At this point in the college season, most teams have played at least a handful of games. As such, the sample size of data continues to increase which means individual players can be better evaluated. This is critical for talent evaluators and NBA teams as they continue to refine their respective 2024 NBA Draft boards.
There's always a handful of college athletes who don't get as much national attention as they deserve, but are incredible players that could make an impact at the next level. This is especially true for players that are competing in some of the less popular conferences that lack the national media attention.
For this week’s spotlight, we take a look at Sacramento State forward Duncan Powell, who has legitimate NBA talent.
Duncan Powell (Forward | Sacramento State Hornets)
6'8” | 240 lbs
Season Stats: 14.6 PPG | 11.6 RPG | 2.6 APG | 38.5% 3PT
Notable Accolades
After transferring from North Carolina A&T to Sacramento State, Powell has emerged as the top option for the Hornets. He is great at letting the offense come to him and not forcing shots. In several games already this season, he's been the most impactful player on the floor but took very minimal shots.
Powell is a good connector, flashing passing upside and the ability to help facilitate an effective offense. He has the height of a traditional four but can really play all five positions on that end of the floor.
Powell rates extremely highly with many of Cerebro Sports' advanced metrics, most notably a 10.8 C-RAM and a gold rating. This includes an 88 ATR and 84 PSP which aligns with his ability to score the ball effectively, especially around the rim. Powell's 66 DSI is also impressive as it relates to his ability to impact the defensive side of the ball.
NBA Upside
What's most impressive about Powell's start is the level of competition he has gone up against. While the Big Sky Conference is one of the most underrated group of teams in college basketball, the non-conference schedule for Sacramento State has been impressive. In the first few weeks of the season Powell has gone up against Nevada, Stanford and Tulane. All three of these teams have legit size on the interior and play physical, but that was no problem for the 6-foot-8 forward.
When it comes to production that translates, it's clear Powell can be an effective rebounder at any level. To this point in the season, he's sixth in the country in rebounds per contest. That rebounding upside at the NBA level along with his extremely strong frame should allow him to be a capable forward at the next level. Furthermore, if the handle continues to improve and 3-point shot is real, he could also slide down to the wing when needed.
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