Notre Dame NBA Draft Q&A With CBS Sports' Sam Vecenie
Blue & Gold Illustrated caught up with CBS Sports writer Sam Vecenie to discuss the prospects of former Irish stars Demetrius Jackson and Zach Auguste heading into the upcoming NBA Draft.
On his list of Top 100 overall prospects, Vecenie ranks Jackson No. 18 overall and Auguste No. 82 entering the June 23 event.
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Mike Brey said he thinks Jackson will go in the 10 to 20 range. Does that sound about right on your end?
Vecenie: "Yep, exactly. The thing that will probably help Demetrius most is after [Providence's] Kris Dunn, there's a real dearth of point guard depth.
"I've got my big board broken down into tiers. Dunn is on Tier 1, and there's really no one on a Tier 2 level. On Tier 3 you've got [Kentucky's] Tyler Ulis, [Vanderbilt's] Wade Baldwin and Jackson.
"I think your sweet spots that you're looking at are the Utah Jazz at No. 12, they could use a point guard that's explosive like Demetrius. Milwaukee at No. 10 needs a point guard in general and could draft for fit. Chicago at No. 14 is interesting, as well as Denver at No. 15, Memphis at No. 17 and Detroit at No. 18. Denver comes back around at No. 19 and Indiana at No. 20 could look in the backcourt."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Some Notre Dame followers compare him to a poor man's [Thunder guard] Russell Westbrook. Any validity to that?
Vecenie: "Stylistically, I don't think Russ is all that far off. The problem is in the NBA, you can't really play like Russ unless you're Russ. So point guards that play like that in college often tone themselves down a bit in the NBA, in terms of the wild tendencies they can have.
"Really, though, the NBA doesn't have anyone right now that's too similar to Demetrius. He can shoot off the dribble and off the catch - even though he wasn't great at that this year - but he's really good in space, and he's a really powerful player.
"There's not really a guy that stands out to me in the league in terms of combining all those skills that he has."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: What's the aspect of his game teams like most about him?
Vecenie: "I think it's the athleticism and the ability to play in the pick and roll.
"The ability to play in the pick and roll is such an important skillset for modern point guards to have, and so Demetrius not only is an incredible athlete but he understands how to operate that. He understands how to get a guy on his back and keep him there. He understands how to maneuver around a screen and how to get the screener positioned.
"He does a lot of that stuff really well, and it's easy to see him thriving in the NBA because of that. There's more space in the midrange. Guys are more athletic, but with that space there's a little more time for him to make reads.
"It will be interesting to see how he translates, because with the way his style translates, it's a perfect fit for where the modern NBA is going."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: On the flip side, what does he need to work on the most?
Vecenie: "I think one thing he needs to do is provide more consistency in his effort defensively.
"I don't think we'd be talking out of turn to say Demetrius at times, and Notre Dame as a whole really, has struggled defensively. They've struggled to get stops when they need them, and a lot of times it's because they struggled to stop penetration.
"With Demetrius's skillset - he's quick, he's explosive and he has good hands honestly, in terms of getting his arms in the passing lanes and forcing turnovers. But he just doesn't always give the effort it seems like, in terms of him being the guy that knocks the offense out of whack a little bit at the point of attack, or fighting through screens.
"I think his skillset with his length and athleticism and strength - he's built like a house - lends itself to being a stronger defensive point guard. But right now, it's just not quite there yet.
"You have to hope his shooting bounces back as well, to where it was his first two years."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Do you think it was the right decision for him to go on and declare for the draft this year?
Vecenie: "In every capacity I think he made the right call.
"He's ready to go. Even though he didn't shoot as well this year, and even though he may not have defended at a high level, I don't necessarily know what more he was going to get out of being at Notre Dame, because he's shown he can shoot before and he has the tools to defend.
"Also, the point guard class next year is incredibly deep compared to this year. So I think basketball-wise it was certainly the right choice. It was his time and I think he'll benefit from it."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Moving on to Auguste, Brey said he thinks he's a fringe second rounder. Is that about where you have him pegged?
Vecenie: "First, let me say Mike Brey can be doing my job right now *laughs* - because typically college coaches don't give such accurate feedback about where their guys are.
"Zach is right around that range, though. He's scheduled workouts like a mad man. I was just at the Clippers facility when he was there to workout. Part of his interest around the league is probably because he didn't get invited to the combine with the new rules that allowed kids to declare and then return - there were eight guys who went to the combine and then returned, and Zach was probably one of the eight that was displaced by that.
"So the fact that teams want to see him is a really good sign, and it really wouldn't surprise me if he heard his name called at the end of the second round."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: One of the things you notice about Zach watching him all year is it seems like he's much more of a one-foot dunker than two. Some might consider that a weakness, but you suggested it might benefit him in the NBA.
Vecenie: "For him particularly, I think it's more important with him being a pick and roll big man who's hoping to maybe be able to step out and shoot.
"But he's a guy who's going to be diving to the rim all the time. So it's more beneficial in that situation to be a one-foot jumper because those guys get an extra split second there. If you jump off two feet off the move, you have to gather for a second, and that split second in the NBA really matters. It's the difference between a defender be able to rotate over or not.
"So it's a good thing for him to be a one-foot dunker when he's used a lot in pick and rolls with his mobility. He is eventually going to have to be able to explode off two feet, but as a starting point, you do like to see him off of one foot like you do now."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: You mentioned all the workouts he's doing. How vital are those to him getting selected? Or have scouts already mostly made their minds up?
Vecenie: "Their minds are mostly made up in terms of his play.
"I do think where his weaknesses are, you can go to these workouts - and more importantly, interviews with the teams - and you can prove to them you understand what you need to improve upon.
"Teams like to see that you have a grasp on what your game is, where you can improve on and how realistic that is. I think that's the most important part of team workouts.
"I personally fall on the side of I don't think they're all that beneficial in terms of going and watching them workout. The most important thing is what we don't get access to as media, which is when they meet with the team and have those discussions, and get to know the players.
"The actual play on the floor, it's the difference between rising just a couple spots, as opposed to sweeping changes."
Blue & Gold Illustrated: Looking ahead to next year's Notre Dame team, what have you seen out of rising senior forward V.J. Beachem? He tested the draft waters but obviously decided to come back to school.
Vecenie: "V.J. was a guy I had in my Top 100 when he decided to return to school.
"He's exactly what the NBA is looking for right now, in terms of an athletic wing. He's 6-8 with a 7-0 wingspan and can really shoot the ball. He has a gorgeous, quick shot.
"You can easily see him falling into a '3-and-D' role in the NBA where he knocks down open jumpers and defends. Now he does need to work on his defense, but given his tools and his skillset, it's easy to see him becoming that kind of elite defender that is so necessary for those type of players in the NBA.
"It's all going to come down to how hard he wants to work at it. If he wants to really become an elite defender this year, I think you could even talk about a first round pick, with his ability to shoot and attack the rim off of a closeout.
"There's a lot of skill there that you really like."