Alabama’s JaMychal Green’s best game this season was arguably his effort against the Florida Gators in early March when he went for 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Well, the 6-foot-8 senior who averaged 14 points and 7 rebounds this season picked a heck of a time to play an even more dominant game as he shot 14-for-18 from the field in front of a packed gym of NBA scouts last night at Day 2 of the Portsmouth Invitational.
Green showed tremendous gallop in transition and had an array of mid-range makes that led to his game-high 29 points. What may be more impressive was that he only made one free throw and took zero 3-pointers. It was just a matter of getting the ball in the right spots and finishing. Green can thank Seton Hall’s Jordan Theodore who, despite taking 15 shots (making 6) found Green early and often.
Pitt’s Ashton Gibbs displayed some playmaking ability, but also did a solid job of showing off his jump shot off of a series of separation moves that caught my attention. Gibbs finished with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Yancy Gates, one of the most touted big men this week, controlled the paint defensively but shot just 2-for-7 from the field.
In the 7 p.m. game, one of the week’s better 3-point shooters, Dayton’s Chris Johnson, knocked down 4 of 9 triples en route to a game-high 18 points.
The afternoon session gave scouts and executives another opportunity to see Buffalo’s Mitchell Watt (who was touted here yesterday) and Fairfield’s Rakim Sanders. Watt continued his solid play in displaying the ability to knock down several 15- to 22-foot jump shots in addition to his quickness around the rim. Sanders was again impressive on both ends, physically dominating at his position. If there is one player who has risen up the charts in my opinion to this point of the tournament, it’s the Stags’ 6-foot-5 forward. What I’m curious about is where he fits position-wise at the next level. I don’t know if he can guard NBA shooting guards and he might be at a disadvantage trying to defend small forwards. Physically and offensively, Sanders is an NBA-level player in my opinion.
Tommy Dee is the founder of TheKnicksBlog, editor of CHARGED Magazine and is a regional scout for Marty Blake and Associates. Follow him on Twitter.