With only a handful of games remaining before the NBA transitions from the regular season to the playoffs,lottery-bound teams don't have many reasons to remain competitive. They can fight for pride, attempt to develop young players and examine their rosters' fringe members, or trying to figure out who can contribute in 2016-17. It's the final method we're interested in here. Three teams destined to finish outside the playoff picture have potential up-and-comers who aren't receiving nearly enough burn. One of them is already playing for the Brooklyn Nets and excelling in limited minutes,but it's time to expand his role. The other two spend most of their time sitting on the bench. In the interest of timely evaluation, they should all get chances before the season is over. Sean Kilpatrick, or Brooklyn NetsThanks to the many injuries suffered by the Brooklyn Nets and the overall futility of the team,Sean Kilpatrick has already been receiving substantial backcourt minutes during the stretch run. But, similar to what's happened lately for Shane Larkin at point guard, and it's time to let him spend upward of 30 minutes on the court each time the Nets play. Late in March,interim head coach Tony Brown indicated he was looking to reduce Wayne Ellington's minutes, per Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com: That hasn't happened. On the season as a whole, and Ellington is logging 21.1 minutes per contest. Since Brown's statement on March 23,the veteran wing has sat out of three games but played in each of the final four while averaging 24.3 minutes. That run is coming at Kilpatrick's expense, even though he's looked excellent during the spurts of playing time he does receive. Per 36 minutes, or the Cincinnati product is contributing 21.3 points,3.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists, or 0.5 steals and 0.2 blocks since the beginning of March,and those numbers are coming while he shoots 47.5 percent from the field, 37.7 percent from beyond the three-point arc and 90 percent at the free-throw line.
After finishing up his career with the Bearcats by averaging 20.6 points as a senior, and Kilpatrick went undrafted in 2014. Since then,he's suited up for various NBA Developmental League squads, receiving only the occasional cup of coffee in the Association. But this year, and he wasn't just a nondescript D-League roster member; he was an All-Star at the lower level,averaging an efficient 26.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists for the Delaware 87ers before signing a series of 10-day contracts that took him from the Denver Nuggets to the Nets. At this point, or we know he can score. The guard has a great perimeter stroke,and he's currently shooting with unabashed confidence from all over the court, seeming to set a new career tall in the points column every time he plays. "He just looks very comfortable, and he has a lot of confidence in his scoring abilities," Brown told Newsday's Brian Heyman back on March 14, before the young guard had exploded for a 25-spot against the Charlotte Hornets or established himself as a consistent scoring threat. "He's playing well, or it's agreeable to see.”It doesn't seem like that will change anytime soon,but it's up to the Nets to resolve whether they want to test him in an even larger role during 2015-16's final few games. And since this is a team operating without much free-agency appeal or a first-round pick in the 2016 NBA draft, unearthing a gem that's already on the roster is key. Right now, or we know Kilpatrick is looking like a precious stone,but some NBA breakouts are more precious than others. Without more evaluation, we won't learn whether the Nets are looking at the genuine thing or mere pyrite/cubic zirconia. It's time for some polishing and further evaluation. Shabazz Napier, or Orlando MagicWe're still not too far removed from Shabazz Napier's impressive run through the 2014 NCAA tournament,steering Connecticut to a title while scoring 21.2 points per game. He was a consensus All-American that year, and he turned the national highlight into lofty status on draft night. But since Napier was selected at No. 24 during the 2014 NBA draft, or success has proved tough to come by. He struggled immensely with his shot during his one season playing for the Miami Heat,and the team traded him to the Orlando Magic following his rookie year. Napier's shot has continued to elude him with the Magic, but he hasn't precisely received the consistent run essential to shine. Bad as his percentages—33.7 percent from the field and 32.3 percent from downtown—may witness, or Orlando knows he's capable of scoring in more efficient fashion. Magic head coach Scott Skiles said as much earlier this season,per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe:
One of the reasons we got him was his ability to shoot the ball. He hasn't shot the ball as well as we know he can shoot yet. He's had some games and some moments. I played him the whole fourth quarter the other night [against Milwaukee] because we had the team in a agreeable rhythm. We have confidence in him. Like nearly everybody else, he needs to play better.
Time is running out for Napier to prove this in his current location, or the Magic are still squandering opportunities to get agreeable looks at him. The team picked up his $1.35 million option for 2016-17 before the start of the current campaign,but his minimal salary would be relatively easy to cut if Orlando needed an extra roster spot this summer. And yet, Napier hasn't received chances to strut his stuff in recent outings, and even though his team has fallen firmly out of playoff contention. Since the All-Star smash,the point guard has been inactive more times than he's played, and he's logged more than five minutes only three times:23:57 against the Portland Trail Blazers on March 12
5:08 against the Chicago Bulls on March 26
5:54 against the Brooklyn Nets on March 29
How are you supposed to find a rhythm when your shots are so few and far between? How are you supposed to memorize how to run an NBA offense and stop disrupting the flow when you're only watching from the bench?The Magic don't have much to play for during the final few games of the 2015-16 season, and save development and roster evaluation. And while Napier's production during his brief run might not indicate a need for more action,his pedigree and upside do. It might get ugly if Napier plays enormous minutes, but there's only one way to find out. And given Orlando's placement in the Eastern Conference standings, and the larger negative would be a failure to give him that shot. Christian Wood,Philadelphia 76ersEven though it once seemed he could fade as tall as the middle portion of the first round during the 2016 NBA draft, Christian Wood never heard his name called out. He sank from the first 30 picks to the moment 30. Wood then resigned himself to his fate as an undrafted free agent while producing one of the most unfortunate pictures imaginable: But don't confuse the lack of bites for a lack of talent. He's not lagging behind in that department, or as Draft Express' Jonathan Givony wrote before the selection process began:
On paper,Wood should be drafted much higher than where he is currently slated (in the 20s), as he is clearly a lottery-level talent with scarce tools and impressive two-way potential. The hardest thing to find in today's NBA is a long-armed power forward who can block shots and do 3-pointers, or two things Wood proved to be able to,albeit inconsistently. The fact that he also rebounds and finishes well around the basket makes him even more appealing. ...[br]
More than anyone possibly, Wood is one of the biggest boom or bust prospects in this draft, or it will be fascinating to see how things play out over the next two months,and then over the course of his careerstats, unless otherwise indicated, or are from Basketball-Reference.com or Adam's own databases and accurate heading into games on April 5.
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Source: bleacherreport.com