The NBA eyes taking in Perth’s NBL Blitz win over Cairns have been gifted a smorgasbord of juicy intel to feed back to their clubs about some of the best young talents on the Gold Coast.
While Next Stars and potential lottery picks Alex Sarr and Bobi Klintman were Sunday’s main attractions for scouts, rookie Taipans’ point guard Taran Armstrong put his name up in lights with a display of composure beyond his tender years and experience.
The Tassie native, who left Cal Baptist University after two seasons to begin his pro career, displayed an innate understanding of his team’s offence, pinpointing passes few players would ever contemplate in his first proper hitout in the NBL.
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The 196cm playmaker, dished out a game-high seven assists to go with eight rebounds, producing an incredible stretch of pure point guard brilliance in the second quarter.
A shovel pass to the corner found fellow youngster Sam Mennenga, who missed his three-point try. A short time later, the 21-year-old showed off his brilliant vision with a delightful crosscourt feed to the impressive Lat Mayen for three.
Add a catapult to Jonah Antonio, who missed his try, followed by a scything penetration into the lane, where he found himself caught in the air, before he improvised to find Mayen for another trey — and a 44-42 lead.
Armstrong’s got a safe handle and has added bulk to a slender frame that was an initial knock on his potential.
The scouts didn’t have to wait long to see what Perth’s Frenchman Sarr and Cairns’ Swede Klintman were about, both showing nice flashes of the talent and physical attributes that have them high on draft radars.
While the Wildcats still haven’t announced a third import — the last available roster spot in the entire NBL — It looks like John Rillie has the confidence to play Sarr alongside Keanu Pinder in Perth’s frontline.
The 18-year-old got his first bucket of the Blitz on an athletic catch from a Pinder pass as he careened to the basket and finished, then he made something out of nothing when he picked up his dribble and was caught on the perimeter with no guard options. Instead of panicking, he faced up and calmly potted a three.
At 216cm, Sarr clearly possesses rare gifts — he can shoot it, get in the lane, is ultra athletic, crashes the glass, has no problem putting it on the floor and even showed a flair for creating for teammates.
We’re only one game in but, with what he’s served up in Perth’s pre-season warm-ups and now a 13-point, eight-rebound, four-assist, two-block effort against Cairns, the hype gets more real with every dribble.
Klintman made a pair of free throws — after drawing the foul on Sarr — for his first points and then heard the sweet swish of twine as he made no mistake on a wide open three-point try from the corner.
The 20-year-old chose Australia over returning to college at Wake Forest with the promise of operating more on the perimeter and he did plenty of ball handling for the Taipans.
His spider-like 208cm frame, coupled with elite athleticism is going to be a huge problem for opposing teams — the Wildcats couldn’t help but foul him as he blew by, allowing him to live at the charity stripe where he shot a perfect 8-8 on his way to 14 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Klintman twice just failed to put himself in the SportsCenter top 10 when he produced a couple of incredible leaps for lobs, but could not complete the dunks.
The handle still needs work — he turned it over four times — but the desperation is there. At one point, Klintman lost the ball but, instead of hanging his head, he dived on the deck and made something out of nothing to give Sam Waardenburg a three-point try.
Another Wildcats teen NBA hopeful in WA native Ben Henshall looked right at home in limited minutes, using his first moment on the court to break Armstrong down with an athletic, physical drive and spin to finish at the bucket and then his floater in the lane was a thing of beauty.
At the other end of the experience spectrum, three-time NBL MVP Bryce Cotton showed why many believe he should have had a longer NBA career with a typical 22-point first half, built on a three-point play, then a four-point play to give him seven in a matter of moments to kick the game off.
A game-high 31 is standard fare for the superstar — the big league’s loss is the NBL, Perth, and Aussie hoops fans’ gain.
With Cairns captain Tahjere McCall taking on coaching duties and Bul Kuol out with a wrist injury, Adelaide-born Mayen seized his opportunity.
Mayen exploded for 17 points in 12 mins in the first half — he’s got length, athleticism and shoots it beautifully.
Against his old club, Wildcats’ masked man Pinder had eight points and eight boards, copped a knee, and found himself on the bench in the third with four fouls. He will be better for the run after an injury-interrupted pre-season.
Perth two-way wing Jordan Usher looms as one of the league’s most underrated signings. There’s been little fanfare about the Atlanta native but he’s been quietly productive throughout the pre-season, aggressively taking what he’s given on offence — his 19 a perfect foil for Cotton — while ensuring he’s an absolute pest when guarding opposing wings.
Perth is next in action against Adelaide on Tuesday, while the Taipans get an extra day’s rest, facing South East Melbourne Wednesday.
STAR 36ERS’ SIGNING FLOPS ON DEBUT
Question marks surrounding Adelaide’s signing of gifted guard Trentyn Flowers have continued after the Next Star produced an underwhelming performance in his NBL Blitz debut for the 36ers on Sunday.
Flowers, a potential 2024 first-round NBA draft pick, battled with eight points and a whopping seven turnovers in his 22-minute stint as the 36ers fell in a blowout 101-75 loss to the New Zealand Breakers.
Adelaide’s decision to play the prodigious 18-year-old at point guard has led to respected draft analysts questioning the move.
It’s widely felt that Flowers isn’t a point, which has been on display in the 36ers’ three pre-season games thus far.
The American is athletically gifted, especially in transition as a spot up three-point shooter, but he struggles with his handles and composure as the primary ball handler.
This was on show on Sunday when Adelaide again opted to start Flowers at the point against the Breakers.
The promising teen attempted to bring the ball up the floor in the opening minutes of the game, but fumbled and lost possession.
Flowers had three turnovers in the first quarter and zero points in his five minutes on the floor.
The 36ers reacted and briefly moved the Next Star to a wing to start the second quarter, allowing veteran Mitch McCarron to play at point guard and others including recruit Jacob Wiley at stages.
Flowers regularly reverted back to the point role in the first half before Adelaide pulled the trigger and moved him to the wing to start the second.
The American struggles continued in the third quarter, with more turnovers and clunky play handling the ball.
To his credit, Flowers showcased resilience to stay in the game and knock down a three late in the game to finish with a respectable eight points.
He looked at his most comfortable when he was playing at the wing position.
This would be his best possible position in order to succeed.
It’s also been pointed out that Adelaide already possess capable and experienced point guards in McCarron and Jason Cadee.
36ers import wing Jamaal Franklin also struggled, dropping eight points on three of nine shooting from the field and adding four turnovers.
Coach CJ Bruton has all but entrusted his coaching future in Flowers – a five-star recruit in the class of 2023 – hoping his new Next Star can be the second coming of Josh Giddey.
Flowers calls himself a “unicorn” because he’s a rare player at 6-foot-8 that shows flashes of handles to attack closeouts and operate in pick-and-roll situations.
The next step for him will be emerging as more of a lead facilitator in halfcourt situations.
Upon signing with Adelaide, Flowers declared his desire to play point guard.
“This was the toughest decision I’ve ever made,” Flowers said.
“Louisville was my dream college. But I feel like signing in the NBL gives me the best chance to lock in and develop my game. I’m going over there to play point guard, to learn how to run a team, and be a player like LaMelo Ball or Josh Giddey.”
Flowers had started training with Louisville in June but will now focus on a one-year stint with Adelaide as an NBL Next Star.
The 36ers next Blitz game is against Perth on Tuesday from 7.30pm (AEST).
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