruitments and have left all work to agents, advisers or family members. A few notes on top portal targets:

North Florida’s Chaz Lanier is perhaps the most interesting portal name right now. He has seen a meteoric rise, going from averaging fewer than 5 points per game in 2022–23 to nearly 20 points per game on 51% from the field and 44% from three this past season. Lanier declined to name schools he is most seriously considering, but sources have indicated the programs in strongest position as of now are the Tennessee Volunteers and Kentucky Wildcats. It’s an incredibly high-stakes recruitment, with both the Vols and Wildcats in need of a high-scoring guard to round out their core rotations. The BYU Cougars, under new coach Kevin Young, also made a push, according to sources.

Lanier is the most interesting portal name right now after his meteoric rise. / Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

“I’m just going through this whole experience and journey just soaking up every bit of feedback and information I can,” Lanier says. “At the end of this process, I’m going take it all in, seek wise counsel again and [make] my decision.”

Another key portal name at the event, Kentucky’s Ugonna Onyenso, is a watched man mostly because of the dearth of other big men available for college teams. Onyenso, an elite shot blocker who at times single-handedly kept Kentucky’s defense afloat, was limited to 14 minutes Saturday after bumping knees with another player, but did return to action Sunday.

Miami’s Wooga Poplar struggled with injuries this past season, but was a huge piece of a Final Four team two years ago. Arkansas, Villanova, Duke, Kentucky, Illinois, Georgia, Kansas State and Kansas were the schools he listed as being involved in his recruitment, and indicated that a priority was finding a more engaged role in the offense than he had with the Hurricanes.

“Facilitating, scoring … I feel like when I was at Miami, [I was] in the corner, no plays for me, so I just need to go to a school where I can run plays, get my teammates involved and stuff,” Poplar said. “I feel like I can do way more than just stand in the corner.”

Kansas State Wildcats transfer Arthur Kaluma’s showing was a mixed bag, putting together a productive showing Saturday before a sloppy performance Sunday. Kaluma indicated Saturday that he would like to be able to stay in the draft, but has kept his portal options alive and, given the recent price tags involved with top transfers, should have a strong market.