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Latavious Williams' box score is pretty good for a 21-year-old with hopes of being selected in this Summer's NBA Draft:
In 30:53 off of the bench, Williams scored 19 points on 9-of-13 shooting and grabbed 16 rebounds, five of which came on the offensive end.
Sure, he was matched up against Shagari Alleyne, Sasha Cuic and company, but that's still rather impressive.
On Thursday, NBA draft scout Ryan Blake (son of Marty) told SI.com's Paul Forrester the following about Williams draft prospects:
"What a team needs to decide is whether he is worth the risk because right now he is not close to being a sure thing. He has some versatility and athleticism, but he's still a raw individual who doesn't have a lot of game experience. And if people are going to invest in that, that's a tough decision.
"When you come around to a second-round guy, you want somebody who's ready. It doesn't matter how athletic you are, it still ends up being a team-concept game and you need to put the ball on the floor and make yourself an offensive threat or be a defensive stopper. And if there are other guys out there who are more ready, then teams are not going to take that risk on Williams."
While I agree with everything Ryan has to say, I wonder if a team might take a flier on Williams based on his athleticism and rebounding alone. While he only averages seven points and 7.5 boards per game in less than 20 minutes of action per game, he's second in the entire D-League with rebounds per 48 minutes, trailing only Dwayne Jones.
With both Williams and Jeremy Wise (16.5 points, 5.2 assists, 53% FG) draft eligible, I wouldn't be surprised to see at least one D-League prospect drafted this Summer.
What do you think?
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