Memphis Hustle, G League Ignite Scouting Notes
The Hustle and Ignite played each other in a back-to-back last weekend. Some observations on the different standout players from both squads -- including Matas Buzelis, DeJon Jarreau, and more.
The Memphis Hustle played the G League Ignite in a back-to-back last weekend — handling them rather easily (125-105 in Game 1, 107-89 in Game 2). Grizzlies fans might have had this weekend circled, especially since they’re projected towards a lottery pick this season.
The Ignite probably had many scouts and evaluators make a U-turn, as projected lottery picks Matas Buzelis and Ron Holland were out in Game 1 — though the former played in Game 2.
In addition, the Hustle have some potentially 10-day candidates for the rest of the season, as all of these players have seen amplified roles due to call-up’s to the main roster.
Matas Buzelis
Game 1: DNP
Game 2: 16 points (8-18 from the field, 0-2 from 3, 0-1 from the free throw line), 13 rebounds (5 offensive), 3 assists (6 turnovers), 1 block, 0 steals in 40 minutes
Offense
Buzelis didn’t have the most efficient game, even though he showed some good flashes. His floor game is fluid for a player of his size — a legit 6’10” wing. His handle is nice, and he can make reads over the defense as a connective playmaker.
His physicality wavers. An encouraging element of his non-scoring skillset was his offensive rebounding, as he imposed himself into the mix to follow up on missed layup attempts. While he showed some intriguing advantage creation, he seemed reluctant to seeking more advantages because of resistance to contact.
Probably the most vital development to his game, his outside jumper was still absent — though he had an interesting step-back 3 attempt. This season, he’s shooting 26.9% from 3, per Synergy Sports.
Offense One Play
Buzelis sizes up his man off the catch. As he’s getting downhill, he utilized his footwork to detour after he couldn’t get all the way to the tin on the right. The ball-fake and pivot into a float jumper in the paint illustrates smooth body control and touch.
Defense
I was a bit disappointed to not see Buzelis impact the game much defensively. He’s been generating a fair amount of stocks for a teenager in the G League — 39 stocks (2.4 per game), per Synergy Sports. He’s solid at utilizing his size on contests, either near the rim or 3-point line. However, he also bit on too many fakes. Again, he seems pretty contact-adverse for a player his size.
Defense One Play
Off the side-action, Buzelis stifles the first drive attempt. Once Allen backs the ball out to try a different angle, Buzelis stonewalls his attempt to force a block around the elbow. This stop highlighted how Buzelis could be a key piece defending at the perimeter with his size.
Quick Outlook: It was a solid outing from Matas Buzelis, but as a potential high lottery pick, he didn’t provide a whole lot to really move the needle. A good chunk of big wings in this draft offer connective playmaker and solid defense, though they have better jumpers than Buzelis. It’s easily his biggest swing skill.
Adonis Arms
Game 1: 23 points (8-14 from the field, 3-6 from 3, 3-3 from the free throw line), 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block, 0 assists (4 turnovers) in 31 minutes
Game 2: 27 points (11-17 from the field, 5-8 from 3), 11 rebounds (3 offensive), 3 assists (2 turnovers), 2 blocks, 1 steal in 30 minutes
Offense
Adonis Arms has been thrusted into a featured “co-pilot” role alongside DeJon Jarreau, with the assignments of GG Jackson, Jacob Gilyard, and Matthew Hurt. He’s a crafty ball-handler, but doesn’t seem as comfortable with a larger playmaking load — as he’s better capitalizing off advantage and side-actions.
He’s superb in movement. His shooting was electric last weekend, connecting on 8 of his 14 three-point attempts, and his marksmanship is a perfect pair with Jarreau’s drive attack. Arms is a gifted athlete capable of exploding to the basket and finishing with craft in the midst of contact.
Offense One Play
A good encapsulation of Adonis Arms’ movement shooting, and an example of how the Grizzlies also utilize screens to free shooters — Arms sets the ghost screen, then catches a veer-type screen for a clean look from 3.
Defense
There’s a lot to take away from Arms’ skillset defensively. Immediately when watching his game, he uses defense to fuel offense. He seeks early offense in grab-and-go rebounding situations. He generates defensive events with his quick hands, help-defense, and his hustle — from there, he’s locked in on finishing in transition. At 6’6”, he possesses a great frame to absorb contact and bother drivers at the point-of-attack.
Defense One Play
On this drive, Arms maintains a strong presence at the point-of-attack. Even though the driver tries to get Arms on his hip, Arms leveraged his physicality to alter the drive without fouling.
Quick Outlook: With his movement shooting, size, athleticism, and defensive tools, Arms has a clear 3-and-D outline worth a flier on a 10-day or 2-way contract.
DeJon Jarreau
Game 1: 20 points (8-17 from the field, 2-5 from 3, 2-3 from the free throw line), 11 assists (6 turnovers), 8 rebounds, 2 steal, 0 blocks in 37 minutes
Game 2: 17 points (6-11 from the field, 1-2 from 3, 2-3 from the free throw line), 7 rebounds, 7 assists (3 turnovers), 3 steals, 0 blocks in 31 minutes
Offense
Jarreau has the keys to the Memphis Hustle offense, with two-way players Jacob Gilyard, GG Jackson, and Scotty Pippen Jr. on the main roster. He’s such a fun offensive player.
He keeps the ball on a string with his ball-handling. He’s incredibly shifty downhill — weaving through traffic, and possessing great footwork on his gather steps and craft on his finishes. As the lead playmaker, his timing on drive-and-kick’s is impeccable, as he draws the defense in on his drives and exploits the collapses with creative dishes to shooters.
He could be a bit overtaxed in a lead playmaking, as the ball could be a bit stuck to him and lead to turnovers. However, it’s not detrimental to the offensive flow. He’s orchestrating the offense quite well, and is doing so in style.
Offense One Play
Off the rebound, Jarreau seeks out transition offense. Jarreau finds the right matchup and driving lane off the screen, weaving his way through traffic for the tough finish.
Defense
Jarreau is also shouldering point-of-attack responsibilities, taking on the assignment of the Ignite’s primary initiators. He possesses the size and length to bother ball-handlers. He stays light on his feet defensively to navigate screens and to come away with defensive events. Overshadowed by his dazzling offense, he has the tools to be solid perimeter defender.
Defense One Play:
Jarraeu’s navigation is so sound here. Not falling for the array of dribble moves, he weaves through an abundance of player movement and screens to stick onto Dink Pate to create a tough contest on the mid-range jumper.
Quick Outlook: DeJon Jarreau won’t be a primary playmaker at the NBA level, but he can be a solid wing in a bench role where he provides energetic defense, rim pressure, and playmaking.
Tyler Smith
Game 1: 22 points (8-12 from the field, 4-7 from 3, 3-3 from the free throw line), 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 assists (0 turnovers), 0 steals in 31 minutes
Game 2: DNP
Offense
I was a bit disappointed to not see Tyler Smith in action for game 2, but his performance in game 1 lived up to his billing. As a 6’10” forward, he’s a fluid mover. He’s a threat as a screener as either a roller or popper.
The Ignite offense loves to find him as a trailer for 3’s. Whether it’s from 3 or in the mid-range, his touch is so feathery for a player his size.
He didn’t get many playmaking opportunities, but he didn’t really make any mistakes either — one assist that did stand out was a give-and-go hand-off, which illustrated quick processing to create a cleaner look for the shooter.
Defense
Defensively, Smith is smooth off his feet. There were times where his hip movement wasn’t great defending the perimeter. However, he’s capable of defending in spaces in primary assignments or off switches. He has the size and vertical pop to offer a formidable contest at the rim.
He probably needs more time to learn the intricacies of processing a NBA defense, but he has an interesting foundation with his tools and flashes.
One Play
Nothing provides intriguing flashes from a 6’11” big man like a combo meal — block into a 3. Smith stays on the hip off the driver to swat the layup. Then he follows it up with a trailer 3 on the other end.
Quick Outlook: Smith has a fascinating skillset for a 6’11” forward with his outside shooting and fluidity — and could pop in the right, patient environment.
Izan Almansa
Game 1: 17 points (5-8 from the field, 0-1 from 3, 4-7 from the free throw line), 4 assists (0 turnovers), 2 rebounds, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 24 minutes
Game 2: 10 points (3-9 from the field, 0-0 from 3, 2-4 from the free throw line), 8 rebounds (3 offensive), 2 assists (1 turnover), 1 steals, 0 blocks in 41 minutes
Offense
Almansa’s offense was pretty inconsistent. His touch wavers — as it can be soft around the rim here and there, but straight line-drives (evident in free throws) create inconsistency. Even with spotty shooting, efficiency-wise, he showed good acumen in the post and off pick-and-roll’s.
He’s a non-shooter, and defenses know it, as they pay no attention to it. While it’s not ideal for spacing, Almansa’s work as a DHO hub could generate looks for his teammates from the 3-point line or in the mid-range.
Offense One Play
A clear example of Almansa’s offensive role in the league. From the elbow, he flows into a DHO with Matas Buzelis. As Buzelis rounds the corner, Almansa makes himself available off the roll, even though it turns into an assist from the big man.
Defense
Almansa has moments as a defender, but he’s just relatively meh on that side of the floor right now. The Ignite defense has him come up to the level of the screen, and even switch onto ball-handlers. He holds his own fine with his nimbleness on his feet. Because of this defensive coverage, he don’t see him around the rim as much to really judge his presence as a rim deterrent — though from this sample, he’s just not imposing around the rim with his size or impact.
Defense One Play:
Almansa’s presence here was felt — both pressuring the big in the handoff action, and switching on to Arms off the screen. He keeps his hand active, as Love is trying to find the next pass. He drops in the first DHO action, and then switches onto Arms at the nail to force a contested fadeaway jumper.
Quick outlook: Almansa still possesses an interesting skillset as a connective big man that can be a good defender in the right scheme. Though I don’t have the same opinion on him as I did in the preseason (lottery), he’s someone I foresee outplaying his draft slot.
Cameron McGriff
Game 1: 28 points (10-14 from the field, 0-1 from 3, 4-7 from the free throw line), 5 assists (0 turnovers), 4 rebounds, 0 steals, 0 blocks in 30 minutes
Game 2: 18 points (6-6 from the field, 3-3 from 3, 2-2 from the free throw line), 3 steals, 1 rebound, 1 block, 0 assists (0 turnover) in 18 minutes
Offense
Cameron McGriff is a fun offensive player that plays with a lot of pop, a scoring weapon that can light up the scoreboard in a flurry. He’s capable of stopping on a dime and splashing contested 3’s off the dribble just as well as he can explode to the rim for a thunderous throw-down. Operating more as a small-ball 5, the Hustle utilized him in a pick-and-roll actions to give him a launching pad to the rim.
Defense
The “small-ball 5” might not be the most ideal spot for McGriff, as his size hinders his rim deterrence to an extent. However, he leverages his leaping ability to protect the rim. In space, he’s an aggressive defender that utilizes his physicality and quick hands to generate defensive events.
One Play
I had to include this one. McGriff ignites transition offense by pressuring the big — something I want to see more of in general against Delay actions — and popping the ball for a steal. Then, he explodes his transition to take flight for the alley oop.
Quick outlook: Cameron McGriff is a funky player from a positional standpoint, leaving his NBA outlook a bit murky, but he’s certainly an impactful two-way player that makes eye-popping plays.
Other Notes
Jason March secured his 100th career win as a G League coach, the biggest takeaway of the weekend. While it slides under the radar in Southaven, March has done a terrific job coaching the Hustle. Assignment and two-way players are ready when their numbers are called on the main roster. The system keeps humming, and wins keep coming, even when players are in and out of the lineup because of assignments or call-up’s — have had Jason Preston and Matthew Hurt called up this season. He's the type of coach organizations should want in their G League with his system, player development, and collaboration with the main roster.
Dink Pate is the G League Ignite’s two-year guy, as he won’t be draft-eligible until 2025. Obviously, the results are mixed with a 17-year-old lead ball-handler. However, he’s an interesting player to monitor going forward. He’s a 6’7” guard with fluid handling and with a sweet in-between game.
Babacar Sane is an erratic prospect, especially offensively. However, he could do well with a role recalibration centered around being an energy forward, as he crashes the glass well for second-chance opportunities.
The Ignite needs a better infrastructure. They seem so disorganized, and it seems to be a stock crusher for Buzelis, Almansa, Smith and Ron Holland. They have veterans. John Jenkins is solid, but Gabe York and Norris Cole aren’t the point guards I’d pair with their young guys. They need a legit table-setter. They could also use a big man to help glue up their interior defense and crash on the glass. With NIL making college basketball a more viable option, the G League needs to find a way to maximize the Ignite, before it becomes a less attractive alternative.
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