Inside the Numbers: Brown’s three-game personal Showcase revealed exactly why this event is vital for NBA hopefuls. He entered Santa Cruz amid an up-and-down season and leaves as one of the most impressive prospects that played here.
The former NC State standout used his size (6-5, 189) to his advantage, showed a tight handle and good court vision, and above all made winning plays to lead Grand Rapids to the title game.
Inside the Numbers: What Emmett did at Showcase he's been doing all season as one of the league's MVPs.
But putting together yet another big scoring game, outsmarting younger players with a series of crafty moves into the lane, in the event's final game will leave him fresh on the minds of NBA teams in search of a reliable, quick-fix vet.
By Brian Kotloff, NBADLeague.com
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Shane Gibson | Guard | Idaho Stampede
Stat Line: 23 points, 8/10 FG, 7/7 3FG
Inside the Numbers: Making the leap from the Northeast Conference to the NBA D-League, Gibson has carried over his sharpshooting skills. He’s been one of the league’s top three-point shooters all season (2.8 per game, eighth among prospects), and capped Showcase by hitting all seven of his attempts from deep.
Inside the Numbers: The Suns don’t send Goodwin to the Jam so he can blow past lesser players and put up lofty scoring totals. They assign him for games like Monday’s: a competitive atmosphere where he can focus on filling a role.
The 20-year-old has so much room to grow, and digging in on defense, taking over offensively in the final minutes and hustling en route to the Showcase Cup MVP award was a step in the right direction.
Inside the Numbers: The former McDonald’s All-American looked like the player many expected him to be coming out of Memphis. But it wasn’t his explosive scoring ability that stood out; it was his poise, play-making and quick feet defensively, which turned the championship game around for Bakersfield.
The push for the NBA is on for Jackson, who is hitting his stride after recovering from an early-season injury (18.5 points, 61% FG, 5.2 assists, 1.3 turnovers and 2.2 steals in 27.7 minutes over his last six games).
Inside the Numbers: Teague’s jump shot has virtually disappeared this season, but he can still get into the lane, and he did that once again against the Knicks. While the former first-round pick still has a long way to go, he made some headway in Santa Cruz, displaying his quickness and play-making ability.
Inside the Numbers: Zanna is a Pitt Panther through and through: tough, physical and defensive-minded. He was a presence down low for the second straight game, winning the battle for positioning to reel in seven offensive boards.
Leaving Santa Cruz as the leading offensive rebounder among prospects, Zanna is the type of dirty-work big man teams look for to fill out their roster.
