On Sept. 6 and Sept. 8, the G League Ignite squared off against the Perth Wildcats at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, NV.
Perth is a strong NBL team who was crowned champions of Australia's professional basketball league back in 2021.
This marks the second consecutive season that the Ignite have played a two game series against an impressive overseas opponent. Scoot Henderson and last year's Ignite team took on Victor Wembanyama and Metropolitans 92 in early October.
This season, both the Ignite and the Wildcats are loaded with NBA prospects, such as Ron Holland and Matas Buzelis for the Ignite as well as Perth's Alex Sarr.
Against game one against the Ignite, Sarr notched 17 points, seven rebounds, six blocks, one assist and one steal while shooting 6-of-13 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Sarr recorded an even better showing in his second matchup against the Ignite, tallyinh 26 points, 10 rebounds, six blocks and three assists.
While none of the three aforementioned players has the same expectations as Henderson or Wembanyama, all three will be in contention for the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NBA draft entering their respective seasons.
If all three perform as expected, then it should be a tight competition for who will hear their name called first in the upcoming draft.
After Sarr's solid outing against Holland, Buzelis and the Ignite, some have started to believe that the younger brother of Olivier Sarr could rise up draft boards as the season progresses.
According to Marc Spears, one NBA front office executive said that Alexandre Sarr is a, 'Very intriguing prospect. Top-5 pick. In the conversation for the No. 1 pick."
At only 18-years-old, Sarr is listed at 7-foot-1 with a 7-foot-5 wingspan, giving him the intangibles of a No. 1 pick. Last season, the French prospect played in the Overtime Elite league, a relatively new basketball league that also featured Amen and Ausar Thompson.
This season, Sarr will play against significantly better competition in the NBL. If the skilled big man is able to replicate what he did against the Ignite in one of the better professional leagues in the world, it would be a huge boost to his draft stock.
Earlier this year, Sarr helped lead the French national team to a silver medal in the 2023 U19 FIBA World Cup. Being the younger brother of a player who has been with Oklahoma City for multiple seasons, the Thunder will have undoubtedly done their homework on Sarr and could be a perfect destination for the young center if he shows the ability to coexist on-court with Chet Holmgren.
While the Thunder would likely love to have the younger Sarr brother on their roster, there is a good chance he is selected before OKC has a chance to select the coveted 7-footer.
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