The NBA Draft Combine and the lottery have come and gone. The Spurs have the top pick and Victor Wembenyama will become the next generational big man in San Antonio. However, there are plenty of other players the Spurs might be targeting in a trade-up or with their other two picks in the draft. One of those could be Santa Clara guard Brandin Podziemski.
The 6-foot-5, 205-pound guard was the West Coast Conference Player of the Year along with Drew Timme due to his excellent play. He confirmed it was no fluke with his testing at the Combine and his play in the scrimmage portion. He not only looked like he belonged in the NBA, but he was an absolute star. Here are his averages from this past season.
- 19.9 PPG, 1.8 SPG, 3.7 APG, 8.8 RPG, 2.3 TOPG
- 48.3 FG%, 43.8 3P%, 77.1 FT%
- 26.4 PER, 121.9 ORtg, 99.0 DRtg
Brandin Podziemski Breakdown
You can see that even though he was the focus of opponents’ defenses, he still found ways to score efficiently. He shot well from three on pretty good volume (nearly six attempts a game) and he is generally a smooth player. He has creative finishes around the rim and is a pivot master.
What makes Podziemski intriguing as a potential first-rounder is his rebounding prowess. He grabbed more boards this season than a lot of big men did. That kind of tenacity and willingness to mix it up with the trees will definitely have teams considering moving up on him. He mixes it up with the bigs on offense as well, generating 4.5 free throw attempts a game.
There have been questions about his athleticism, but the combine helped him a little bit in that regard as he recorded a 31.5-inch standing vertical and 39-inch max vertical. He will have to show he’s quick enough to guard multiple positions as he’s certainly big enough to do so. Expect Podziemski to get a call in the first round, which means the Spurs would have to trade back in to get him.
