Washington’s dismissal Wizards Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. shows how bad this season has been.
Now sitting with an abysmal 7-37 record, the Wizards have the second-best chance at landing the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft.
After watching Perth Wildcats center Alexandre Sarr and Colorado Buffaloes forward Cody Williams over the past two weeks, today we turn our attention to Serbian guard Nikola Topic.
This season, in the Serbian ABA league, Topic is averaging 16.3 points on 49 percent shooting, 6.1 assists and 3.5 rebounds.
The 18-year-old guard has plenty of size, standing 6’6″ and weighing 201 pounds.
He is, however, extremely crude, especially when it comes to shooting.
Bilal Coulibaly with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected seventh by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft at Barclays Arena.
Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Topic is shooting just 28 percent from three-point range and is making 4 of 3 shots per game.
In the NBA you have to be able to shoot, it will be very difficult for Topic to have a long NBA career if he doesn’t improve.
He makes a great first step and can drive to the rim, but when he gets to the championship the athletes will be much better and can stay in front of him.
The profile of the subject corresponds in some way to a Ricky Rubio type ceiling, pass the first point guard.
He is a great passer and makes everyone around him a better scorer.
Ball handling isn’t great, but he has a low turnover rate, so he won’t kill anyone that way.
Since he’s mostly a liability on defense, if that’s what you’re drafting for, Topic isn’t the guy.
This is going to be a struggle for Topic early in his career, so if he ends up in Washington, it will be important to remain patient and understand why he was drafted.
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